Why do my calculations have an emission factor of a different region or year than expected?
Sometimes a different emission factor will be chosen because an emission factor is not available for the selected year and region. When that happens, we will use an emission factor based on the closest available region and year.
Why does a data entry have several calculations associated with it?
Each data entry represents a specific company activity. Some activities are quite complex, so we create several calculations to accurately account for all emissions caused by that activity. Below are explanations of why several calculations may be required.
Lifecycle stages. An activity can have different lifecycle stages, and we create a separate calculation for each stage.
Example: Fuel data entry has two calculations: one for Scope 1 and another for Scope 3.
Scope 1 emissions come from the fuel consumption at your location, representing direct emissions from burning fuel.
Scope 3 emissions result from the production and transportation of the fuel from the supplier to your location, representing indirect emissions.
Since these emissions have different emission factors, two separate calculations are generated and appear in your emission results.
Electricity calculation methods. The GHG protocol requires calculating electricity emissions using two approaches: market-based and location-based.
How do I account for mixed waste?
We recommend using the emission factor that represents the largest portion of your mixed waste.
You can also search what is typically the largest proportion of the mixed waste in your country. For example, in Germany, the largest proportion of mixed waste is organic waste (39%). This biowaste is usually incinerated. Therefore, for German locations, we recommend using the 'food waste for treatment: incineration' emission factor as a fallback in this case.
What to do if I can not find a relevant Scope 3 EXIOBASE emission factor for my expense?
If you did not find a fitting emission factor for your Scope 3 expenses, try the following:
Please review the article detailing all EXIOBASE emission factors to find the most appropriate one.
If you have a custom emission factor for the expense, you can choose to use that instead of an EXIOBASE emission factor. Note that this can only be done through data entry, not bulk import.
If neither of these options works, use the 'Other Services' emission factor under the 'Purchased Goods and Services' category.
What emission factor sources are used in the app?
Different emission factor sources are used for different use cases and geographies. The following table shows which sources are used:
Name of source | Use Case | Geography |
AIB | Electricity | EU |
UK Government (DEFRA, DESNZ) | Fuels | UK |
ecoinvent | Electricity, District Heating | Global |
Umweltbundesamt | District Heating | GER |
EXIOBASE | Scope 3.1 - 3.6 (spend-based) | Global |
EPA | Fuels, Electricity, District Heating | US |
Green-e | Electricity | US |
IPCC | Fugitive and process emissions | Global |