Background Information
Emissions from vehicles not owned or controlled by your business are considered indirect emissions and fall within the GHG Protocol categories of business travel and upstream leased assets. These emissions include those related to business travel (not including commuting to the workplace) in vehicles owned or operated by third parties (leased, rental or employee-owned vehicles and all forms of public transport) and staff hotel stays.
What can my business do to reduce carbon emissions from this category?
Most modes of business travel have a lower-carbon alternative; travelling by public transport rather than driving or taking a train rather than flying, for example. To ensure staff are using the mode of travel with the lowest possible emissions, your business should implement operational and procurement policies that promote the choice of low carbon travel.
Action | Detail |
Sustainable travel policy | Introduce a travel policy based on the sustainable travel hierarchy (see Useful Resources below for further details of this). A sustainable travel policy can include guidelines such as prioritising digital communication over travel, and switching from business class to economy when flying. |
Sustainable procurement policy | Stipulating that new lease and car rental agreements should only be made for electric vehicles. If these do not exist for a specific vehicles type, it should stipulate strict emission and, in the case of leases, futureproofing requirements. |
Electric vehicle salary sacrifice scheme | Provide an incentive for staff to purchase an EV for personal use, which can also be used for business travel. |
Useful Resources
Source: Sage Earth
Sage Earth view: 7 ideas to think about when considering employee travel; from slow travel days to internal carbon levies.
Source: Route Zero - Albie Baker-Smith
Sage Earth view: We really like this tool as a way of understanding the difference in carbon intensity between different modes of transport. Share this tool with your team to get them thinking when it comes to booking business travel.
Source: Ethical Consumer
Sage Earth view: Another article explaining the climate impact of different modes of transport; introduces the green transport hierarchy with actions your business can take towards more sustainable business travel.
Source: Energy Saving Trust
Sage Earth view: A simple but effective resource outlining some of the things to consider when writing a sustainable transport policy. Provides a good introduction to the sustainable travel hierarchy which can be a useful starting point.
Area of GHG Protocol
Scope 3.6. Business travel
Scope 3.8. Upstream leased assets
🌍 Not every action suggested in this article will fit every business. Some can be implemented with relative ease, while others will require more time and investment. It's important to note that it may take some time to see a visible reduction in your reported emissions as a result of taking these actions (and that some will have a greater impact than others).
All additional resources suggested within this article are created and maintained by independent third parties. Sage Earth is not responsible for the content of any third party resources.