Demystifying the landscape of carbon quantification and reporting standards: a practical note for the financial sector

In response to the global challenge of climate change, financial institutions are increasingly called upon to assess and disclose their carbon emissions. Various global carbon quantification and reporting standards were developed, such as the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Protocol, Task Force on Climate-rela...

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Main Authors: Nicolas Page, Alireza Gholami, Qian Zhang
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: IOP Publishing 2025-01-01
Series:Environmental Research Communications
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1088/2515-7620/add2d9
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author Nicolas Page
Alireza Gholami
Qian Zhang
author_facet Nicolas Page
Alireza Gholami
Qian Zhang
author_sort Nicolas Page
collection DOAJ
description In response to the global challenge of climate change, financial institutions are increasingly called upon to assess and disclose their carbon emissions. Various global carbon quantification and reporting standards were developed, such as the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Protocol, Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD), Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials (PCAF) and others. Unfortunately, the now diverse landscape of standards increases the complexity for institutions seeking to develop voluntary carbon quantification and reporting. This study addresses the complexity issue by developing a criteria-based tool that summarizes the various components and requirements of the carbon standards. We propose eight criteria that summarize the standards’ key elements, requirements and relevance to the financial industry. We analyze seven major carbon quantification and reporting standards, systematically evaluating them against our tool. By doing so, we provide financial institutions with valuable insights in selecting appropriate standards to inform their emissions quantification and reporting decisions.
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spelling doaj-art-004146a032b644b9b7ec0a550c26e0b02025-08-20T03:09:42ZengIOP PublishingEnvironmental Research Communications2515-76202025-01-017505200310.1088/2515-7620/add2d9Demystifying the landscape of carbon quantification and reporting standards: a practical note for the financial sectorNicolas Page0Alireza Gholami1https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0961-4730Qian Zhang2https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0544-6744The Robert M. Buchan Department of Mining, Smith Engineering, Queen’s University , Kingston, Ontario K7L3N6, CanadaThe Robert M. Buchan Department of Mining, Smith Engineering, Queen’s University , Kingston, Ontario K7L3N6, CanadaThe Robert M. Buchan Department of Mining, Smith Engineering, Queen’s University , Kingston, Ontario K7L3N6, CanadaIn response to the global challenge of climate change, financial institutions are increasingly called upon to assess and disclose their carbon emissions. Various global carbon quantification and reporting standards were developed, such as the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Protocol, Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD), Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials (PCAF) and others. Unfortunately, the now diverse landscape of standards increases the complexity for institutions seeking to develop voluntary carbon quantification and reporting. This study addresses the complexity issue by developing a criteria-based tool that summarizes the various components and requirements of the carbon standards. We propose eight criteria that summarize the standards’ key elements, requirements and relevance to the financial industry. We analyze seven major carbon quantification and reporting standards, systematically evaluating them against our tool. By doing so, we provide financial institutions with valuable insights in selecting appropriate standards to inform their emissions quantification and reporting decisions.https://doi.org/10.1088/2515-7620/add2d9greenhouse gas quantificationScope 3 emissionsclimate risk managementcarbon disclosurePCAF
spellingShingle Nicolas Page
Alireza Gholami
Qian Zhang
Demystifying the landscape of carbon quantification and reporting standards: a practical note for the financial sector
Environmental Research Communications
greenhouse gas quantification
Scope 3 emissions
climate risk management
carbon disclosure
PCAF
title Demystifying the landscape of carbon quantification and reporting standards: a practical note for the financial sector
title_full Demystifying the landscape of carbon quantification and reporting standards: a practical note for the financial sector
title_fullStr Demystifying the landscape of carbon quantification and reporting standards: a practical note for the financial sector
title_full_unstemmed Demystifying the landscape of carbon quantification and reporting standards: a practical note for the financial sector
title_short Demystifying the landscape of carbon quantification and reporting standards: a practical note for the financial sector
title_sort demystifying the landscape of carbon quantification and reporting standards a practical note for the financial sector
topic greenhouse gas quantification
Scope 3 emissions
climate risk management
carbon disclosure
PCAF
url https://doi.org/10.1088/2515-7620/add2d9
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AT qianzhang demystifyingthelandscapeofcarbonquantificationandreportingstandardsapracticalnoteforthefinancialsector