Scope 3 emissions can account for up to 80% of total GHG emissions. They have the potential to dominate the overall carbon footprint, which in turn can put a company’s net zero or decarbonization approach and SBT initiatives at risk.
In the past, the focus of corporate climate strategies used to be on direct emissions (Scope 1) and emissions resulting from secondary energy sources (Scope 2). Today, there is an increasing need for transparency of Scope 3 upstream and downstream emissions.
One of the main challenges is the lack of transparency regarding the amount, the calculation, and the relevance of Scope 3 emissions categories. While the relevance of categories can vary from industry to industry, there is a common understanding that “3.1 Purchased goods and services” and “3.11 Use of sold products” are the two main Scope 3 emission hotspots. Companies need to work through an extensive GHG Protocol guideline with different approaches to calculate the related emission, which is an additional burden when determining 3.1 and 3.11 emissions.
The second big challenge is the lack of personnel resources and know-how that hamper companies from starting their Scope 3 analysis and management. Not only do the importance and scale of the Scope 3 categories vary between industries, but there is also a lack of a uniform approach to collecting, calculating, and managing Scope 3 emissions.
How Can the Right Software Help Lead the Way?
While the challenges seem to be overwhelming, we can help with our Corporate Sustainability software to:
Collect audit-proof emissions data for Scope 1, 2 and 3 automatically
Provide a calculation engine for the huge amount of data
Monitor your sustainability performance over time
Collect the Emission Data
You cannot manage what you don’t measure: Start collecting and managing the Scope 1, 2 and 3 data available to you in our Corporate Sustainability software. (Metro, Lumileds, ista do the same – to name a few.)
Benefit From Advanced Software Capabilities
Our software comes with advanced features and already integrated sustainability data for accurate calculation, planning and reporting. Our Product Sustainability (GaBi) Databases provide the most reliable LCA data, based on the average-data method, to quantify many of the Scope 3 category emissions.
Monitor Your Sustainability Performance
Along with managing and reporting your emissions data, you can now monitor any trend over time. Get insights into your emission data by tracking improvement actions and use analytical tools to assess and improve your sustainability performance.
“Every week, customers are asking for support to calculate their Scope 3 emissions. We have already seen examples in the market, where companies have used poor quality data to do their calculation which has led to them to focus on the wrong areas and in some cases requiring them to redo their calculations.”
Sandy Smith
Vice President EHS&S, Sphera
Sphera will help you respond to this challenge. The SpheraCloud Corporate Sustainability software offers a prepackaged GHG Scope 3 emission factors library with frequently-used material factor sets for Purchased Goods and Services, based on existing Scope 3 projects. The software has the capability to add additional category data sets based on actual demand.
Take the Next Step to Tackle the Scope 3 Challenge
A step in the right direction: Ensure that you have a comprehensive software solution that builds a foundation to collect your consumption data and help you calculate reliable Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions data. Benefit from advanced collection and calculation capabilities with integrated sustainability data for accurate reporting.
Need some expert advice to quantify your value chain emissions on a material basis, identify your carbon hotspots and define measures to achieve actual reductions? Our Sphera Sustainability Consultants have deep expertise and experience to help you with these steps.
Our LCA database provides you with high-quality, extensive data sets for a fact-based and science-based approach to quantify Scope 3 emissions.
Corporate Sustainability Software
Gain complete insight into your carbon footprint / greenhouse gas emissions and more with our comprehensive sustainability reporting software.