Greenhouse Gas Inventories and Audit Readiness

Emerging global and domestic policy, combined with increasing investor and customer expectations, have made quantifying and reporting greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions a foundational requirement for conducting business. As mandatory disclosure requirements expand and scrutiny increases, organizations must demonstrate a rigorous, transparent, and verifiable process for calculating emissions. Our team supports organizations with their Scope 1, Scope 2, and Scope 3 GHG accounting needs—helping establish reliable emissions data, streamline reporting cycles, and build the foundation for broader sustainability and climate initiatives.

Scope 1 emissions encompass the direct emissions generated by an organization from owned or controlled sources, such as on-site fuel combustion, vehicle fleets, and industrial processes. Managing these emissions is a crucial step in reducing a company's direct environmental impact while improving operational efficiency.

Scope 2 emissions refer to the indirect emissions associated with purchased electricity, heat, or steam. These emissions result from an organization’s energy consumption but occur off-site and are typically generated by a utility provider. Effectively managing Scope 2 emissions often involves sourcing lower-carbon energy options, targeting energy efficiency opportunities, and improving energy procurement strategies.

Scope 3 emissions—typically the most extensive category—encompass all other indirect emissions that occur across an organization’s value chain, including activities such as transportation, employee commuting, business travel, and product use and disposal. Addressing Scope 3 emissions is an essential component of a holistic sustainability approach and often requires collaboration with suppliers, customers, and other value chain partners.

A Trusted Partner for Your Greenhouse Gas Accounting Needs

Our team brings years of deep technical and industry expertise to support organizations in meeting the growing demands to measure and manage GHG emissions. Whether you are developing your company’s first GHG inventory or preparing an established inventory for third-party verification, we provide the tools, experience, and expertise needed for moving forward with confidence and achieve your goals. 

We have supported Scope 1, Scope 2, and Scope 3 inventories for organizations of varying sizes and across diverse industries—from boutique manufacturing and fintech firms to Fortune 100 consumer and industrial goods, and global chemical manufacturing companies.

Our inventories are developed in alignment with the GHG Protocol and other relevant industry standards, ensuring that your inventory is ready for external disclosures and reporting, and prepared for third-party verification. Our approach balances inventory accuracy and methodological rigor with practical implementation—reducing the burden on internal teams while maintaining audit-ready documentation and data quality.

We support this process with purpose-built tools that enable flexible, transparent data collection and calculation approaches. Importantly, we offer a sincere human touch: You’ll receive expert support throughout the process, from boundary setting and methodology development through third-party verification and external reporting.

Partnering with us delivers tangible benefits beyond compliance and audit readiness. Our expertise helps reduce internal effort while improving confidence in your GHG data and lowering the risk of misstatement. We provide actionable insights and clear recommendations, enabling your team to make informed decisions and strengthen sustainability performance.

Our support extends beyond the GHG inventory itself, whether your organization aims to reduce emissions, improve resource management, or advance broader environmental and climate objectives. As a trusted partner, we help transform GHG accounting from a reporting requirement into a strategic asset that supports long-term business goals.

Our Greenhouse Gas Inventory Process

Our support begins with a boundary-setting exercise for your GHG inventory: definining the organizational and operational boundaries, activities, and reporting period. From there, we provide purpose-built tools and hands-on guidance for internal teams doing data collection.

Once activity data is collected, our team conducts a detailed quality assurance and quality control (QA/QC) review to identify anomalies, inconsistencies, or data gaps that could affect inventory accuracy. We collaborate with your team to resolve any issues and establish a complete, reliable dataset for emissions calculations.

GHG emissions are then calculated using methodologies aligned with the GHG Protocol and other relevant industry standards. Calculation methodologies, assumptions, estimates, and boundary definitions are fully documented in a GHG Inventory Management Plan, creating a transparent and audit-ready record of the inventory.

Finally, we present inventory results, insights, and recommendations to internal stakeholders in a clear and accessible format—ensuring that both technical and non-technical teams can understand the findings and make informed decisions.

Interested in Learning More?

Contact our team to discuss your organization’s climate goals and how we can support your GHG accounting needs—from developing a robust GHG inventory to preparing for disclosure, verification, and emissions reduction target setting.

Related Services

GHG inventory development is often the first step in a broader sustainability strategy. Our full-service Sustainability Practice supports clients throughout their climate, sustainability, and ESG journey. Additional services that help translate climate commitments into measurable results include:

Decarbonization Planning – Developing practical roadmaps to reduce emissions and achieve climate targets over time.
Climate Reporting and Disclosure – Supporting corporate climate disclosures aligned with frameworks such as CDP, TCFD, and emerging regulatory requirements.
GHG Emissions Assurance – Providing independent verification of GHG inventories to increase confidence in reported emissions data and support compliance with emerging regulatory assurance requirements.
Climate Risk Assessment – Evaluating physical and transition climate risks that may affect operations, assets, supply chains, and long-term business strategy.
CDP and Other Third-Party Disclosures
Air Emissions Management

Frequently Asked Questions about Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Inventories

What is a GHG inventory?

A GHG inventory is a structured accounting of emissions generated across an organization’s operations and value chain over a defined reporting period. GHG inventories are typically developed in accordance with the GHG Protocol and categorize emissions into Scope 1 (direct), Scope 2 (purchased energy), and Scope 3 (value chain emissions).

Why do companies need a GHG inventory?

Organizations develop GHG inventories to understand their carbon footprint, meet regulatory and disclosure requirements, and establish a baseline for emissions reduction efforts. Inventories are also commonly required for climate reporting frameworks such as CDP, CSRD, IFRS S2, and California climate disclosure regulations.

What data is needed to calculate a GHG inventory?

GHG inventories are calculated using activity data such as energy consumption, fuel use, refrigerant usage, business travel, waste generation, and other operational metrics. These data are combined with standardized emission factors to quantify total GHG emissions.

What is the difference between Scope 1, Scope 2, and Scope 3 emissions?

Scope 1 emissions are direct emissions from sources owned or controlled by an organization, such as on-site fuel combustion and company vehicles. Scope 2 emissions are indirect emissions associated with purchased electricity, steam, heat, or cooling. Scope 3 emissions include all other indirect emissions that occur across a company’s value chain, such as supplier activities, transportation, and product use.

Do GHG inventories need to be verified by a third party?

Third-party verification is not always required but is increasingly expected by investors, regulators, and reporting frameworks. Independent verification improves confidence in emissions data and helps ensure inventories are developed in accordance with recognized standards.

What standards are used to calculate GHG inventories?

Most organizations follow the GHG Protocol, the leading global framework for emissions accounting. Some organizations also align inventories with ISO 14064-1 or other industry-specific methodologies, depending on reporting and assurance needs.

Can a GHG inventory support emissions reduction planning?

Yes. A GHG inventory provides the baseline needed to identify emissions hotspots and prioritize reduction strategies. Inventories are often the first step toward developing science-based targets, decarbonization strategies, and broader climate transition plans.

What industries do you serve?

We work across multiple industries, with deep experience in technology (including software and data centers), consumer and industrial goods, and beverage production. Many companies in these sectors face growing pressure from customers and value chain partners to disclose Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions and demonstrate progress toward reduction targets. We tailor our approach to each sector’s emissions drivers and data challenges, ensuring inventories are accurate, audit-ready, and aligned with evolving expectations.

Business operations can affect the atmosphere in a variety of ways. As a responsible business, it is crucial to understand these impacts and the actions you can take to reduce your environmental footprint. Walk through the scene below to learn more about solutions you can implement to make your operations more sustainable:

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