Carbon Footprint Calculation and Reporting Requirements

For the first reporting year, the minimum requirement is to include CO2 emissions. From the first year, the full set of greenhouse gases can be added.

Reporting can be at the facility level or at the organisation level. Organisation-level reporting is preferred because it produces a more complete picture. Work done at the facility level is also recommended for roll-up to the organisation level.

The organisational boundary has to be defined and justified. The boundary can be drawn on a financial or operational basis. Subsidiaries are also recommended for inclusion.

Operational boundaries have to include scope 1 and scope 2 emissions. Scope 3 is optional.

The first reporting year that is fully presented is taken as the base year. The same base year should be used across the whole organisation to track reduction performance.

Sources that contribute less than 2% of the total carbon footprint can be excluded from the calculation. For a consistent and complete inventory, including every source is recommended. When smaller sources are brought in, estimation methods or probabilistic approaches can be used as long as the methodology is documented.