Issue link: https://resources.tangoanalytics.com/i/1507482
Trustworthy emissions calculations are a prerequisite to effective carbon reduction initiatives. Retailers should use science-backed carbon accounting following the GHG Protocol to calculate their full emissions, which provides a foundation for effective carbon management. However, tracking emissions isn't the same as reducing them; it's only a step in the process. Because the majority of emissions retailers must take into account are indirect, they are also the most difficult to track and change due to brands outsourcing production to a geographically and economically complex network of suppliers who have their own interests and operations to worry about. Retailers may even face challenges getting the necessary data to quantify their emissions and understand the emissions footprint of their supply chains. It is a common problem that emissions data from suppliers may be low quality- if they track any data at all. Retailers struggle to collect product-level data from tier 1 suppliers, who are often wholesalers and trading organizations and do not produce goods themselves. As a result, they have limited influence over the climate impact of these products. To account for downstream emissions, retailers also need data on product lifetimes, expected uses, and electricity consumption, among other factors, which can be difficult and time- consuming to obtain without end-consumer insights. Despite these difficulties, retailers can and should be taking proactive steps to account for scope 3 emissions where they can by negotiating with suppliers to put pressure on their data acquisition process. In the meantime, retailers can confidently account for their scope 1 and 2 emissions and begin significant reductions at the operational level. 01 — Collecting Data 02 — Reducing Operational Emissions To lower these emissions, retailers could seek to improve the energy efficiency of stores with LEDs; more efficient heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) motors; heat pumps; on- site solar-power generation; and battery energy storage. They might also decarbonize their own transportation fleet by upgrading to zero-emissions vehicles (for example, those that run on batteries or fuel cells). For grocers, refrigeration in stores is a particular emissions concern and will require efforts to identify and manage refrigerant leaks and, in extreme cases, the complete overhaul of store systems.