ISO14067, Product Carbon Footprint quantification and reporting

Introduction

Crowberry Consulting? - Enabling sustainable futures, have released “Introduction to ISO 14067:2018 – Product carbon footprints”, an introductory online training course to the ISO14067 standard which will help you understand why product carbon footprints are important and how to complete them in lines with the standard.

Climate change is a huge challenge internationally as we start to experience more extreme weather events due to rising temperatures, this provides the need for reducing our greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to limit global temperature increase. One of the main strategies we have in place for this is developing carbon footprints which show the GHG emissions your organisation is releasing and gives you responsibility for reducing these with the ultimate aims of carbon neutrality and then net-zero.

The ISO14067 is a standard of significantly growing importance as it defines how a Product Carbon Footprint (PCF or CFP) is quantified and reported, including a life cycle assessment (LCA). ISO14067 is an internationally recognised carbon neutrality standard released in a family of ISO14063 - 14069 which provide a complementing set of standards giving consistency in calculating, monitoring, reporting, and verifying GHG emissions and removals for sustainable development by creating a comprehensive GHG inventory. The GHG inventory is a large collection of carbon footprint data, procedures to reduce the carbon footprint and gives clarity in assessing your products’ carbon footprint and what you can do to help prevent climate change.

Benefits

Understanding the carbon footprints of your organisation’s products is vital in ensuring sustainable development of the future. Having a PCF grants you data about your processes, inefficiencies, and surrounding supplier / customer trading network.

The benefits of ISO14067:

·???????? Providing requirements for the quantification of the CFP for equality between products

·???????? Facilitating CFP performance tracking and providing clarity in reducing GHG emissions

·???????? Helping to promote a sustainable low carbon economy

·???????? Enhancing the credibility, consistency, and transparency of the quantification and reporting of the CFP

·???????? Supports you to ?create a full GHG inventory

·???????? Aids in choosing alternative processes and rethinking with the development of new technology throughout your trading network.

·???????? GHG management strategies which can help reduce emissions but also increase general efficiency which can give a competitive advantage over comparable products and businesses

·???????? Future-proofs your product against any incoming carbon footprint legislation and allows for easier adaptation to any related guidelines as you already know your PCF

·???????? May be required for certain contracts

·???????? Is useful as the UK government has put in legislation which states that organisations wishing to bid for governmental contracts over ￡5 million must use Carbon Reduction Plans and conduct a verified GHG emissions inventory in order to win the work

These are just some of the benefits the standard can bring your organisation specifically, but it is also important to bear in mind the main reasons for undertaking an environmental / sustainability standard of helping to reduce the effects of climate change for the future of the planet.

PCF calculation process and data required

The ISO14067 is a complete comprehensive assessment of a PCF which entails collating the data in order to analyse and implement the findings of the report. The process for quantifying and reporting the PCF is:

·???????? Planning, calculation, reporting, and follow-up action should all have budgets put in place as the four overarching sections of the PCF

·???????? Selecting data period (normally the previous year is set as the baseline year)

·???????? Scope, boundaries, and targets should be set to remove wasted time and resources on irrelevant processes

·???????? Using DEFRA ?conversion factors (UK) to work out emissions and removals or IPCC for international operations:

o?? Data from suppliers (raw materials and pre-processing)

o?? Data from own processes

o?? Data from later supply chain (distribution and retail)

o?? Data from use stage

o?? Data from end-of-life stage

·???????? Life cycle inventory analysis (LCI) – inputs and outputs of the product

·???????? Life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) – potential environmental impacts for product system

·???????? Product category rules (PCR) – industry standards should be followed as often as possible during the PCF calculations as they are tailored specifically to certain product categories

·???????? Data should be validated and preferably from primary sources (from own measurements and calculations)

·???????? Data aggregation should then be carried out using constant allocation, system boundary modifications, and cross-referencing data with processes

·???????? The results from this can then be used to track the CFP performance, reported, and critically evaluated

The required data for the PCF includes:

·???????? Functional unit (industry standard unit)

·???????? The amount of GHG emissions and removals which can be converted into tonnes CO2 equivalent per functional unit for each process in the organisation’s control in relation to the product

·???????? As much as possible of the emissions and removals from suppliers and customers outside of your organisation’s control in relation to the product

·???????? Net fossil fuel usage

·???????? Biogenic carbon from trees storing carbon etc.

·???????? Direct land use change emissions and removals

·???????? Aircraft transport emissions

Useful non-required data:

·???????? Indirect land use change

·???????? Sensitivity analysis for grid source electricity

·???????? Biogenic carbon for products (carbon stored in product wooden tables etc.)

·???????? PCF calculated to Global Warming Potential 100 (GWP)

Conclusions

As shown by the above information, ISO14067 is a valuable resource for many organisations and should be evaluated as a way to create value for your products and organisation.

Crowberry Consulting? - Enabling Sustainable Futures, we have over 20 years of international expertise in environment and sustainability management and a deep knowledge and experience in quantifying #carbon footprints. We are an approved BSI Consultancy and an approved SGS Consultancy.

Please get in touch with us to enquire about implementing #ISO14067 in your organisation today!

We also offer other online courses such as #ISO9001, #ISO14001, #ISO14064-1, #ISO20121, #ISO50001, and #PAS2060.

Website: www.crowberryconsulting.com/training

Email: [email protected]

X: @crowberryenergy

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Thanks to James Wildsmith for support with this article.