New tools introduced for calculating emissions

New York Times : Two new tools for calculating greenhouse gas emissions are being announced today. The World Resources Institute and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development first established guidelines for greenhouse gases in 2004. Those guidelines covered emissions from direct operations such as running a factory and emissions from energy-related, indirect sources such as the coal or natural gas burned to make the electricity that powers the lights at headquarters. One new tool provides a way of calculating the amount of climate-warming gases released through a company’s supply chain; the other offers a way of calculating, across a consumer product’s life cycle, the emissions of carbon dioxide, methane, and four other gases linked to climate change. Advocates claim that the mere act of measuring greenhouse gas emissions encourages companies to manage and reduce what they emit.