What are “Carbon Neutral Companies”?
Procurri was certified as a Carbon Neutral and CO²e Reduced Organization by the Carbon Neutral Standard in 2022, and this demonstrates brilliantly the focus the company places on sustainability: through keeping ITAD ethical and the distribution of recycled and refurbished hardware in place of newly manufactured pieces.
Although Procurri is currently the only organization in our particular market space to achieve a carbon neutral accreditation, there are a growing number of carbon neutral companies across a variety of industries worldwide. But what does this mean? Let us explain the basics…
What does being a Carbon Neutral Company actually mean?
Generally speaking, any company can claim to be carbon neutral if they balance the carbon dioxide their operations release into the atmosphere with the amount they absorb or remove. This is known as ‘net zero carbon emissions’, as it reduces the overall emission level to nothing; but where an organization emits no carbon at all, it can be called ‘net zero carbon’.
In theory: Carbon Emissions Produced = Carbon Emissions Removed or Offset.
It is possible, albeit rare, for companies to focus on other Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions, but carbon is the most common as it accounts for over 76% of the total harmful emissions into the atmosphere.
In most cases, carbon neutral companies offset the emissions they produce through natural removal methods and buying carbon credits to specifically invest in carbon neutral or even carbon positive initiatives and organizations.
What’s the difference between Carbon Neutrality and Net Zero?
Despite being different measures, being ‘Carbon Neutral’ and meeting ‘Net Zero’ are often confused with one another.
Net Zero can be defined as achieving no net increase in greenhouse gases contributing to climate change. To meet this status, an organization has reduced its greenhouse gas emissions as much as possible and balanced off any remaining emissions by removing an equivalent amount from the atmosphere.
The differences can be summarised as below:
| Carbon Neutral | Net Zero | |
| Emissions | Balanced through reductions and offsets | Prioritizes deep emission reductions |
| Reliance on offsets | Heavily reliant on offsets | (Aims to) minimize the reliance of offsets |
| Viability | Easier to achieve with good guidance and best practice | Generally more ambitious and more difficult to achieve |
Net zero is increasingly being viewed as the more rigorous climate target.
The Categorisation of a Company’s Carbon Emissions
Most organizations categorise their carbon emissions into three ‘scopes’. Each are defined, measured and reported separately.
Scope 1 Emissions: Direct
These are emissions created directly from company-owned sources. This includes emissions from:
- Manufacturing facilities
- Company vehicles
- On-site fuel combustion.
Scope 2 Emissions: Indirect
These are emissions created indirectly from energy purchased from elsewhere. This includes emissions from:
- On-site electricity usage
- On-site heating
- On-site cooling.
Scope 3 Emissions: Value Chain
These are indirect emissions created throughout the value chain in order for the organization to operate. This includes emissions from:
- The activities of the business’ supplier
- Business travel (in non-company vehicles)
- Employee commuting (in non-company vehicles)
- The transportation of products (in non-company vehicles)
- Customer use of products.
Scope 3 emissions are usually the largest of all three scopes, and can be the most difficult to measure due to their extremely indirect and often unpredictable nature.
How do Carbon Neutral Companies get accredited?
There’s no one set accreditation body for the certification of carbon neutrality, but generally speaking, the emissions data is public and so some research into an organization’s claims can help ascertain their accuracy.
This said, the calculations behind carbon emissions can be extremely complex and so often require specialist knowledge to work on. This is why in order to ensure a company’s carbon neutrality, it’s always recommended to establish that a genuine certification body has granted their accreditation; such as the Carbon Footprint Standard. A proper accrediting body will have analysed a company’s operations, reporting, and governance to determine their accuracy and to suggest areas for improvement and potential.
How to Evaluate Companies’ Carbon Neutrality Claims
Given that there is no one set accreditation body for carbon neutrality, it may be that independent investigation is required to assert and evaluate their authenticity and credibility.
To best verify the carbon neutrality and related sustainability claims as accurate, organizations and consumers should investigate into:
- Public sustainability reports
- Science-based climate targets
- Detailed emissions disclosures
- Third-party verification and independent certifications.
If access is permitted to an individual or team within the organization that know and understand their emissions reporting, it may be helpful to ask:
- How much of the emissions reported have been reduced versus the amount offset?
- Are Scope 3 emissions included in the reporting?
- Is the organization’s progress independently verified?
- What targets are in place for the future?
How does working with Carbon Neutral Companies impact a company’s Scope 3 reporting?
Whether or not an organization is looking to become certified ‘carbon neutral’, it should still implement sustainability best practices throughout its supply chain. This means working with as many carbon neutral, ethically- or sustainability-focused organizations as possible in everything they do. Collaborating and working with a carbon neutral company such as Procurri allows companies to take advantage of our sustainable IT solutions and provides the facility for their assets to be processed in entirely zero carbon emission facilities; giving their Scope 3 reporting a boost.
Learn more on how Procurri can help improve your ESG reporting: just get in touch to talk through your operations and requirements!
