ISO, GHG Protocol to Launch a Single Unified Carbon Accounting Standard

Standards-setting organizations the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and Greenhouse Gas Protocol (GHG Protocol) announced on Wednesday that they will combine their corporate carbon accounting standards into a single, harmonized global accounting standard.

The announcement follows the creation of a strategic partnership between ISO and GHG Protocol last year, aimed at unifying the global standards used by companies for greenhouse gas emissions measurement and reporting. At the time, the organizations said that that the partnership would look to address the fragmentation of standards and policies as a barrier to climate action, by providing a harmonized global language for emissions accounting, simplifying processes for companies, increasing consistency for policymakers, and generally reducing measurement and reporting burdens.

In a post announcing the new plans, ISO said:

“By bringing together the complementary strengths of ISO and GHG Protocol through an open, consensus-based process, the new standard will provide organizations, governments and other stakeholders with a trusted foundation for greenhouse gas accounting that supports credible climate action worldwide.”

In its update, GHG Protocol said that the move to create a single standard will enable more efficient use by businesses and other users, more meaningful stakeholder participation through a single coordinated public consultation process, and ultimately help to unlock greater investment to accelerate global decarbonization.

GHG Protocol’s statement said that following engagement with key partners and stakeholders, the organizations are now aiming to publish a single, co-branded corporate standard, with an integrated public consultation on the future corporate standard planned for Q2 2027.  The organizations’ new standard will combine GHG Protocol’s Scope 1, Scope 2, Scope 3 and Actions and Market Instruments (AMI) standards with ISO’s 14064-1 (Greenhouse Gases) standard.

Tim Mohin, CEO of GHG Protocol, said:

“A consolidated corporate standard represents a significant step toward integrating and harmonizing greenhouse gas accounting across the world. For the organizations applying these standards to measure their greenhouse gas emissions, a single corporate standard will simplify reporting, reduce duplication, and provide greater consistency across markets and jurisdictions. This will in turn allow companies to spend more time reducing emissions.”