Carbon Accounting

Carbon Accounting means the systematic recording of CO2 and other greenhouse gas emissions of an organization, such as companies and municipalities, to create a greenhouse gas balance. These can be aimed both for the purpose of disclosure in a form of external reporting as well as for the management of emissions in the context of emission (reduction ). Carbon accounting can therefore be regarded as a sub-discipline of accounting. At the same time carbon accounting can be understood as part of an environmental or sustainability management.

The disclosure of greenhouse gas balances takes place within an organizational context often as part of a sustainability report or a report on corporate responsibility. In some companies, the CO2 emissions are also mentioned in the Annual Report. A systematic search of the greenhouse gas emissions of large companies operates such as the Carbon Disclosure Project.

The Greenhouse Gas Accounting subject has only a few rules. Only undertakings carrying on installations covered by the Greenhouse Gas Emissions Trading Act must follow the regulations set out in the Act. However, there are efforts of standardization institutions DIN and ISO, to establish standards, such as the environmental management standard ISO 14064th There are also the recommendations of the Greenhouse Gas Protocol Corporate Standard ( GHG Protocol ) of WRI and WBCSD as practical guidelines for companies. Specifically, the combination of the content categories of the GHG Protocol and the procedural standards of the ISO standard has thereby gained high importance for the carbon accounting in the corporate context.

The GHG Protocol defines the basic principles of relevance, completeness, consistency, transparency and accuracy, and is in sympathy with openly called on principles of financial accounting. Further defines the Greenhouse Gas Protocol rules for organizational Demarcation of a greenhouse gas balance and the operational definition. Particularly relevant here is the classification of emissions in three so-called " Scopes ": During Scope 1 covers all emissions directly itself, produced by combustion in our own facilities, Scope 2 includes emissions with purchased energy ( eg electricity, district heating) connected are. Scope 3 emissions in turn includes the services provided by third parties and purchased inputs.