This carbon calculator is intended for the sole use by Greater Philadelphia Green Business Commitment members and is not intended for general distribution.
The objective is to assess a business’s baseline carbon footprint as part of the mandatory requirements for the Greater Philadelphia Green Business Commitment. No “carbon calculator” is able to completely represent a unique entity’s carbon footprint. This carbon calculator is meant for educational purposes and year-to-year tracking of emissions only. Program participants are strongly encouraged to utilize the provided calculator. Alternatively, participants may fully assess their carbon footprint by following one of the recognized reporting standards listed below:
Previously assessed baseline carbon footprints may be utilized as long as they encompass all business activities in the greater Philadelphia region and were assessed based on one of the aforementioned reporting standards. |  Download the Carbon Calculator Updated: March 2010 |
Description:
The carbon footprint calculator was developed using methodologies derived from The Greenhouse Gas Protocol - A Corporate Accounting and Report Standard developed by the World Resources Institute and World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WRI/WBCSD). This is the international consensus GHG accounting protocol and can be found for free at www.ghgprotocol.org. When needed, greenhouse gas emission parameters from Environment Canada, the California Climate Action Registry, and primary scientific literature were used to supplement parameters from WRI/WBCSD.
The inventory includes the six Greenhouse Gases (GHGs) covered under the Kyoto protocol: CO2, CH4, N2O, HFCs, PFCs, SF6. A business's inventory should include 100% of GHG emissions from facilities or operations in the Philadelphia region over which that business has ownership or the authority to introduce and implement operating policies. Emissions will be accounted for on an annual basis.
The objective of the carbon footprint calculation is to assess a business’s baseline carbon footprint. The carbon footprint is not intended to encompass the emissions of employees related to their personal activities. The calculator is weighted toward office environments to represent the anticipated majority of program members. Emissions categories are based on the Scope 1, Scope 2, and Scope 3 organization of the WRI/WBCSD protocols. Some categories of emissions are deemed mandatory in order to accurately represent a business’s carbon footprint, other categories are deemed optional. It is strongly encouraged that all categories be completed. The categories of emissions and necessary information to complete them are as follows:
Mandatory Categories:
Direct emissions from stationary combustion
Includes: boilers, water heaters, generators, furnaces, etc.
Information Required: utility bills, fuel purchases
Direct emissions from mobile combustion
Includes: vehicle fleets, forklifts, construction equipment, etc.
Information Required: fleet vehicle mileage or fuel purchases, other mobile equipment fuel purchases
Direct emissions from fugitive refrigerants
Includes: A/C & refrigeration equipment
Information Required: annual refrigerant recharge & type OR cooling equipment capacity OR square footage of air conditioned space.
Indirect emissions from purchased electricity
Includes: Purchased electricity, purchased renewable energy credits.
Information Required: electricity bills, renewable energy credit purchases.
Optional Categories:
Indirect emissions from employee commuting
Includes: emissions from commuting by public transportation or personal vehicles
Information Required: employees’ modes of transportation, one-way commuting distances, and vehicle types (i.e. hybrid, small car, light diesel truck, etc.)
Indirect emissions from business travel.
Includes: business related travel by personal vehicles, rental vehicles, train, bus, and plane. (company owned fleets are accounted for above in mobile combustion)
Information Required: modes of transportation, fuel purchases for vehicles and/or annual mileage of trips.
Other direct or indirect emissions
Includes: any other greenhouse gas emitting activity attributable to your business that can accurately estimated.
Information Required: emissions source and greenhouse gas emissions must be manually entered.
Generally, the calculator can support multiple inputs. For example, fleet vehicle emissions could be determined from mileage or gas purchases; stationary combustion can support direct fuel consumption (i.e., gallons of kerosene), heating value (Btu), or information from utility bills (i.e., ccf of natural gas); etc.
Any questions regarding the carbon calculator should be emailed to Aniket Sawant of O’Brien & Gere, at SawantA@obg.com
Click the link above to download the carbon calculator. Save the excel spreadsheet to your computer and complete the form. You cannot save your work online.