What Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions Should Your Company Measure? A Guide to Scopes 1, 2, and 3
hace 8 hour
Measuring a Company's Carbon Footprint It is no longer just a public relations effort; today, it is a critical requirement for competitiveness. Customers, investors, and global regulations require companies to manage their environmental impact transparently. If you don't know where to start, the GHG Protocol (the most widely used international standard) simplifies this by dividing emissions into three scopes.
Here, we'll explain in simple terms what each one means and how to identify them in your organization.
1. Scope 1: Direct Emissions (What Your Company Controls)
These are the emissions your organization generates directly through its own sources or those under its operational control. This is the most straightforward starting point because the information is within your company.
- Common examples: Fuel from company vehicles, boilers, industrial furnaces, power plants, and gas leaks from air conditioners.
- Case Study: If your company has its own trucks for delivering goods, the diesel they consume is Scope 1.
2. Scope 2: Indirect Emissions from Energy (What You Buy)
These are emissions that you do not generate directly, but that are produced when the energy your company purchases and consumes is generated.
- Common examples: Electricity from the commercial grid used by your offices or factories, steam consumption, or purchased district heating and cooling systems.
- Case Study: The light you turn on in your office doesn't produce GHG emissions right there, but the power plant that generated it did produce emissions. Those emissions are attributed to you under Scope 2.
3. Scope 3: Value Chain (All Other Indirect Impacts)
These are emissions that occur outside your company but exist as a result of your business activities. They typically account for the largest percentage of your carbon footprint and are the most challenging to measure, since they involve third parties.
- Common examples: Employee business travel, transportation of external suppliers, product distribution, waste management, and how customers use your products.
- Case Study: If you hire an external logistics company to transport your goods (instead of using your own trucks), those emissions are classified as Scope 3.
The Next Step: Building Your Emissions Inventory
Understanding these three aspects is the cornerstone of designing a robust climate strategy. By mapping where your emissions come from, you not only comply with current regulations, but you also identify inefficiencies, reduce operating costs, and turn sustainability into a competitive advantage.
Do you still have questions about how to implement this in your organization?
We answer the most common questions below.
Frequently Asked Questions About Emissions Scopes (FAQ)
What is the GHG Protocol, and why does it matter?
It is the Greenhouse Gas Protocol, the most widely used international standard in the world for measuring and reporting corporate emissions. It is the methodological foundation required by global frameworks such as CDP, SBTi, and the IFRS S2 standards.
Why are emissions divided into three categories?
Mainly for avoid double counting. For example, the electricity your office consumes is your Scope 2, but for the power plant that generated it, it represents its Scope 1. Separating them allows you to define responsibilities and know exactly who has the authority to reduce them.
Which metrics are required to be measured?
Legally and technically, Scopes 1 and 2 are mandatory in any basic carbon footprint report. Scope 3 used to be optional, but today large supply chains and investors require it because it typically accounts for more than 70% of a company’s total impact.
In what unit is a company's carbon footprint measured?
It is measured in metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e). This unit makes it possible to standardize and compare the impact of different gases (such as methane or refrigerants) using a single, common measure.
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