There is a growing interest in understanding the life cycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated with U.S. natural gas production and exports. Life Cycle Assessments (LCA) can be specific to GHGs (carbon foot-printing) to inform emissions reduction opportunities along the natural gas supply chain and support the understanding of emissions intensities of supply chains. Growing interest in life cycle GHG emissions from natural gas systems is hindered by modeling complexity and other factors, including expertise.
To demonstrate an approach that would enable wider use of life cycle assessment tools in public policy and corporate strategies across the natural gas supply chain, the NPC supported research by McGill University (Montreal, Quebec, CAN) and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL, Golden, CO, USA) and cooperated in the development of an open-source, user-defined, simplified, and streamlined natural gas well-to-gate life cycle assessment model (SLiNG-GHG) that can generate reasonably representative, screening-level GHG emissions estimates. The SLiNG-GHG model was developed to focus on the key GHG emission sources from the natural gas supply chain, as informed from past published literature as well as subject matter experts involved in the study. By focusing on the key sources of emissions, SLiNG-GHG is easier for non-LCA experts to use.
IMPORTANT: The SLiNG-GHG model was developed under an agreement between the National Petroleum Council (NPC) and McGill University and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL, Golden, CO, USA) to support the NPC GHG Emissions study. The model was used to support analysis for the study and to facilitate related modeling but is not itself approved by the Council as part of its report. The design and function of, and access to, the SLiNG model, any changes to the model, and the host website, are the work of McGill University, which is solely responsible for its function and content.
To support the understanding and use of the SLiNG model, McGill University prepared a user guide for the for the SLiNG model and the NPC study. The user guide is available here LINK.
The Council has approved providing access to the SLiNG model and user guide through McGill University at the above links. For information on how the study analysis used the SLiNG model, please refer to Chapter 4 in the Charting the Course report.