Corporate footprint is the process of measuring the total environmental impact of a company’s activities. Its most common components are:
• Carbon Footprint (greenhouse gas emissions),
• Water Footprint (water consumption and pollution),
• Waste Quantity, etc.
This calculation reveals the company’s impact on nature with numerical data,
forming the basis for sustainability strategies.
Reducing Environmental Impact: Environmental damage can be prevented with concrete data.
Legal Compliance: Prepares for regulations such as the EU Green Deal and CBAM.
Corporate Reputation: Provides confidence for investors and customers who value sustainability.
Risk Management: Operational risks caused by climate change are identified early.
Efficiency and Savings: Energy, water, and resource usage are optimized, providing cost advantages.
Reporting and Transparency: Compliance with sustainability standards such as GRI, CDP, and ISO 14064 is ensured.
Carbon footprint is the total amount of greenhouse gas emissions (in CO₂ equivalents) released into the atmosphere as a result of an organization’s activities.
What Emissions Does Carbon Footprint Cover?
According to international standards, carbon footprint is assessed in three main areas:
It comes from resources under the direct control of the business. For example:
Covers indirect emissions generated by purchased energy. For example:
It comes from the supply chain and non-operational activities. For example:
Note: Scope 3 usually makes up the largest part of the carbon footprint and is the most complex.
The carbon footprint calculation process generally includes the following steps:
1. Data Collection: Activity data such as energy consumption, fuel use, transportation data, and purchase records are collected.
2. Application of Emission Factors: Nationally or internationally valid emission factors are used for each activity type
(e.g., factors from DEFRA, IPCC, TÜBİTAK).
3. Total Emission Calculation: The data is multiplied by the appropriate factors to calculate the total emission value in CO₂e.
4. Reporting and Scope Differentiation: The obtained data is reported separately according to scope.
Water footprint refers to the total amount of water consumed and polluted directly and indirectly by the activities of a product, service, or organization. Water footprint calculation is a detailed analysis that shows how, how much, and for what purpose water resources are used. The water footprint takes into account not only consumption but also the environmental impact of polluted water.
This enables businesses to develop sustainable water management strategies.
Direct use of groundwater and surface water (lakes, rivers, reservoirs).
Example: Clean water used in production machinery, irrigation water.
Refers to the moisture content of the soil and water from natural sources such as rainwater.
It is particularly important in agricultural production processes.
It is the amount of water that becomes contaminated after use and poses a threat to the environment when discharged into nature.
Grey water also includes the amount of clean water required to dilute this contamination without harming nature.
1. Data Collection:
• Water consumption (measurements such as tons/hour, m³/day)
• Production processes, cleaning, cooling systems, personnel usage
• Wastewater quantity and pollution load (values such as BOD, COD)
2. Classification of Water Use:
Water is classified as blue, green, or gray based on the type of use.
3. Pollution Calculation:
The amount of water required to dilute pollutants in wastewater before they enter the environment is calculated.
4. Total Water Footprint Calculation:
The calculations performed separately for each component are combined.
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