Impact Report 21:22 - Flipbook - Page 22
4.
Called to account
Environmental footprint
Global warming caused by man-made carbon emissions represents what
is thought to be the most damaging cause of environmental destruction.
Worldwide protocols now in place define how companies should measure
their carbon emissions – they are divided into three Scopes.
Scope 1 Emissions
These are direct emissions from the use of energy by a business.
Scope 2 Emissions
These are the indirect emissions from the generation of
purchased energy, like electricity.
Scope 3 Emissions
These are all other indirect emissions resulting from the supply
of materials, the manufacture of goods and their distribution/
delivery to the customer.
Knowing how much carbon dioxide
(CO2) a business emits allows it to
identify the worst polluting area
of its activities. This is currently the
most commonly employed measure
for environmental impact.
When CO2 and other gases are
released into our atmosphere, they
trap heat which directly leads to the
warming of the planet. The result
of this is wide ranging and includes
increased extreme weather events,
22
biodiversity loss and melting of
polar ice caps.
Most
companies
still
don’t
measure or openly declare their
carbon footprint. Those that do
sometimes only measure Scopes
1 and 2 – measuring Scope 3 is
really challenging as it includes
a business’s whole supply chain,
output and distribution network.
However, it is the most important to
measure as it is often the highest.
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