The Greenhouse Gas Protocol (GHG Protocol) is an internationally recognized standard for the accounting and reporting of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. It was developed to provide companies, organizations and governments with uniform guidelines for measuring and managing their CO₂ emissions. The GHG Protocol is a joint initiative of the World Resources Institute (WRI) and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) and serves as the basis for many global climate protection initiatives, including the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi).

What is the GHG Protocol used for?

The GHG Protocol helps companies and organizations to measure, monitor and reduce their emissions. It creates clear standards and uniform methods for calculating and reporting the carbon footprint. By using the GHG Protocol, companies can present their environmental impact in a more transparent and comparable way, which is increasingly being demanded by investors, customers and regulatory authorities.

The main components of the GHG Protocol

The GHG Protocol consists of several standards, the two most important of which are as follows:

1. Corporate Standard: This standard targets companies and organizations and forms the basis for recording and reporting emissions in the three emission categories Scope 1, Scope 2 and Scope 3.

2. Corporate Value Chain (Scope 3) Standard: This standard extends the Corporate Standard and focuses on emissions that occur along the entire value chain of a company (Scope 3), i.e. indirect emissions outside the company.

The emission categories in the GHG Protocol: Scope 1, Scope 2 and Scope 3

In order to precisely allocate the sources of emissions, the GHG Protocol divides emissions into three categories (scopes):

Scope 1: Direct emissions from sources that the company controls (e.g. emissions from vehicles or production facilities).

Scope 2: Indirect emissions from purchased energy (e.g. electricity or heat).

Scope 3: Other indirect emissions along the entire value chain (e.g. emissions from the production of primary products or from the use and disposal of products).

Why is the GHG Protocol important?

The GHG Protocol ensures that companies use globally consistent standards for measuring and reporting their emissions. This promotes transparency and comparability, which is important for investors, regulators and other stakeholders. It also helps companies to better understand the risks and opportunities associated with climate change and to develop more effective measures to reduce emissions.