Having found the carbon number for your business or organisation you should now plan how you will reduce these carbon emissions.
The carbon calculator will have identified the key areas where you should reduce your emissions, e.g. stationary combustion, electricity, employee business travel etc. This step will help you set a target for your carbon emissions and also give you tips for reducing them.
Targets
A key step in carbon management is setting a target for your carbon emissions.
In order to set a realistic and useful target you will need to consider the objectives of your company or organisation. Knowing what you hope to achieve from reducing your emissions, e.g. financial saving, marketing opportunities, preparing for future regulations or demonstrating leadership and corporate responsibility, will guide you in setting an appropriate target.
When setting a target it may be useful to consider the following;
Which scopes or areas will you aim to reduce, e.g. stationary combustion?
Will you set an absolute target or an intensity related target? (e.g. A reduction in tonnes of CO2 per employee).
Do you want to set a short term or long term target?
What is the target completion date?
Will the target cease after specific period of time or will it continue?
How will you track and report progress? (You can download your CMT calculator results to excel format to keep a record of your emissions).
Will you set a base year (an initial year for comparison with future years)?
Reducing Emissions
The downloadable Planning and Opportunities Tool contains measures you can implement for each of the sections of the calculator.
The tool provides various methods of reducing carbon emissions and also provides a template for organising and keeping a record of current status.
As you will see from the Planning and Opportunities Tool, there are a number of areas where you can take action within your organisation to reduce your carbon emissions. The main focus will be on energy and transport, however waste and water will also be important.
Downloads