Accounting for carbon today

Carbon accounting that leads to real emissions reductions can be done without an industry standard

Taylor: There is no need to wait for the proposed carbon accounting standard before taking action on emissions

Many organisations fancy doing carbon offsetting by working with a third party to install measurement facilities and fund offsetting projects. However, this can be costly and may not really cut carbon emissions.

You could also do some carbon accounting – measuring, monitoring and reporting on carbon dioxide output. But there are many questions to answer: what data should you collect? How do you get the data you need? And what conversion factor should you adopt?

Asking departments in different countries to report on their carbon use consistently can also be a challenge. And when it comes to converting carbon, how do you manage the different energy rates across Europe? France relies on nuclear energy and produces electricity with a lower carbon footprint, while the UK relies more heavily on coal, for instance. How can we compare like with like?

There is no official European standard for carbon accounting. The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants, a global accountancy organisation, is trying to find a standard relevant to multiple markets and countries. But businesses must ask themselves if they can afford to wait for such a standard or if they can do things now to become more carbon-efficient.

We firmly believe that if you are not measuring something, you can’t manage it. Measurement offers the insight you need to decide how to reduce your carbon use.

We have instigated a range of reduction activities as a result of our carbon accounting activity, first implemented in 2002, to reduce our carbon dioxide emissions.

Twice a year our offices and distribution sites across the UK and Europe submit carbon emissions data via our environmental accounting system. It allows us to monitor output and set targets for carbon reduction year on year.

We consider items such as air miles, fuel for company cars, gas, electricity and paper. Our factories also operate a comprehensive audit and measurement of their carbon emissions.

As a result of our carbon accounting, we have been able to move towards reducing our emissions eight per cent a year for the past three years. Sales subsidiaries in Europe have also switched to more natural energy sources, which will reduce annual carbon dioxide emissions by about 1,300 tonnes.

In the UK, we have cut our emissions by 3,000 tonnes since 2002 and predict a further reduction of 6,000 tonnes in fiscal 2008, due to switching to renewable energy sources in October 2008.

A measurement system also enables us to demonstrate to our customers that we practise what we preach, not just with products and services but the way we do business.

We think each individual business should act now to implement a measurement process to help slash carbon use – even if the jury is still out on whether or not a global carbon accounting standard is around the corner.

Tim Taylor is environmental and compliance manager at Ricoh