What Data is Required for Carbon Footprint Reporting?

Carbon footprint reporting is critical for organizations to fulfill their climate change commitments and comply with international legal obligations (e.g. CBAM compliant reporting). The answer to the question of how to calculate a carbon footprint is fundamentally based on collecting accurate activity data.

The corporate carbon footprint (greenhouse gas emissions) is divided into three main scopes, Scopes 1, 2 and 3, according to the GHG Protocol and ISO 14064 standards. ISO 14064-1 data requirements provide specifications for GHG inventorying and reporting at the corporate level. These emissions are usually measured in metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO₂e).

Types of Data Used in Carbon Footprint Reporting

The data required for carbon footprinting can be broadly divided into "activity data" and "emission factors":

Activity Data: Measurable quantities of internal or external activities that cause emissions. The user enters this activity data (such as fuel consumption, electricity consumption, raw material amount) into the system.
Emission Factors: Reference values that show how much CO₂e emission is released from a certain unit of activity (e.g. burning 1 liter of diesel fuel, 1 MWh electricity consumption).

For effective carbon footprint reporting with accurate data, tools such as carbon footprinting software perform automatic calculations by matching entered activity data with centralized and continuously updated libraries of emission factors (which can contain more than 20,000 factors). This eliminates the risk of using incorrect or outdated factors. In reporting, not only absolute emissions are important, but also the Scope 1, 2 and 3 breakdown of emissions, as well as intensity metrics (e.g. tCO₂e per income).

Required Data Breakdown for Scope 1, 2 and 3 Emissions

The basis of the GHG inventory is the correct classification of scope 1 2 3 emission data.

What is Scope 1 (Direct Emissions) Data?

Scope 1 is direct emissions from sources owned or controlled by the company (facilities, vehicle fleet).

Required Data:

Fuel Consumption Data: Type of fuel (natural gas, diesel, gasoline, etc.) and consumption amounts burned in company-owned boilers, generators or vehicles.
Chemical Process Data: Amounts of emissions or process inputs from production processes (e.g. calcination in cement production or Perfluoro-carbons, PFCs, in aluminum production).

The CBAM Regulation requires that Scope 1 direct emissions are taken into account in the calculation of Specific Embedded Emissions (SEE) of imported products, making accurate process data at the plant level critical.

How is Scope 2 (Indirect Energy Emissions) Data Collected?

Scope 2 is indirect emissions from electricity, steam, heat or cooling that the company purchases for its operations.

Required Data:

Amount of Energy Purchased: Amount of electricity, steam or heat consumed on a facility or location basis (in MWh or other energy units).
Energy Source Data: Emission factors for the source of this energy (e.g., local grid emission factor for purchased electricity or zero emission factor if Renewable Energy Certificates/PPAs are used).

For CBAM-compliant reporting, Scope 2 emissions must be included in the calculations and reported.

How to Determine Scope 3 (Supply Chain and Other Indirect Emissions) Data?

Scope 3 is all other indirect GHG emissions that are beyond the control of companies, but occur in the value chain (both upstream and downstream).

Required Data:

Purchased Goods and Services: Expenditure and quantity data on raw materials and services purchased from suppliers.
Transportation and Logistics: Data on transportation of products (with external fleets) and employee business travel.
Waste Management: Types and quantities of waste generated from business operations.
Products Used: Energy consumption/emissions caused by products sold during their lifecycle use by the customer.

To identify Scope 3 data, organizations can use supplier data collection templates. European regulations (ESRS) require value chain transparency and disclosure of Scope 3 emissions.

How to Plan the Data Collection Process?

For proper digital carbon footprint management, it is important to plan the data collection process with the following steps:

Standard Setting: The process should aim to establish a MRV (Monitoring, Reporting, Verification) system in accordance with national and international standards such as ISO 14064-1.
Creating a Data Dictionary: Emission, water and waste data should be standardized with a dictionary compatible with the corporate data architecture.
Technological Infrastructure: Pulling activity data (fuel, electricity, etc.) from automated systems (ERP, IoT) reduces manual entry errors and improves data quality.
Starting from Legal Obligation: Facility level Scope 1 and 2 data collected to meet legal mandates, such as the CBAM Module, should automatically form the basis of a Corporate Carbon Footprint (ISO 14064-1) inventory.
Archiving and Audit Trail: In the carbon footprint reporting process, an archiving infrastructure that ensures consistency of reports across periods and an audit trail is critical to prepare for the verification obligation starting in 2026.

How to Conduct Effective Carbon Footprint Reporting with the Right Data?

Effective carbon footprint reporting not only ensures compliance, but also gives the organization a competitive advantage. This is possible with the reliability and integration of data:

Assuring Data Quality: To minimize the risk of errors, digital carbon footprint management tools using libraries of emission factors that are up-to-date and managed by professional teams should be preferred. High data quality ensures instant compliance with EU legislation.
Integration: Collected Scope 1, 2 and 3 data meet different reporting needs (CBAM, ISO 14064, GRI) from a single data set, eliminating duplication of work.
Validation Readiness: Creating a corporate inventory in line with ISO 14064 data requirements reduces audit costs by making it easier for accredited verifiers in 2026.
Target Calibration: Emissions data should be calibrated with Science Based Targets and sector benchmarks and linked to business targets with indicators such as emissions per margin or embedded impact per product.

The Right Data Management Analogy

The process of collecting data for carbon footprint reporting is similar to a cook preparing a recipe (ISO 14064/GHG Protocol). Activity data (fuel, electricity consumption) are the key ingredients in the recipe (flour, sugar, eggs). The emission factors are a table of nutritional values that must be constantly updated to show how much environmental impact (calories) these ingredients have. If the cook uses an old or incorrect table (outdated factors in Excel), the nutritional values (emission results) of the dish (carbon footprint report) will be wrong. Accurate carbon footprinting software, on the other hand, ensures that you both weigh the ingredients correctly (data collection) and automatically use the correct nutrient values (emission factors), gaining the trust of auditors (critics).