Last year, at the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26), nations set the goal to reach net-zero emissions by 2050. This moment reaffirmed the essential need in responding to the climate situation and the active effort necessary to bring change to respective business industries.
According to the International Energy Agency, CO2 emissions rose to their highest level last year, reaching 36.3 billion tonnes emitted. So, how can accounting play a part in reducing that massive carbon burden?
Carbon accounting is an important tool that businesses use to track their emissions and their impact on the environment. This way, companies are more enabled to implement carbon reduction more effectively.
On a worldwide scale, various frameworks are set up depending on the nation, but one of the most widely used ones is the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Protocol. Their standards are meant to help “businesses, governments, and other entities to measure and report their greenhouse gas emissions in ways that support their missions and goals.”
The various standards are provided based on which type of entity they’re best for:
- Corporate Standard - Companies & Organizations
- GHG Protocol for Cities - Cities & Communities
- Mitigation Goal Standard - Countries & Cities
- Corporate Value Chain (Scope 3) Standard - Companies & Organizations
- Policy and Action Standard - Countries & Cities
- Product Standard - Companies & Organizations
- Project Protocol - Companies, Organizations, Countries, & Cities
Despite their extensive usage, these standards do have their limits, and ideally, should be constantly evolved to better respond to the climate situation and provide more realistic data when companies report their emissions.
