Voice of FM, 4th edition "Calculate Your Carbon Footprint"

What is a carbon footprint?

A carbon footprint is the total amount of greenhouse gases (including carbon dioxide and methane) that are generated by our actions.

What are greenhouse gasses and why are they important?

Greenhouse gasses, such as carbon dioxide and methane, trap heat in the atmosphere.

They then release that heat back down to Earth.

This environmental process is necessary for our survival, for Earth would be too cold to live on without it.

However, in recent centuries, we have been emitting excessive amounts of carbon dioxide, and other GHGs, into the atmosphere. 

This huge influx of greenhouse gases is causing climate change.

Calculating the carbon footprint 

Step 1. Collect data from each of your relevant emissions-releasing activities

Choose a 12-month period to collect activity data (if reporting for the first time, choose the most recent 12-month period for which you have data).

Here are some examples of the numbers you’ll want to measure.

• Electricity use: Total kilowatt-hours used from electricity bills.
• Natural gas use: Total kilowatt-hours used from gas bills.
• Water supply: Total water supplied in cubic meters from water bill.
• Water treatment: Total water treated in cubic meters from water bill.
• Fuel used in company-owned vehicles: Liters of fuel purchased from invoices and receipts (more accurate) or vehicle mileage from vehicle logbooks/odometers (less accurate).
• Employee passenger travel: Employee receipts for details of travel and distance calculation websites to obtain flight, rail, and road distances.
• Waste disposal/recycling: Tones of waste-to-landfill and recycled from waste collection provider.

Step 2. Convert the data

To calculate the greenhouse gas emissions associated with each business activity, you will need to convert the data you’ve collected using what’s called an ‘emission factor’.

This is a representative value that allows you to convert the activity data you’ve measured (see step one) into greenhouse gas emissions.

So:

Data x Emission Factor = Greenhouse Gas Emissions

DECC (Department of Energy & Climate Change) greenhouse gas conversion factors

DEFRA (Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs) greenhouse gas conversion factors

use the link below

Greenhouse gas reporting: conversion factors 2021 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

How to use your carbon footprint calculation

Once you’ve calculated your greenhouse gas emissions, use this data to reduce your emissions and save money.

You can set suitable targets achievable over five to 10 years that compare your emissions over time to the first year you have reliable data.

Let’s look at some examples of where you can reduce your emissions:

Reduce waste

Traditionally, businesses make, consume, and throw away.

To reduce your carbon emissions, you need to design out waste from every part of your business, from managing packaging and office supplies to building a sustainable supply chain.

Switch to renewable forms of energy

Green energy refers to emission-free natural resources such as solar, wind and hydropower, which naturally replenish (in contrast to fossil fuels).

By switching to these sources of zero-emission energy, you can avoid indirect emissions from the electricity you purchase and use.

Switch to electric vehicles

Electric vehicles are responsible for considerably lower emissions over their lifetime than conventional internal combustion engine vehicles.

Travel less or use alternative forms of transport

The most carbon-efficient ways to travel are walking, bicycle or train.

As we’ve worked from home during the coronavirus pandemic, you may already have reduced your carbon footprint by reducing commuting and business travel through remote communication tools for everyday tasks and activities.

thanks for your time

Yasser Zannoun

Secretary-General

The Egyptian Facility Management Association (EGYFMA)

Building 224, 5th Settlement, Cairo, Egypt

Mob: +201093918769

WhatsApp: +201550306988

www.egyfma.org

Yasser.Zannoun@egyfma.org