VCM
Ecoprogresso was the first company in Portugal to apply the international standard on carbon voluntary management: the Greenhouse Gas Protocol. The Greenhouse Gas Protocol is a methodology based on the contributions made by dozens of companies worldwide and from the most varied of sectors. It is an initiative developed by the World Business Council on Sustainable Development (WBCSD) and by the World Resources Institute (WRI).
This standard was complemented by the Working 9 to 5 on Climate Change: an Office Guide and the Hot Climate, Cool Commerce: A Service Sector Guide to Greenhouse Gas Management.Ecoprogresso was the only company in Portugal to participate in testing the methodologies proposed prior to the guide being officially published. These guides are particularly useful to service companies, mostly operating out of offices, or services (for example, headquarter buildings) rendered by industrial sector companies.
Main features of the Greenhouse Gas Protocol methodology
The methodology makes a distinction between emissions with direct emission - known as scope 1 - the entire responsibility of the company undertaking its inventory. One example of such emissions is those originating in the company's car fleet fuel consumption. It is mandatory to count every emission identified in scope 1.
Scope 2 emissions are considered indirect and are of only one type: they concern greenhouse gas emissions that result from the production of electricity consumed by the company. The electricity company is responsible for those emissions but their inclusion is mandatory.
Finally, the counting of scope 3 indirect emissions is optional. In this category, any other type of emissions deemed important to company business can be counted. For example, the emissions derived from commuting, business travel, waste management…
