What is Mandatory Carbon Reporting?

In June 2012, the UK government announced the introduction of mandatory carbon reporting, requiring 1,100 UK listed companies to report their greenhouse gas emissions every year. If your company is listed on the London Stock Exchange, then it will be required to include a greenhouse gas emissions statement in its directors’ report for the first financial year ending on or after 30th September 2013.

What do I need to know?

The most important features of the Regulation are:

1. Global emissions, not just those in the UK. Emissions from all the activities for which the reporting company is responsible are included, not just those in the UK. This means reporting companies will have to have efficient data collection systems for gathering information from global operations, as well as a set of global emission factors.
2. All greenhouse gases, not just CO₂. The requirement is for all Kyoto greenhouse gases. Greenhouse gas is defined in section 92 of the Climate Change Act 2008 (c. 27) as carbon dioxide (CO₂), methane (CH₄), nitrous oxide (N₂O), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCS), perfluorocarbons (PFCS) and sulphur hexafluoride (SF₆).
3. Scopes 1 and 2 only. The reporting requirements are only for direct emissions (also known as scope 1), and indirect emissions from purchased electricity, heating, and cooling (also known as scope 2). This makes reporting relatively simple, and avoids the issue of different companies using different boundaries for their other indirect emissions (scope 3).
4. In force soon. The start date for the Regulation is almost certainly going to be 30th September 2013, and so Directors’ Reports for reporting years ending on or after this date will have to include greenhouse gas information. This means that companies need to think about collecting data and their method for calculating emissions now.

 

Audit-Ready Outputs for Mandatory Carbon Reporting

Companies affected by the Greenhouse Gas Emissions (Directors’ Reports) Regulations 2013 will be particularly interested in Our Impacts’ audit-ready outputs. With the prospect of having to include all organisational scope one and two GHG emissions in Directors’ Reports from 30th September 2013, it is vital that the correct emission and conversion factors are used to calculate results, or they may not stand up to scrutiny.

Our Impacts takes care of this process as you enter your data, giving you fully audit-ready reports and results in a range of formats at the push of a button. Plus, the pre-audit cost savings you’ll enjoy will make Our Impacts return on investment within a year. Enter your details below now to get a free demo of Our Impacts:

What does Mandatory Carbon Reporting mean for me?

If your company falls within the 1,100 companies mentioned above, then it will be required to include a greenhouse gas emissions statement in its directors’ report for the first financial year ending after 30 September 2013.

 

Ecometrica’s Our Impacts software already helps many companies, such as National Express, Aggreko and RSA, to blaze the carbon reporting trail. It is the only environmental accounting solution that accounts for all greenhouse gases, all GHG scopes, and has all emission and conversion factors for every country. Take a look at how Our Impacts can help you.

How do I comply?

We understand that you will want to comply with the new mandatory carbon reporting regulations in the most cost-effective and hassle-free way possible.

We have good news for you. Ecometrica has released versions of Our Impacts, our best-of-breed sustainability software, specifically for the FTSE 350 and Small Cap markets. Better still, Our Impacts audit-ready outputs are assured by PwC and fully compliant with the new regulations, removing any risk of non-compliance for your company.

Fill in the form below for full details on this exclusive offer: