FAQs
In this section you can find the answers to the most commonly asked questions, if you cant find the answer to your question please email us at Certification@carbontrust.com
Q1. How long do you hold the Standard for?
Q2. How does this relate to the product labelling work being done by the Carbon Trust?
Q3. Why are relative reductions allowed when the Carbon Trust’s role is to reduce the UK’s total emissions?
Q4. Why is green energy not being counted, even if high quality?
Q5. How does the Carbon Trust Standard compare to other schemes?
Q6. What has happened to the EEAS?
Q7. What is the benefit to the taxpayer?
Q8. How often will you check up on each company?
Q9. How do you get the Standard?
Q10. What is the Carbon Trust Standard?
Q11. Who is eligible for the Carbon Trust Standard?
Q12. Why is offsetting not being counted, even if high quality?
Q13. Who is behind the Carbon Trust Standard?
Q14. What is the benefit of achieving the Standard?
Q1. How long do you hold the Standard for?
Answer: Organisations that are awarded the Carbon Trust Standard hold it for a two year period. To keep the certification they must reapply and demonstrate that they have continued to make year on year reductions in their emissions.
Q2. How does this relate to the product labelling work being done by the Carbon Trust?
Answer: The product labelling work is complimentary to the Carbon Trust Standard. The Carbon Trust Standard rewards organisations which are measuring, managing and reducing their emissions. By contrast the product label looks at emissions up and down the supply chain. This shows consumers the specific carbon impact of a product or service and helps them factor carbon into their purchasing decisions
We encourage organisations to do both – to minimise their own emissions which they control directly and then to tackle their supply chain and product emissions which they control indirectly. By choosing to work with organisations that have achieved The Carbon Trust Standard businesses will be able to be sure they are minimising their carbon impact wherever possible.
Q3. Why are relative reductions allowed when the Carbon Trust’s role is to reduce the UK’s total emissions?
Answer: Some organisations are growing more quickly than others – what is important is that the UK economy as a whole reduces its total carbon output. If all companies could reduce their carbon intensity faster than the economy is growing, total emissions would fall. The Carbon Trust Standard will highlight those organisations that are doing this.
Q4. Why is green energy not being counted, even if high quality?
Answer:
The Carbon Trust Standard treats “green” electricity in the same way as government regulation does - it is assumed to have the same carbon intensity as normal grid electricity. This is because the electricity suppliers in the UK are mandated to generate a certain percentage of their electricity from renewable sources. The majority of green tariffs are selling renewable energy that would probably have been generated anyway due to this regulation. As a result the additional carbon savings are considered to be small. For more details please refer to the Carbon Trust's view on green tariffs.
The Carbon Trust Standard rewards organisations which are cutting their own emissions. The problems with green tariffs highlighted above mean that we do not consider the tariffs to provide an emission reduction.
The role of green electricity will be considered in the light of future guidance on this issue from Defra and Ofgem.
Q5. How does the Carbon Trust Standard compare to other schemes?
Answer: The Carbon Trust Standard has a different focus to many other environmental and carbon schemes - it only rewards organisations that achieve emissions reductions through their own actions.
However, the Standard is also complementary to other initiatives:
Offsetting and carbon neutrality
Many organisations purchase carbon “offsets” (emissions reduction certificates generated by projects in the developing world) to compensate for the emissions they generate. Some organisations aim to achieve “neutrality” by purchasing offsets equivalent to their total emissions. The Carbon Trust Standard does not give credit for offsets – as the Standard requires organisations to take responsibility for reducing their own emissions directly.
The Carbon Trust recommends that organisations should prioritise reducing their own emissions and the emissions of their supply chain before using offsets. Gaining the Carbon Trust Standard is a key first step in developing a robust offsetting strategy.
GHG Protocol and the Carbon Disclosure Project
The Carbon Trust Standard follows the Greenhouse Gas Protocol – the most widely recognised emissions reporting approach. This approach also underpins the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), an investor led initiative for disclosure of corporate emissions. Information collected in accordance with the GHG Protocol will help your organisation achieve the Standard and prepare your CDP disclosure.
By achieving certification against the Carbon Trust Standard, organisations can demonstrate their emissions reduction success – as well as their commitment to transparency and disclosure via the CDP.
Q6. What has happened to the EEAS?
Answer: The EEAS ended in May 2008 after 15 successful years promoting best practice in energy management. The Carbon Trust Standard builds on these strong foundations to create an initiative that has an increased positive impact on the environment.
The main developments are:
* Focusing on carbon – not just energy
* Increasing the focus on emissions reduction
* Increasing the appeal to a wider cross section of businesses and public sector organisations of all sizes.
The Carbon Trust Standard is open to all organisations whether previously EEAS certified or not.
Existing EEAS members are in a good position to move to the new scheme as they have a strong track record in improving their energy management and gathering the required data. However, the new scheme has additional requirements and so EEAS organisations need to be reassessed before they can upgrade to the new scheme to ensure that they comply.
Q7. What is the benefit to the taxpayer?
Answer: This scheme will charge organisations for membership and for the assessment process. The scheme will incentivise organisations to take action to cut their emissions and to continue cutting. As a result the scheme aims to become self financing – creating emissions savings at no cost to the taxpayer.
Q8. How often will you check up on each company?
Answer: Organisations must reapply every two years – and must demonstrate real emissions reductions in line with the scheme throughout that period.
Q9. How do you get the Standard?
Answer: To get the Carbon Trust Standard organisations will need to measure their carbon footprint accurately, prove that they have good carbon management processes in place, and demonstrate that they have reduced their own carbon emissions year on year – either on an absolute or relative basis.
Q10. What is the Carbon Trust Standard?
Answer: The Carbon Trust Standard is the definitive stamp of approval that is awarded to organisations that have genuinely demonstrated they have reduced their own carbon footprint.
Q11. Who is eligible for the Carbon Trust Standard?
Answer: All organisations, of all sizes and eventually in all countries, are able to apply for the Carbon Trust Standard including: FTSE; mid cap; SME; public sector (e.g. health trusts; galleries; police forces; universities).
Q12. Why is offsetting not being counted, even if high quality?
Answer: The Carbon Trust Standard recognises and rewards organisations that are making direct cuts to their own carbon emissions. Organisations who have reduced their carbon emissions as much as possible may wish to do more and offset the remaining emissions they cannot cut – but that is not the purpose of this scheme. We want to see organisations taking action themselves.
Q13. Who is behind the Carbon Trust Standard?
Answer: The Carbon Trust Standard has been developed by the Carbon Trust. The Carbon Trust will continue to develop the methodology.
The assessment and certification service is administered by Carbon Trust Certification Limited, a subsidiary of Carbon Trust Enterprises. Carbon Trust Enterprises is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Carbon Trust that is focused on developing new business ventures and providing access to financial and strategic low carbon opportunities for UK investors.
Q14. What is the benefit of achieving the Standard?
Answer: The Carbon Trust Standard enables customers, stakeholders and employees to recognise whether an organisation is acting on climate change by measuring, managing and reducing its emissions.