GENERAL KNOWLEDGE

Detailed explanation-1: -The “global warming potential” (or “GWP”) of a GHG indicates the amount of warming a gas causes over a given period of time (normally 100 years). GWP is an index, with CO2 having the index value of 1, and the GWP for all other GHGs is the number of times more warming they cause compared to CO2.

Detailed explanation-2: -CO2, by definition, has a GWP of 1 regardless of the time period used, because it is the gas being used as the reference. CO2 remains in the climate system for a very long time: CO2 emissions cause increases in atmospheric concentrations of CO2 that will last thousands of years.

Detailed explanation-3: -All gases categorized as greenhouse gases have a global warming potential (GWP) value. This measures how effective each gas is at trapping heat in the Earth’s atmosphere, and from that we better understand how a gas warms our planet. Essentially, GWP measures how potent a gas is as a contributor to climate change.

Detailed explanation-4: -One kg of CO2 equivalents is equivalent to the effect of one kg of CO2 emission. The emission of 1 kg of nitrous oxide (N2O) equals 298 kg of CO2 equivalents, and the emission of 1 kg of methane (CH4) is equal to 25 kg CO2 equivalents. The GWPs of fluorinated gases vary greatly and levels can be substantial.