It is no secret that climate change and the depletion of natural resources are directly linked to human activity on earth.
Mobility, production, trade... In each step of our personal and professional life, we produce greenhouse gases (GHG) which accelerate global warming and threaten more and more life on earth.
As part of their energy transition projects, countries around the world are beginning to define regulatory frameworks to measure, analyze and limit our everyday emissions.
Whether we are a company or an individual, we all have the possibility to measure our carbon footprints and contribute to reduce them.
In France, as of January 1, 2023, a complete carbon footprint (scopes 1, 2 and 3) will be mandatory for companies with more than 500 employees in mainland France and for companies with more than 250 employees in the overseas territories. Failure to do so will be punishable by a penalty of 10,000 euros, compared to 1,500 euros previously.
Let's first define what a carbon footprint is.
The carbon footprint
As stated by the French Agency for the Environment and Energy Management (ADEME), a company's carbon footprint is a diagnostic tool that makes it possible to analyze the direct and indirect greenhouse gas emissions generated by all its activities. These data are expressed in carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e).
The Bilan Carbone® methodology was developed by the French government through ADEME.
The objective was to create a universal tool for measuring the carbon footprint of companies. However, there are other recognized methods to measure one's carbon footprint such as: the GHG Protocol, the ISO standard, product life cycle analyses, ...
Why do a carbon assessment of your company?
Carrying out a carbon footprint assessment allows you to :
Preserve the environment and thus life on earth
Reduce its greenhouse gas emissions
Respect and anticipate the regulations (which will now require companies with 500 employees or more to present this report, but with time this regulation may cover more companies)
Improve the image of its brand or its sign
Gain in competitiveness by having the results of a positive balance sheet as an added value to its activity
Spend less and better
What to take into account when measuring your carbon footprint?
If we go back to the previous definition given by the ADEME, we would notice that the carbon footprint takes into account all the direct and indirect emissions of the company.
What does this mean exactly?
Well, let's take the example of a pharmacy that sells pharmaceutical products. Its direct emissions can be linked to the consumption of energy to preserve the products, to light and heat the store for the customers but its indirect emissions can be linked to the logistics to receive the products, the energy consumed, the raw materials used and the GHGs emitted during the production of the health products purchased by the pharmacy.
You will probably think : But this is the responsibility of the manufacturing laboratories and logistics are the responsibility of the transporters. The answer is : Yes and no.
This factor is calculated as many times as it is incurred. It will therefore be calculated by the production company but also by you for your activity.
To facilitate the representation of the items to be taken into account, the 22 GHG emission items have been divided into 3 scopes: 1, 2 and 3
Scope 1: represents the direct greenhouse gas emissions linked to your activity, for example the combustion of fuel necessary for the manufacture of the product or the provision of the service.
Scope 2: includes indirect CO2 emissions related to the production of energy in the form of electricity or heat. When the manufacture of your products/services involves energy consumption.
Scope 3: is the broadest. Indeed, it includes other indirect emissions, i.e. all those not directly associated with the manufacture of your products / services. Therefore, it is necessary to look at the rest of your value chain, such as the final use by your customers, waste management or transportation of goods.
Greenhouse gases measured.
Six greenhouse gases are officially recognized by international agreements and therefore taken into account:
Carbon dioxide or CO2: the best known, which concerns all companies.
Methane or CH4: found in a carbon footprint due to the decomposition of products sold that end up in the landfill for example.
Nitrous oxide or N2O: which mainly concerns farms, the chemical industry and transport.
Hydrofluorocarbons or HFCs: found in the carbon balance of companies that use air conditioners or certain refrigerators.
Perfluorocarbons or PFCs: close to their cousins the hydrofluorocarbons
Sulfur hexafluoride or SF6: mainly found in the carbon footprints of companies that produce or use electrical cables and equipment and in the pharmaceutical industry.
How is a carbon footprint calculated?
Making a carbon balance amounts to counting the quantity (kilos, tons, etc.) of each of the gases that have been emitted by the company's activity.
To have a result in a standard unit, these gases are therefore all converted into an equivalent quantity of CO2. This is called kgCO2 equivalent, or kgCO2e.
There are two approaches to converting activity data into greenhouse gas emissions:
The monetary approach: a monetary value (€, £, $, ...) is converted into kgCO2e. The conversion is made thanks to monetary ratios, expressed in kgCO2e/€ for example.
The calculation formula is as follows:
GHG quantity = Price spent for the activity x Monetary Emission Factor (GHG released per unit spent).
The physical approach: we convert physical data (km, kg, kWh, ...) into kgCO2e. The conversion is made thanks to emission factors. The physical emission factor specifies the quantity of CO2 emitted by a unit consumed.
Its formula is the following:
Quantity GHG = Quantity Consumed x Physical Emission Factor (emission per unit of product)
These monetary ratios and emission factors are accessible via public and private databases, often specialized by sector or country.
The Base Carbone is the reference database in France, supplied by ADEME and accessible free of charge.
The monetary approach is used when the activity cannot be quantified: Purchase of computer software, provision of services...
The Carbon Footprint is finally calculated by adding up all the GHG quantities defined for each direct and indirect activity of the company.
It is recommended that the assessment be redone each year to record the progress made in reducing GHG emissions and to define areas for improvement.
The tools available to carry out its carbon assessment :
Bilan Carbone ® spreadsheet provided by ABC
Bilan Carbone + ® provided by ABC
Excel files created internally.
Use of external consultants
Online platforms and software
Subsidies for the carbon assessment of your company
A carbon assessment can be expensive if you choose an external solution and depending on the size of your company and its activity, the price can vary from simple to double.
To encourage companies to take the plunge, several funding schemes are available.
Bpifrance's Diag Decarbonaction grant for your company's carbon assessment
Launched in 2022, this is not just a grant but a support program.
It is operated by Bpifrance, the public investment bank, in collaboration with ADEME.
Only companies with less than 500 employees seeking to make their first carbon assessment are eligible.
If this is your case then thanks to the co-financing of ADEME, you can be accompanied by experts at an advantageous rate:
4000€ for companies with less than 250 employees
6000€ for companies with 250 to 499 employees
Other financing for your company's carbon footprint
To promote the ecological transition of their companies, some regions and local authorities provide subsidies to support investments in studies and solutions to reduce their environmental impact.
Do not hesitate to contact your local authority for more information.
References :
Agence de la Transition Ecologique / ADEME
Carbo Academy / Bilan Carbone Entreprise : le guide complet 2022
Sami.eco/ Bilan carbone d'entreprise