The pressure is on. UK legislation is increasingly asking for annual disclosures of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Stakeholders are clamouring for carbon transparency. As an ESG Manager, navigating the world of GHG accounting can feel overwhelming – you’ve got conflicting priorities, you work in a knowledge-based discipline that is snowballing each week and this is all taxing on your poor brain – so where do you start?
This guide will equip you with the knowledge and tools to streamline the process and effectively measure your company’s environmental impact (without adding additional stress).
What is GHG Accounting?
Think of GHG accounting as a detailed inventory of your company’s climate impact. It involves measuring, quantifying, and managing the greenhouse gases emitted by your operations, from energy use to transportation. It’s like a financial audit, but for your carbon footprint.
Why does it matter?
The old adage, “you can’t manage what you don’t measure,” rings especially true for GHG emissions. Here’s why understanding your carbon footprint is crucial:
- Quantifiable data empowers you to make informed, sustainable decisions for your business.
- Demonstrating environmental responsibility attracts eco-conscious customers, investors, and talent.
- Proactive GHG accounting ensures compliance with regulations and helps mitigate risks associated with high emissions.
- Reducing your carbon footprint improves operational efficiency and creates long-term value for your business.
Here’s how you can streamline your GHG Accounting process…
Transitioning into GHG accounting doesn’t have to be complex. Here’s a practical approach to get started:
1. Know your scopes
- Start by identifying the scopes relevant to your business.
- Scope 1 is the direct emissions from your companies owned or controlled sources (e.g. factory or office emissions and company owned vehicle emissions)
- Scope 2 is the indirect emissions from things like purchased electricity, heat, or cooling systems
Scope 3 is all other indirect emissions across your value chain (e.g. business travel, employees commuting, your supplier’s operations and waste disposal)
2. Gather data
Identify what information your company already collects (e.g. existing data from energy bills and travel expenses).
- Pinpoint gaps where data is missing and determine how to collect it.
- Start with readily available information and gradually expand your data collection efforts.
- Start small, and improve from there.
3. Build your GHG toolkit
An excellent place to start is using a spreadsheet. This is a low cost option to record and calculate your own emission factors, but it will require ongoing maintenance, checking and improvements.
Free online calculators like Normative.io provides a high-level calculation based on spend data, but may not cover the entire value chain and is foremost designed for SMEs.
For larger organisations with budget for specialist software and capacity and expertise in house, there are a multitude of platforms available like Watershed, Emitwise, Greenly, Sweep, Persefoni to name a few. These software solutions automate processes and can save you time.
For smaller organisations, or just those that want more of a critical and expert partner, you may decide to work with a consultancy, like Greenheart. We can offer strategic advice and provide our hands-on expertise whilst cultivating capacity within your own team. We often work in partnership with Carbon+Alt+Delete to offer streamlined and efficient GHG management software solutions for our clients. This allows our clients to take control of their own emissions, meaning we have more time to spend on the emission reduction advice. Everything we do is with the future in mind, for our planet and for your business and its people.
There’s no general purpose solution and each company and team comes with its own unique variables and constraints. Consider the complexity of your operations, budget availability, and available resources to decide whether DIY calculations, online tools, software, a consultant or a combination works best for you.
We believe in empowering companies to “own” their carbon footprint. While software and consultants offer valuable support, ultimately, internal knowledge is key. Our advice is to look for solutions that provide guidance while building your in-house capabilities. This fosters long-term sustainability practices and positions your company as a responsible leader in the fight against climate change.
If you like what you’re hearing and think you might want to work together to build a more sustainable future, email contact@greenheartbusiness.com
