Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS
committed to democracy and a market economy
to compare policy experiences, seek and discuss
answers to problems, and coordinate international
and domestic policies.
Scope 1 Emissions:
All direct greenhouse gas
emissions (The Greenhouse Gas Protocol, 2010).
Scope 2 Emissions:
Indirect GHG emissions
from consumption of purchased electricity, heat
or steam (The Greenhouse Gas Protocol, 2010).
Scope 3 Emissions:
Other indirect emissions,
such as the extraction and production of purchased
materials and fuels, transport-related activities in
vehicles not owned or controlled by the reporting
entity, electricity-related activities not covered in
Scope 2, outsourced activities, waste disposal, etc.
(The Greenhouse Gas Protocol, 2010).
United Nations Global Compact (UNGC):
The compact is an initiative to bring together
corporations throughout the world and encourage
them to integrate sustainable and socially respon-
sible practices into their business model. UNGC
has ten principles that it asks business to adopt
in the areas of human rights, labor, environment
and anti-corruption.
Carbon/Emissions Disclosure:
When an en-
tity makes its greenhouse gas emissions quantities
public, it is said to be disclosing its emissions or the
amount of carbon it is responsible for generating.
Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP):
An orga-
nization that collects and makes public, data on
corporate greenhouse gas emissions levels and
energy and greenhouse gas management plans.
CDP is independent, non-governmental and not-
for-profit.
Caring for Climate (C4C) Platform:
This
voluntary program is part of the United Nations
Global Compact. It creates an opportunity for
companies to demonstrate their commitment
to combating climate change. These companies
pledge to take practical actions to increase energy
efficiency, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and
set voluntary targets towards these goals. The
companies also agree to publicly disclose their
progress towards these targets annually via the
UN Global Compact's annual Communications
of Progress.
Direct Emissions:
Emissions that result from
a reaction that occurs at a source controlled by
the reporting company (The Greenhouse Gas
Protocol, 2010).
Indirect Emissions:
Emissions from a reac-
tion that is occurring at a source that is NOT
controlled by the reporting company. However,
these emissions occur as a result of product or
service demands made by the reporting company
(The Greenhouse Gas Protocol, 2010).
OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-
operation and Development) Countries:
OECD
membership is one measure of the level of develop-
ment and economic, social and political stability
of a country. This organization has 30 member
countries that are primarily high-income econo-
mies with a high Human Development Index.
The organization provides a forum for countries
ENDNOTES
1
The data presented in this report are based on
publicly available sources: primarily COPs
submitted to UNGC and reports from the
CDP, for firms participating in that parallel
program. Given the multiple data sources
utilized and the volume of data scrutinized, it
is possible that errors or omissions occurred.
We wish to enlist the signatories themselves
in this assessment of progress. If errors or
omissions are apparent in this overview,
please contact the authors with corrections.
The analyses will be updated regularly. The
data set was most recently updated in January
