Autodesk open-sources carbon accounting method

Autodesk is making a revised method for tracking greenhouse gas emissions available for free to other companies.

The design software company published recently the results of its own program to reduce its environmental footprint. It also open-sourced its methodology, called Corporate Finance Approach to Climate-Stabilizing Targets C-FACT.

Although many companies do track their greenhouse gas emissions GHGs, there is not a standardized way for setting targets or reporting that data in the U.S.

Autodesk’s methodology is based on the the long-term target of reducing global emissions by 85 percent by 2050, set by United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. From there, companies can set targets based on their relative contribution to global gross domestic product.

“Corporate GHG target setting has become a little like the Wild West, with few laws, little scrutiny, and quite a bit of aimless shooting,” said Emma Stewart, senior program lead for Autodesk’s sustainability initiative, in a statement. Autodesk is encouraging others to use the method because the targets will be proportional to a company’s economic contribution.

The company has committed to using the C-FACT method through 2020. From 2008 to 2009, its greenhouse gas footprint increased by 1 percent. But its revenue grew during that period, so the “carbon intensity per unit of added value” dropped. Carbon intensity by square foot and per employee also dropped in the period.

To further its understanding of indirect emissions upstream and downstream, Autodesk’s Sustainability Initiative recently undertook the first-ever carbon footprint of AutoCAD software. The study examined different phases of the product’s life in the US, including raw material extraction, transportation, product manufacturing, distribution and end of life. The study identified the most carbon-intensive activities in the traditional physical delivery method, and demonstrated that software download is nearly five times more carbon efficient than the distribution of a fully packaged product.

Autodesk is using the results of the study to educate its customers about the carbon benefits of software download, as well as to further investigate viability of alternate distribution methods.

via Autodesk open-sources carbon accounting method | Green Tech – CNET News.