Carbon accounting
GHG Accounting
The systematic measurement and reporting of greenhouse gas emissions — and removals — by organisations, products, or projects, using standardised methods such as the GHG Protocol.
Definition
GHG accounting is the process of quantifying and reporting greenhouse gas emissions attributable to an organisation, product, project, or jurisdiction using standardised methodologies — principally the GHG Protocol standards developed by WRI and WBCSD, and ISO 14064. It produces a GHG inventory: a list of emission sources and associated emissions quantified using standardized methods, structured around Scope 1, 2, and 3 boundaries for corporate reporting.
References
inventory definition and process
accounting types
Overview
What it means
The basic equation is activity data multiplied by emission factors. Choices about organisational boundaries, base years, and data quality determine comparability, which is why standards prescribe principles of relevance, completeness, consistency, transparency, and accuracy. Inventory accounting records historical emissions; project accounting estimates reductions from specific interventions.
How it is used
Companies build inventories for CDP, CSRD, ISSB, and SBTi reporting; regulators reference GHG accounting in disclosure mandates; and product-level accounting feeds eco-design and procurement decisions.
Why it matters
"What gets measured gets managed" is literal here: credible targets, carbon markets, and transition plans all stand or fall on the quality of the underlying accounting. **Note:** 1197 and 1198 (GHG accounting and reporting phrasings) merge into this entry.
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