ADEPT publishes highways carbon calculation guidance covering supply chain emissions

ADEPT and the Future Highways Research Group (FHRG) have published new carbon calculation guidance for local highways authorities that includes supply chain or Scope 3 emissions, marking a major milestone towards the sector’s standardisation of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions calculations.

Developed by FHRG, the snappily titled Carbon Calculation & Accounting Standard (CCAS) Carbon Reporting Guidance for Local Highways Authorities (GHG Scopes 1, 2 & 3) is the result of an 18-month long project which drew in 19 commercial and supply chain partners from across the sector. The guidance will support local highways authorities in establishing their carbon footprint. It also supports the goals for reducing carbon emissions set out in the Climate Change Committee’s Sixth Carbon Budget.

Anthony Payne, President of ADEPT said, “Achieving net zero will not happen without the actions of local authorities and the decarbonisation of highways and infrastructure is key. A large majority of councils have now declared a climate emergency – being able to measure carbon emissions in a consistent and standardised way is critical to us successfully delivering against our ambitions.”
 
Up until now there has been no standardisation for carbon accounting although the highways and transportation sector increasingly recognised the need for harmonisation. The new guidance addresses this by providing highways authorities with comprehensive and straightforward advice enabling the detailed reporting of GHG emissions across highways’ construction and maintenance services. It will enable:

• Comprehensive and consistent standards for carbon accounting.

• Repeatable, transparent, and robust processes for undertaking emissions assessments including for both highways construction and highways maintenance.

• Proposed in-house processes for reducing the administrative overheads of carbon accounting.

• The assessment of strategic carbon reduction options based on accurate carbon baseline assessments.
   

The fact that this guidance also encompasses the notoriously difficult Scope 3 emissions resulting from supply chains, commercial partners and contractors, is a major achievement for the FHRG.
 
As a result local highways authorities will now be able to capture the carbon impact of all work across Scope 1, 2 and 3. The standardised approach will also ensure calculated emissions are comparable between different authorities regardless of how they deliver their services, whether in-house, outsourced or through a local authority trading company. 
 

Carbon Calculation & Accounting Standard (CCAS) - Carbon Reporting Guidance for Local Highways Authorities is available on the ADEPT website: