How to Measure Your Organisation’s Carbon Footprint: A Practical Guide
Nigerian commercial building with a diesel generator, electricity meter and rooftop solar panels, illustrating carbon footprint measurement and energy use. By Dr Juliana Philip Ndalnamu Research Tips with Dr. Juliana Imagine a hotel announcing that it will reduce its carbon footprint by 30% over three years. It sounds ambitious, but can management explain how much greenhouse gas the hotel currently emits? Without a credible baseline, it is difficult to measure progress. Last week’s Sustainability Monday article explained Scope 1, Scope 2 and Scope 3 emissions. The next step is learning how to estimate them using activity data and emission factors. This guide introduces the basic methods and shows how Nigerian businesses can begin organising their data. 1. What is activity data? Activity data is a measurable record of an activity that causes greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. It tells an organisation how much fuel, electricity, material or service it used during a defined repo...