February 10, 2010

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Home > FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

What are greenhouse gases?
What is the National Inventory Report?
What are Sinks?
Why do we need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions?
What emissions are associated with the Upstream Oil and Gas industry?
What emissions are associated with Electric Power Generation in Canada?
What emissions are associated with the Petroleum industry in Canada?
What land-use and land-use change activities generate greenhouse gas emissions or removals?
What emissions result from transportation?
What are the sources of emissions in the Waste sector?

What are greenhouse gases?

Greenhouse gases (GHGs) are gases in the atmosphere that trap energy from the sun. Naturally occurring GHGs include water vapour, ozone, carbon dioxide (CO₂), methane (CH₄), and nitrous oxide (N₂O). Without them, the Earth's average temperature would be about 33°C lower than it is, making the climate too cold to support life (Schneider, 1989). While these naturally occurring gases are what make life possible, a serious concern today is the enhanced effect on the climate system of increased levels of some of these gases in the atmosphere, due mainly to human activities

What is the National Inventory Report?

As a signatory to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Canada is obliged to submit an inventory report of its GHG emissions on an annual basis, using an internationally agreed-to format. The Inventory monitors six gases: carbon dioxide (CO₂) methane (CH₄), nitrous oxide (N₂O), sulphur hexafluoride (SF₆), perfluorocarbons (PFC s) and hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) and provides an analysis of the factors underlying the trends in emissions since 1990. Emissions and removals are grouped into six sectors: Energy, Industrial Processes, Solvent and Other Product Use, Agriculture, Land Use, Land-Use Change and Forestry, and Waste.

What are Sinks

The UNFCCC defines a sink as "any process, activity or mechanism which removes a greenhouse gas, an aerosol, or a precursor of a greenhouse gas from the atmosphere." The UNFCCC addresses all "anthropogenic emissions and removals". The term anthropogenic is not so easily applied to land-use (agriculture and forestry) and land-use change activities, that involve both natural and human-induced processes and that can have both a source and a sink term.

Because of the cyclical nature and varying timeframes involved in realizing the benefits from natural or biological systems, particularly forest systems, and because of the dominating influence of natural forests in countries such as ours, it is Canada's view that any legally binding instrument must treat land-use and land-use change activities, as well as sources and sinks, in a balanced manner.

Why do we need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions?

Recent data indicate that the global mean surface air temperature has increased by between 0.2 and 0.6°C since the late 19th century, while Canada's mean has increased by about 1°C (IPCC, 1996b, 2001). Some models predict that the Earth's average temperature might increase by about 0.3°C per decade over the next 100 years if this increasing trend in GHG concentrations is not altered.

A warming of this magnitude could significantly alter the Earth's climate. Storm patterns and severity might increase, a rise in sea level would displace millions of coastal residents, and regional droughts and flooding could occur. Canada's agriculture, forestry, and energy sectors could all be significantly affected.

What emissions are associated with the Upstream Oil and Gas industry?

Emissions from the Upstream Industry are those associated with oil and natural gas exploration, production and transport, and include:

• fugitive emissions during exploration, production and transport;
• emissions from the extraction of hydrogen from natural gas (used in heavy oil upgrading);
• combustion emissions from producer generated fuel for the exploration and extraction of oil and gas, the upgrading of oilsands, as well as the transport and distribution of natural gas (including compressor station fuel consumption).

What emissions are associated with Electric Power Generation in Canada?

The Electricity Generation sector is comprised of greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuel combustion from thermal generation in Canada, whether from a utility or from industry. Only a portion of Canada's generation is responsible for greenhouse gas emissions. In 1999, about 26% of the total 558 Terawatthours (TWh) generated were from greenhouse gas emitting thermal generation sources (coal, oil, natural gas and petroleum coke). The remainder was from non-emitting sources such as hydro and nuclear, with a minor portion from biomass and wind.

What emissions are associated with the Petroleum industry in Canada?

80% of these emissions are created in the extraction and product conditioning of crude oil, heavy oil sands and natural gas, through either combustion for mining/extraction or fugitive emissions at the source of production.

What land-use and land-use change activities generate greenhouse gas emissions or removals?

Forest management activities (e.g. logging, reforestation, afforestation, deforestation), human-induced fires, and changes in the way land is used all contribute to greenhouse gas emissions and removals. Greenhouse gases are emitted to the atmosphere through the decomposition or burning of living and dead organic matter. They are absorbed by vegetation through photosynthesis and stored in biomass and in soils. Both emissions and removals of greenhouse gases are large fluxes resulting from minute processes dispersed over a vast land area. Changes in land-use practices directly alter the size and rate of these natural exchanges of greenhouse gases between the terrestrial landscape and the atmosphere, both in the present and over long time periods. Understanding and measuring the components of these natural fluxes that are due to human intervention represent unique scientific and accounting challenges.

What emissions result from transportation?

Greenhouse gas emissions are produced from the consumption of fossil fuels to move passengers, freight and bulk commodities throughout Canada. The sector may be broken into five distinct sub-categories: on-road transportation (e.g. cars, light trucks, minvans, truck freight, etc.), air, marine, rail, and off-road transporation (e.g. agricultural and construction equipment, etc.).

What are the sources of emissions in the Waste sector?

The major sources of greenhouse gas emissions in the Waste sector are solid waste disposal in landfills, wastewater handling and waste incineration. These emissions consist almost completely of methane (up to 95%). Much of the waste treated or disposed is biomass or biomass-based. The carbon dioxide emissions attributable to such wastes are not accounted for in the national inventory. In theory, there are no net emissions if the biomass is sustainable harvested. For example, biomass originating from food wastes is sustainable harvested. Carbon dioxide emitted from the decomposition of food will be consumed by next year's crop. If biomass is harvested at an unsustainable rate (for example, faster than the annual regrowth), net carbon dioxide emissions will be accounted for as a loss of biomass stocks in the Land-Use Change and Forestry sector.