By meeting various internal, and external requirements, businesses and stakeholders alike benefit from using this common standard as costs are reduced, and reported information makes progress easier to track.

The report highlights the necessity of the limitation of CO2 emissions. If global net negative CO2 emissions were to be achieved and sustained, the subsequent global surface temperature increase would gradually be reversed. In fact, measures implemented in 2020 to reduce the spread of COVID-19 resulted in a temporary, but nonetheless, detectable effect on improvement in air quality. However, these improvements are not sufficient. If we aim for a future consisting of low GHG emissions, it will strongly limit the intensity of climate risks.

To support companies in their journey to measure and achieve sustainability, the GHG Protocol entails different standards to provide a framework specific to various organisations. The most important standards fall into four categories:

The Product Standard:

Used to understand the full life cycle emissions of a product and focus efforts of the greatest GHG reduction opportunities.

The Corporate Standard:

Provides requirements and guidance for companies and other organisations, such as NGOs, government agencies, and universities, that are preparing a corporate-level GHG emissions inventory.

The Corporate Value Chain (Scope 3) Standard:

Allows companies to assess their entire value chain emissions impact and identify where to focus reduction activities.

The Project Protocol:

This is the most comprehensive, policy-neutral accounting tool for quantifying the GHG benefits of climate change mitigation projects.

To better manage the full spectrum of GHG risks and opportunities that exist along a company´s value chain, GHG emissions are categorised into three scopes:

Scope 1: Direct GHG Emissions

Emissions that occur directly from sources that are owned or controlled by the company such as, emissions from company vehicles or furnaces etc.

Scope 2: Electricity indirect GHG emissions

This scope accounts for GHG emissions that occur indirectly from purchased sources such as, purchased electricity, steam heating or cooling.

Scope 3: Other indirect GHG emissions

These emissions occur as a consequence of the company’s activities, but the sources are not actually owned or controlled by the company. These indirect emissions occur within the upstream supply chain (e.g., production of purchased materials) and downstream (e.g., product usage). Other examples of Scope 3 emissions are those produced by employee business travel, waste disposal and outsourced activities. This scope usually accounts for most of a company´s emissions, and can be complicated to calculate.

The GHG Protocol identifies, explains, and provides the best options for GHG inventory practices. It is a document that goes hand in hand with the ISO (International Standards Organisation) 14064.

So, what is ISO 14064?

ISO 14064 is a specification designed to define how to quantify and report GHG emissions and how these GHG reports can be verified. It establishes an international standard for GHG inventories and is considered “policy neutral” in that it can be applicable regardless of a country´s current climate change policy.

The standard is a reliable, proven framework for quantifying emissions and helps companies identify individual sources of emissions, energy usage, and vehicle usage. This in turn will help pin-point areas in need of improvement within a company´s value chain, set targets and even lower costs (e.g., through lower energy usage).

The ISO 14064 consists of three parts:

• Part 1 addresses the conducting of GHG emission inventories of organisations using a ´bottom up´ approach to data collection, consolidation and emissions quantification.

• Part 2 addresses quantification and reporting of emission reductions from project activities.

• Part 3 establishes a process for verification of a GHG statement including organisation inventories. This verification process is applicable whether an independent third-party verifier, or an organisation´s internal auditors are conducting the verification.

ISO 14064 Role

The ISO 14064 does not provide certification- it is classed as verification. So, there are options for this process, with each option providing it´s own benefits.

Self verification

The self-verification method, consists of company´s quantifying their own data and making internal decisions based on their GHG inventory. It may lead to less credibility since this is essentially an internal job.

Second party

With second-party verification, an external body (such as Carbon Managers) will quantify a company´s data and preform an audit. The benefits of using a second party to verify is the access to proffesional expertise and experience.

Third party

The third party verification system involves an UKAS accredited certification body (BSI or NQU), which provides transparency of your CSR for stakeholders, building confidence for a company.

Emission Factors

All UK companies are required to report on their global energy use and GHG emissions in their annual Directors´ Report to comply with the Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting (SECR) regulations.

Emission factors (EFs) are essential when it comes to measuring and reporting a company´s carbon footprint.

The release of GHG emissions depend on the activity and product owned or controlled by a company. These activities are divided into three groups, or ´Scopes´ (as outlined by GHG Protocol).

Different activates produce different GHG emissions. There are seven main GHGs that are highlighted by the Kyoto Protocol that are driving factors to global warming, and need to be included in your report: carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrus oxide (N2O), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons (PFCs), sulfur hexafluoride (SF6) and nitrogen trifluoride (NF3).

In order to measure these GHG emissions in relation to carbon output, a sum is conducted to calculate the EF.

For example How many kg of GHG are emitted by 1kWh of natural gas?

EF ensure that GHG emissions that are produced by a company ensures that they can be compared and audited effectively to reduce their Global Warming Potential (GWP) .

Some companies will find that not all their emissions can be eliminated to reach “absolute zero” and will therefore need to offset remaining emissions. Carbon offsets are purchased credits that represent a certified unit of emissions reduction or carbon removal carried out by another actor.

Carbon offsetting schemes help companies achieve their net-zero carbon emissions, however if not conducted efficiently it can create unintended negative impacts on people and the environment.

The Oxford Offsetting Principles focuses on four main elements for credible net-zero aligned-offsetting:

Principle One: Cut emissions

Use high quality offsets, and regularly revise offsetting strategy as best practice evolves.

Principle Two: Shift to carbon removal offsetting.

Most available offsets currently available are emissions reductions which are not sufficient to maintain net zero in the long run. Carbon removals can scrub carbon directly from the atmosphere, counteracting ongoing emissions after net zero is achieved (for example, biological carbon sequestration (planting trees, soil carbon enchancement), bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS), direct air capture with geological storage (DACCS), or converting atmospheric carbon back into rock through remineralisation.)

Principle Three: Shift to long-lived storage

Offsets need to come from activities which store carbon permanently, with low risk of re-release into the atmosphere. Long lived storage methods include storing CO2 in geological reservoirs, or mineralising carbon into stable forms.

Principle Four: Support the development of net zero aligned offsetting

In order to make a long-term transition to net zero feasible, lower costs and higher volumes of carbon removal methods and long-lived storage options are needed. Organisations can drive this change through means such as adopting and publicising the Oxford Offsetting Principles to create demand for net zero aligned offsets, create demand for long-lived storage, support restoration and protection of eco-systems, and incorporating the Principles into regulations and standards.