Carbon accounting

GHG Accounting

Meaning statusEstablishedSource recordDirect document linkedWhy these are different

Definition

GHG accounting is the process of quantifying and reporting greenhouse gas emissions attributable to an organisation, product, project, or jurisdiction using standardised methodologies — principally the GHG Protocol standards developed by WRI and WBCSD, and ISO 14064. It produces a GHG inventory: a list of emission sources and associated emissions quantified using standardized methods, structured around Scope 1, 2, and 3 boundaries for corporate reporting.

References

US EPAScopes 1 and 2 Emissions Inventorying and Guidance (a GHG inventory is a list of emission sources and associated emissions quantified using standardized methods; guidance aligned with GHG Protocol Corporate Standard)

inventory definition and process

Value Change InitiativeInventory and project GHG accounting (two fundamental methods: inventory accounting per Corporate Standard; project accounting per GHG Protocol for Project Accounting)

accounting types

Overview

What it means

The basic equation is activity data multiplied by emission factors. Choices about organisational boundaries, base years, and data quality determine comparability, which is why standards prescribe principles of relevance, completeness, consistency, transparency, and accuracy. Inventory accounting records historical emissions; project accounting estimates reductions from specific interventions.

How it is used

Companies build inventories for CDP, CSRD, ISSB, and SBTi reporting; regulators reference GHG accounting in disclosure mandates; and product-level accounting feeds eco-design and procurement decisions.

Why it matters

"What gets measured gets managed" is literal here: credible targets, carbon markets, and transition plans all stand or fall on the quality of the underlying accounting. **Note:** 1197 and 1198 (GHG accounting and reporting phrasings) merge into this entry.