The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) has called for one single standard to be introduced which all businesses and organisations would adhere to when reporting carbon emissions.
CBI said there are currently six such standards being used on a voluntary basis and this makes comparing data virtually impossible.
It is to become compulsory for an increasing number of firms to report their emissions over the next few years. Reporting is already mandatory for large engineering firms and energy companies under the EU emissions trading system and next year a further 5,000 businesses will find themselves bound by reporting rules under government’s Carbon Reduction Commitment. Mid-sized companies are expected to have to begin reporting from 2012.
“Transparent measurement and reporting of corporate emissions data is likely to become an important factor in driving corporate change and creating corporate advantage, so it’s vital we get it right,” said CBI director general Richard Lambert.
The CBI is putting forward a reporting standard, based on an international standard called the Greenhouse Gas Protocol, which it says all firms should adopt. In addition, the organisation recommends that any business which has an electricity bill of over £1m in a year – the same level which would qualify it for the Carbon Reduction Commitment – should have to report its emissions.
