Follow these guidelines to estimate the emissions of buildings based on their floor area.
This guideline is based on research by the Energy Information Administration (EIA), conducted for the United States only. For other countries, it is recommended to look for country-specific values. If you cannot find a satisfactory source, it may be possible to apply EIA values to similar countries such as Canada, but this must be done with caution.
Step-by-step guidance
Step 1: Identify Your Building Type
From the Energy Efficiency Table below, choose the building type that best matches yours. For example, if you have an office, select 'Office (Administrative or professional).'
Step 2: Estimating emissions from Heating and Warm Water Consumption
For the selected building type, multiply the 'Natural Gas Consumption (scf* / (ft² per year))' by your building's floor area. This calculation gives the estimated annual natural gas usage for the building. Record this amount as the Natural gas consumption for the reporting year.
*scf = standard cubic foot
💡 We suggest entering the number as natural gas consumption, as natural gas is a popular fuel for heating buildings and water.
Step 3: Estimating emissions from Electricity Consumption
For the selected building type, multiply the 'Electricity (kWh/(ft² per year))' by your building's floor area to get an estimation of the annual electricity usage. Record this figure as the electricity consumption for the reporting year.
Example
Company ABC wants to estimate their 2023 emissions for their 6,000 ft² co-working space and 21,000 ft² warehouse.
Step 1: Company ABC chooses reference building types: 'Office (Administrative or professional)' for the co-working space and 'Non-refrigerated warehouse' for the warehouse.
Step 2 and Step 3: Company ABC prepares 4 data entries for 2023:
Co-working space emissions:
Heating and Fuel data entry: fuel type is natural gas. Consumption is 6,000 ft² x 20.2 scf/ft² = 121,200 scf.
Electricity data entry: consumption is 6,000 ft² x 13.5 kWh/ft² = 81,000 kWh.
Warehouse emissions:
Heating and Fuel Entry: fuel type is natural gas. Consumption is 21,000 ft² x 18.8 scf/ft² = 394,800 scf.
Electricity Entry: consumption is 21,000 ft² x 5.3 kWh/ft² = 111,300 kWh.
Energy Efficiency Table
Category | Electricity consumption (kWh/ft² per year) | Natural gas consumption (scf/ft² per year) |
All buildings | 12.6 | 32.7 |
Mercantile | 16.7 | 35.7 |
Office (Administrative or professional) | 13.5 | 20.2 |
Non-refrigerated warehouse | 5.3 | 18.8 |
Refrigerated warehouse | 29.6 | n.a. |
Laboratory | 32.1 | 34.1 |
Numbers are based on research by the Energy Information Administration (EIA) and show default values based on average measurements in the US.