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How To Reduce Your Business Carbon Emissions

The most important thing you can do as a business is to reduce your emissions. We’ve put together a guide on how to identify where your business emissions are coming from, and how to reduce them.

How to reduce your business carbon emissions

At Ecologi, we want to connect you to climate solutions that will have an impact far beyond your own climate footprint. To do this, we make use of the carbon offset market which can be out of reach for individuals and most businesses. 
This market provides a way of funding climate change solutions, turning money into quantifiable impact. The projects either remove greenhouse gases or prevent them from entering the atmosphere in the first place. We believe that by funding climate solutions, businesses can do more, and help accelerate the transition to a sustainable future. You can learn how to make your business or product carbon neutral using these offsets<a href="https://ecologi.com/business/how-to-make-your-business-carbon-neutral"> here.</a>
However, it&#8217;s critically important that these projects work alongside &#8211; rather than instead of &#8211; emissions reductions. Carbon offsets should be used to make up for the emissions that you can’t avoid, at least right now. However, if there are emissions reductions that can be made within your business, there is nothing more immediate and direct than taking that action. 
<h3>Why reduce emissions?</h3>
We are in a climate emergency, and we are all responsible for helping to solve the immense challenge of limiting warming to 1.5°C. Climate change will affect everyone; but if all businesses adopted the correct policies and initiatives, this could cut global emissions by up to <a href="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/575ecca7b654f9dd886dec23/t/576c39fdd2b857d28be73608/1466710526653/The+Business+End+of+Climate+Change.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">10 billion tonnes</a>. This would make a huge impact on whether or not we can collectively meet the 1.5°C target set by the Paris Agreement. Much public and regulatory pressure is exerted on the world&#8217;s largest corporations, who emit the most greenhouse gases, and rightly so. However meeting economy-wide net zero targets will require all companies to play their part. 
In addition, reducing emissions makes business sense. Consumers care about the companies that they buy from, and environmental responsibility is becoming more and more of a consideration for consumers who are increasingly choosing to ‘vote with their wallet’. In fact,<a href="https://www.nielsen.com/eu/en/insights/article/2018/global-consumers-seek-companies-that-care-about-environmental-issues/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> a global survey</a> found that four in five consumers surveyed feel strongly that companies should actively help to improve the environment.
Reducing emissions can also be a great opportunity to cut costs by implementing energy saving measures. According to the Carbon Trust, UK organisations can save as much as <a href="https://www.carbontrust.com/news-and-events/news/efficient-use-of-boilers-could-save-ps400million" target="_blank" rel="noopener">£400m per year</a> by reducing their carbon footprint.

Covers direct emissions from owned or controlled sources &#8211; e.g. emissions from company facilities or company vehicles.

Scope 1

CHARCOAL

Covers indirect emissions from the generation of purchased electricity, steam, heating and cooling that is consumed by your business.

Scope 2

Includes all other indirect emissions that occur in a company’s value chain &#8211; e.g. purchased goods and services, travel, and waste disposal.

Scope 3

Greenhouse gas emissions are categorized into three groups, or ‘scopes’ by the most widely-used international accounting tool, the Greenhouse Gas Protocol:

Emissions fall under three scopes

It’s important to measure and make emissions reductions in all three of these scopes, in order to reduce the carbon footprint of your business.
&nbsp;
The first step is to calculate your emissions. This will help to identify and prioritise the areas where there is the biggest potential for emissions reductions within your business. Whilst at Ecologi we do not yet offer the tools to measure your emissions, here are a few useful resources to help you: 
<ul>
<li>The Greenhouse Gas Protocol provides <a href="https://ghgprotocol.org/guidance-0" target="_blank" rel="noopener">guidance</a> and <a href="https://ghgprotocol.org/calculation-tools" target="_blank" rel="noopener">calculation tools</a> to help businesses calculate their scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions. They provide particularly detailed guidance on calculating your <a href="https://ghgprotocol.org/sites/default/files/standards/Scope3_Calculation_Guidance_0.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">scope 3 emissions</a>. </li>
<li>The Carbon Trust has an <a href="https://www.carbontrust.com/resources/sme-carbon-footprint-calculator" target="_blank" rel="noopener">SME carbon footprint calculator</a>. This has been designed to help UK-based small and medium-sized enterprises measure their Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions. </li>
<li>The Carbon Trust also has tools to help you calculate the carbon footprint of your <a href="https://www.carbontrust.com/what-we-do/measure-and-evaluate/footprint-measurement-and-analysis" target="_blank" rel="noopener">value and supply chain </a> (scope 3 emissions). </li>
</ul>
Once you have calculated your emissions, and identified which are the key areas for improvement, you can start implementing emissions reductions targets.

Step 1: Calculating emissions

<h2>Reducing scope 1 and 2 emissions</h2>
<h3>Energy</h3>
Measures to reduce scope 1 and 2 emissions largely fall within the energy sector. Energy use in industry accounts for <a href="https://ourworldindata.org/ghg-emissions-by-sector" target="_blank" rel="noopener">24.2% of global greenhouse emissions</a>, with another <a href="https://ourworldindata.org/ghg-emissions-by-sector" target="_blank" rel="noopener">6.6%</a> of emissions coming from energy use in commercial buildings. Therefore, a great way to have an immediate impact is to switch to 100% renewable energy. This is now easily accessible and competitively priced. Providers include <a href="https://octopus.energy/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Octopus</a>, <a href="https://www.ecotricity.co.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ecotricity</a>, <a href="https://www.ovoenergy.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">OVO Energy</a> or <a href="https://www.goodenergy.co.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Good Energy</a>.
Another major thing you can do is to reduce your energy use &#8211; and this applies even if you are on a renewable tariff, since even renewable energy can have a carbon cost for installation. Simple actions can help most businesses achieve emissions and cost savings through reducing their energy consumption. Even low- and no-cost actions can usually reduce energy costs by <a href="https://prod-drupal-files.storage.googleapis.com/documents/resource/restricted/Better%20business%20guide%20to%20energy%20saving%20-%20GBF.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">at least 10%</a>. Examples of ways to reduce energy use include: 
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Ensuring heating is only used in areas where it is needed (e.g. not in storage areas or corridors)</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Switching to energy efficient LED light bulbs and setting them on motion sensors so they switch off when nobody is in the room.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Insulating your office buildings.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Providing training to employees on the importance of reducing energy use.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Installing smart meters.</li>
<li aria-level="1">Carrying out regular walk rounds of your office/site to identify maintenance issues and opportunities for energy savings, such as appliances that can be switched off.</li>
</ul>
For more tips check out this <a href="https://prod-drupal-files.storage.googleapis.com/documents/resource/restricted/Better%20business%20guide%20to%20energy%20saving%20-%20GBF.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">better business guide to energy saving </a>by the Carbon Trust. If your company has the capacity, you could even look into generating your own renewable energy- e.g. installing solar panels to power your factories (this would come under scope 1 emissions). 
<img loading="lazy" class="aligncenter wp-image-2876 size-full" src="https://cms-assets.offset.earth/app/uploads/20210331154516/business_emissions_energy_consumption.png" alt="" width="1615" height="757" srcset="https://cms-assets.offset.earth/app/uploads/20210331154516/business_emissions_energy_consumption.png 1615w, https://cms-assets.offset.earth/app/uploads/20210331154516/business_emissions_energy_consumption-300x141.png 300w, https://cms-assets.offset.earth/app/uploads/20210331154516/business_emissions_energy_consumption-1024x480.png 1024w, https://cms-assets.offset.earth/app/uploads/20210331154516/business_emissions_energy_consumption-768x360.png 768w, https://cms-assets.offset.earth/app/uploads/20210331154516/business_emissions_energy_consumption-1536x720.png 1536w" sizes="(max-width: 1615px) 100vw, 1615px" />
<h3>Work-from-home energy savings</h3>
Working from home has become the new norm, as COVID-19 restrictions have changed the world as we know it. For many of us, this trend will continue into the future. Most research suggests that having employees working from home reduces energy consumption, as employees don&#8217;t have to commute to work and it is no longer necessary to heat and power large office spaces. However this means that employees are using more energy at home than ever before, wracking up their energy bills and environmental footprint. Here are a few tips for what employees working from home can do to cut their energy costs: 
<ol>
<li>Switch off appliances &#8211; end the working day by turning off and unplugging all appliances, rather than just leaving them on standby. While they are likely to be in use throughout the day, you should also avoid charging laptops and mobiles unnecessarily.</li>
<li>Heating &#8211; The <a href="https://energysavingtrust.org.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Energy Saving Trust</a> recommends a range of 18-21°C for healthy adults. If you tend to have the heating at the higher end of the scale try turning it down by just 1°C. You should also only heat the rooms you are using, and consider having different settings for different rooms. Installing room thermometers and smart meters can help with this.</li>
<li>Insulation &#8211; Ensuring our homes have insulation will allow more of the heat to be kept inside, making them more energy efficient. In the UK, installing wall insulation can save <a href="https://www.theccc.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/Review-of-potential-for-carbon-savings-from-residential-energy-efficiency-Final-report-A-160114.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">0.19 tonnes of CO2 annually.</a></li>
<li>Lighting-  when setting up your WFH station, make sure you pick a spot where you can make the most use of natural light and don&#8217;t have to have your lights turned on all day. You could also consider installing energy-efficient LED light bulbs, which both use less energy and last longer.</li>
<li>Hot Drinks- Kettles use up<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/money/2019/feb/09/energy-bills-are-your-cuppas-costing-more-than-you-thought" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> 6% of all the energy</a> supplied to British homes! Reduce your energy use by only boiling the exact amount of water you need, coordinating tea-breaks with other people working in your house, and regularly descaling your kettle (if it&#8217;s full of limescale you use more energy to boil the same amount of water).</li>
</ol>
<h3>Transport</h3>
Scope 1 emissions include those from company vehicles. If your company has its own vehicles, consider switching to electric or hybrid alternatives (or if this isn’t yet feasible, choose vehicles which can achieve a lot of miles per gallon), capping the number of miles driven, or incentivising employees travelling by public transport as part of your business operations.

<h2>Reducing scope 3 emissions</h2>
When discussing emissions, most businesses automatically start looking at electricity and other operational emissions sources. However emissions in the supply chain are a substantial part of a company&#8217;s footprint, and should not be ignored just because they are outside of direct operational control.  
In fact, emissions in the supply chain can be significantly higher than those of a company’s own footprint, depending on the industry and the amount of outsourcing. <a href="https://6fefcbb86e61af1b2fc4-c70d8ead6ced550b4d987d7c03fcdd1d.ssl.cf3.rackcdn.com/cms/reports/documents/000/000/580/original/committing-to-climate-action-in-the-supply-chain.pdf?1470053398" target="_blank" rel="noopener">An analysis by the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP)</a> found that for retailers and consumer-facing companies, emissions in the supply chain can be up to seven times higher than operational emissions. 
The <a href="https://ghgprotocol.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Greenhouse Gas Protocol</a> and <a href="https://www.cdp.net/en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CDP</a> have some good advice on reducing scope 3 emissions. Below we have outlined some measures we consider are the most important, or the easiest to implement: 
<h3>Purchase of goods</h3>
A crucial part of reducing scope 3 emissions is supplier engagement. This involves communicating with your suppliers to encourage them to improve their own carbon footprint. Additional actions you can take include changing to more sustainable suppliers; changing incoming materials to those with a lower carbon footprint and using recycled material inputs. 
<img loading="lazy" class="aligncenter wp-image-2801 size-full" src="https://cms-assets.offset.earth/app/uploads/20210325171906/business_emissions_supply_chain.png" alt="" width="1615" height="757" srcset="https://cms-assets.offset.earth/app/uploads/20210325171906/business_emissions_supply_chain.png 1615w, https://cms-assets.offset.earth/app/uploads/20210325171906/business_emissions_supply_chain-300x141.png 300w, https://cms-assets.offset.earth/app/uploads/20210325171906/business_emissions_supply_chain-1024x480.png 1024w, https://cms-assets.offset.earth/app/uploads/20210325171906/business_emissions_supply_chain-768x360.png 768w, https://cms-assets.offset.earth/app/uploads/20210325171906/business_emissions_supply_chain-1536x720.png 1536w" sizes="(max-width: 1615px) 100vw, 1615px" />
<h3>Waste disposal/ recycling </h3>
Businesses produce a huge amount of waste, which in turn releases a huge amount of greenhouse gases. Emissions from waste account for just under <a href="https://files.wri.org/s3fs-public/pdf/navigating_numbers.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">4% of global GHG output.</a>  You can reduce the carbon footprint of your company by both reducing the amount of waste you produce, and by changing the way that you dispose of your waste. 
There are several sustainable waste management services that can help with this. <a href="https://globechain.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">GlobeChain</a> is a reuse marketplace for businesses, helping enterprises to reduce waste by redistributing unwanted items to charities, small businesses and individuals. <a href="https://thefirstmile.co.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Firstmile</a> is a waste management service that will recycle and repurpose all waste where it is possible to do so, and send all non-recyclable business waste to generate green energy. 
Another area where resources can be concentrated is in reducing food waste. Approximately <a href="http://www.fao.org/3/a-i7657e.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">one-third </a>of all food produced intended for human consumption is lost or wasted. This level of inefficiency in the global food system has significant environmental impacts, and businesses have a role to play in reducing food waste. Measures to reduce food waste include measuring waste, training staff, improving inventory management and changing packaging. The Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) have <a href="https://www.wrap.org.uk/food-drink/business-food-waste" target="_blank" rel="noopener">good resources </a>on how to reduce food waste in in businesses from different sectors (including retail, manufacturing, and hospitality and food service).
<h3>Paper </h3>
Paper production is a major consumer of energy and cause of greenhouse emissions. Energy related emissions from the conversion of wood into paper and pulp account for <a href="https://ourworldindata.org/ghg-emissions-by-sector" target="_blank" rel="noopener">0.6% of global greenhouse emissions.</a> Cutting your businesses paper usage can therefore help to reduce your environmental footprint. Tips to reduce paper usage include:
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Switch to software: stop using paper sign-offs for holiday requests and approvals and instead make the most of paperless systems.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Print with care &#8211; change settings to print multiple pages to a sheet and print on two sides of paper as standard. </li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Add a disclaimer to your email to gently remind the recipient to consider the environment before printing your message.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">If you need to print, only ever do so on recycled paper.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Employees</h3>
With the pandemic forcing a large majority of workers to work from home, employees are using more energy at home than ever before. One option for your business is to offer incentives for your employees to switch to 100% renewable energy. However, in general, having employees working from home reduces your business carbon footprint, as employees commuting to work forms part of your Scope 3 emissions. To counteract this you could encourage employees to continue working from home where possible.
Other tips to encourage employees to reduce their own carbon footprints include providing free paid slow travel holiday days for those who have pledged flight free, and continuing to train and engage employees on how to reduce their carbon footprint, both at work and at home.

<h2>Going even further: setting science-based targets</h2>
<a href="https://sciencebasedtargets.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A science-based target</a> is a greenhouse gas emissions reduction target in line with the latest climate science to limit global warming to well below 2°C. The following <a href="https://www.ipcc.ch/site/assets/uploads/sites/2/2019/05/SR15_SPM_version_report_LR.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">key milestones and timeframes</a> are set out by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in order to limit warming to 1.5°C: 
<ul>
<li>Reducing global CO2 emissions by at least 45% by 2030; and </li>
<li>Reducing global CO2 emissions to net zero by 2050</li>
</ul>
These can also be used as targets for businesses and individuals. More than a thousand businesses around the world are already working with the Science-Based Targets initiative (SBTi), to set science-based targets. This involves five steps: committing your intention; developing your target; submitting for validation; communicating the targets; and disclosing your progress. 
As SMEs start responding to climate change, a growing number are turning to the Science-Based Targets Initiative (SBTi), to demonstrate their commitment to reducing emissions. The SBTi has introduced a streamlined target-setting route for small and medium sized companies, who often are concerned they lack the skills or capacities to set these targets. These don’t include specific targets for scope 3 emissions, which are often a lot harder and require more resources to measure and reduce. There are two SBTi options for small and medium sized businesses:
<ul>
<li>1.5°C aligned option: a commitment to reduce absolute scope 1 and scope 2 GHG emissions 50% by 2030 from a 2018 base year, and to measure and reduce scope 3 emissions. </li>
<li>Well-below 2°C option: a commitment to reduce absolute scope 1 and scope 2 GHG emissions 30% by 2030 from a 2018 base-year, and to measure and reduce scope 3 emissions. </li>
</ul>
If you are interested, take a look at the <a href="https://sciencebasedtargets.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Science-Based Targets Initiative</a>, and find out more about <a href="https://sciencebasedtargets.org/blog/smoothing-the-way-for-small-and-medium-sized-businesses-to-set-science-based-climate-targets" target="_blank" rel="noopener">SME targets</a>.

<h2>A note on small businesses</h2>
It often seems difficult for small businesses to enact some of these tips as they don&#8217;t have access to the resources of larger corporations. Sometimes it can seem demoralising when you work so hard to make changes, whilst the large corporations continue to pollute our planet at alarming rates. However according to the World Bank, small and medium sized businesses (SMEs) make up about 90% of businesses and account for 50% of employment worldwide, so together can really have an impact.  
If you are a small business that is just starting out, have a look at our guide for <a href="https://ecologi.com/articles/blog/launching-a-sustainable-business">launching a sustainable business.</a> You could also consider joining up with other organisations within your industry. Depending on what industry you operate in, there are lots of different organisations and initiatives operating (usually on a voluntary basis) to support businesses just like yours to produce industry-specific climate action. Just some of these are below:
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="2"><a href="https://businessdeclares.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Business Declares a Climate Emergency</a></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="2"><a href="https://unfccc.int/climate-action/sectoral-engagement/sports-for-climate-action" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sports for Climate Action</a></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="2"><a href="https://www.tourismdeclares.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tourism Declares a Climate Emergency</a></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="2"><a href="https://www.musicdeclares.net/gb/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Music Declares a Climate Emergency</a></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="2"><a href="https://healthdeclares.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Health Declares</a></li>
</ul>
In order to achieve ambitious climate targets, every business, no matter what it’s size, needs to get on board. With collective action, together we can make a difference.

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How to Reduce Your Business Carbon Emissions