Know your number

Why measure your carbon footprint?

Every day businesses and individuals create greenhouse gas emissions which accumulate in the atmosphere and contribute to climate change.

Measuring your greenhouse gas emissions, or carbon footprint, helps you to understand your how much carbon your business generates.

Knowing your number is the first step towards then managing and minimising those emissions and your climate impact.

Measuring emissions will also help you:

• Become a climate leader
• Set credible sustainability targets
• Identify opportunities for efficiencies and cost savings
• Manage risks more effectively
• Engage staff, customers and communities
• Be transparent and substantiate environmental communications
• Prepare for supply chain disclosure requirements
• Develop a competitive edge, gain market access, or fulfil tender requirements

Find more information here

Carbon Footprint Measurement Programmes

Carbon Calculators

Your carbon footprint is an estimate of the emissions released by your business activities over a year. It provides a baseline for managing and measuring your emissions.
You can choose from three levels of calculator: free, fee-based, and fee-based with certification. You could start with a free one and move to fee-based and certified later.

Free Calculators

Free tools calculate your emissions based on estimates that are based on generalised consumption data rather than individual measurements. They are less accurate but provide a very good starting point.

• CarbonClick
  Quick, easy tools to measure your individual or business footprint.
• Carbon Neutral Trust
  Carbon Neutral New Zealand Trust (CNNZ) is a national “umbrella” organisation for citizen-based, bottom-up community initiatives aimed at addressing climate change at the local level. CNNZ has developed a number of tools for individuals, households, businesses and communities to assess, reduce and where necessary offset their net greenhouse gas emissions. The tool also Considers plantings on your property which may already sequester carbon.
• Sustainable Business Network
  This tool is an online calculator for households and businesses. Based in excel to track emissions and calculate tools.
• EKOS -Business lite Calculator
  Measure to understand your emission hotspots and start working out how best to make reductions. There is no fee for using the calculator to estimate your carbon footprint but the tool does also do carbon-friendly certificates and zero carbon certification.

Paid / fee-based calculators

• Toitū - has two options for Carbon calculators, depending on where you are in your regenerative journey.
  • Carbon Assess
    A low cost tool with a monthly subscription that reports to collate your data and benchmark it against others in the industry. It automatically generates carbon reports and will save up to 5 years of data.
  • Carbon Reduce, Carbon Zero and Climate Positive.
    In depth carbon services to verify your footprint that allows you to make accurate claims about your impact. Toitū will facilitate offsetting any remaining emissions to net zero or better through quality carbon credits.
• EKOS - help businesses to reduce carbon emissions to avoid climate change. They help you:
  • Measure and verify their carbon footprint.
  • Use this footprint measurement to develop and implement a carbon reduction plan.
  • Offset carbon emissions that could not be reduced.
  • Certify the result.