Low Carbon Solutions
This section highlights the range of positive actions which can be used to help reduce your carbon emissions.
Communications
The direct greenhouse gas emissions of some organisations may be comparatively small, but they can have a large impact on climate change by communicating the science and the solutions. Spreading effective messaging on the science and/or solutions to mitigate climate change within an organisation and externally to the public is a key action area.
Eco-Taxation
Taxation instruments are used in many countries to encourage environmentally friendly behaviour. Levies put a price increase on fuels or activities that contribute to greenhouse gas emissions whilst tax rebates act as an incentive to adopt more environmentally friendly behaviours. Taxation instruments can be applied by governments to either companies or individuals.
Emissions Limits
Emissions limits are caps set externally or internally on companies, institutions, specific sites or products. They apply particularly to energy utilities, motor vehicles or energy intensive industries.
Emissions Trading
Whether voluntary or mandatory, emissions trading is an increasingly popular approach to emissions reduction. Emission trading is a market-based mechanism which aims to achieve environmental objectives at least cost. A central authority (usually a government agency) sets a limit or cap on the amount of greenhouse gases that can be emitted. Companies or other groups that emit CO2are given credits or allowances which represent the right to emit a specific amount. The total amount of credits cannot exceed the cap, limiting total emissions to that level. Companies that pollute beyond their allowances must buy credits from those who pollute less than their allowances. This transfer is referred to as a trade.
Energy Efficiency
An improvement in energy efficiency occurs when the quantity of energy inputs needed for a given level of output is reduced. Energy efficiency is often the first step for organisations looking to minimise their emissions, and many have made significant cost savings as a result of action taken in this area. Promoting energy efficiency through policy measures such as building regulations and support and information for business and residential customers is a central pillar of many government initiatives on climate change.
Fuel Switching
Reducing carbon dioxide emissions by switching to lower carbon-content fuels, such as from coal to natural gas can be a good first step for many companies and cities to take when reducing their greenhouse gas emissions. Fuel switching has been instrumental in reducing the emissions from transportation and electric utilities.
Management Systems
In order to make greenhouse gas reductions permanent, actions have to be institutionalized. Alteration of the organisational structure within a company can better enable it to address climate change issues.
Monitoring and Reporting
An essential step to tackling greenhouse gas emission is to determine what the annual emissions of an organisation are and to provide updated information (including progress on targets set) regularly to the public through, for example, the Carbon Disclosure Project, annual reports or other means.
Offsets
Carbon offsetting refers to the purchase of greenhouse gas emission credits to compensate a carbon footprint - the GHG emissions associated with a given activity, product, production process, company, or individual. These credits are generated from projects that reduce greenhouse gas emissions. In order to ensure that any carbon credits acquired are not used subsequently to comply with government regulation or to offset other activities, the certificates are cancelled and, where necessary, removed from government registries. Carbon offsets are therefore a way for individuals, companies and other organisations to compensate their own emissions by investing in emission reductions elsewhere.
Partnerships
Many companies are increasingly working with non-governmental organisations, cities or other governments to identify best practice emission reduction solutions. Similarly, governments at all levels are seeking out opportunities to partner with business on delivering low carbon solutions for their citizens.
Process Changes
Alterations in the chemicals and fuels used for manufacturing procedures during production are often made to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, especially in energy intensive industries like chemicals or steel.
Products and Services
In addition to reducing their direct emissions, many companies have introduced lower carbon products (energy efficient lightbulbs and low emmisions vehicles, for example) and services (e.g. eco-deliveries, offset car-hire). Changes in products to reduce downstream lifetime emissions of the product and/or production of new technologies that enable carbon reduction for other users can be seen across many sectors.
Project Finance
Project finance comes in many forms across many different sectors but always includes providing monetary funds for projects that support the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.
Renewable Energy
Renewable energy is electricity or heat generated from renewable sources, including wind, solar, geothermal, biomass, landfill gas and low impact hydro. Many companies are both buying and generating green energy as part of overall emissions reduction programmes. Governments at all levels have introduced a range of policies to promote the uptake of renewable technologies including: Renewables Portfolio Standards (RPS), which require utilities to generate a percentage of electricity from renewable fuel sources; and feed-in tariffs, which specify a guaranteed price for renewable electricity from private generators.
Sequestration
Sequestration is the process of increasing the carbon content of a carbon reservoir other than the atmosphere. Biological approaches to sequestration include direct removal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere through land-use change, afforestation, reforestation, and practices that enhance soil carbon in agriculture. Physical approaches include separation and disposal of carbon dioxide from flue gases or from processing fossil fuels to produce hydrogen-and carbon dioxide-rich fractions and long-term storage in underground in depleted oil and gas reservoirs, coal seams, and saline aquifers.
Strategies and Targets
Once a carbon footprint has been determined, a method by which an organisation or region will reduce its greenhouse gas emissions must be decided upon. Many organisations introduce carbon plans and policies, and, as part of these, set targets stating how much greenhouse gas emissions must be reduced by over a defined period of time.
Supply Chain Management
Another way that companies address their indirect emissions is to address their material suppliers. Companies have begun to place demands on companies who provide materials that support the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.
Sustainable Buildings
With building construction and use accounting for a large percentage of global emissions, the energy efficiency of buildings is getting more attention. There are many efforts, both by businesses and governments, to increase/optimise the energy efficiency or reduce the energy use of buildings so that greenhouse gas emissions through building-lifetime are decreased.
Transport and Planning
Emissions from transport are growing in many parts of the world, and efforts to combat these, through sustainable planning and transport policies, are central to many government's emissions reduction programmes. Companies too are looking to minimise their climate impact by adopting new ICT technology, introducing low carbon vehicles into their fleets, encouraging car sharing, adopting and implementing transport strategies.
Waste Management
Waste management policies which reduce greenhouse gas emissions include landfill gas capture and use and ‘Reduce, reuse, recycle’. Reducing refuse production or using alternative means of disposal that reduce greenhouse gases emissions from waste decomposition and processing can have a large impact.
Case Studies
A range of case studies showcasing leading corporate, city, regional governments and national governments and their commitment to the reduction of greenhouse gases.