Various policies and initiatives, such as the Paris Agreement and the European Green Deal, have established and standardized net zero goals, aiming to reduce carbon emissions by 2030 and 2050 to mitigate the impact of climate change. Real estate companies play a crucial role in this transition. To achieve these targets efficiently, they can turn to methodologies such as GHG protocol, SBti, or ISO 14064 which provide robust frameworks for identifying, reducing, and verifying carbon emissions reductions. 

What is ISO 14064?

Internationally agreed upon by experts, ISO standards offer guidelines and recommendations for best business practices, covering everything from product creation to process management or service delivery.

The ISO 14064 standard is an international standard for GHG emissions inventories and verification as it offers guidance at the organizational level for setting inventory boundaries and quantifying and reporting greenhouse gas emissions. This standard is essential for meeting growing demands for reliable climate data. Understanding and implementing ISO 14064 strengthens organizations’ transparency and effectiveness in identifying and reducing GHG emissions. 

Scope, objectives, and benefits 

Carbon accounting is a necessary step for companies that aim to manage, align, and control their emissions. It refers to the processes required to measure the amount of carbon emitted, avoided, or removed by an entity (e.g., an asset or business) over time. It allows companies or entities to monitor and report these emissions and measure their climate impact.

Read more: Carbon accounting in real estate, a guide towards a common definition of a building’s carbon footprint.

However, carbon accounting is complex and faces different challenges, such as:  

• Data quality and availability: obtaining accurate, comprehensive data is often difficult, hindering precise carbon accounting.
• Measurement and verification: ensuring accurate measurement and independent verification of emissions can be resource-intensive.
• Scope and boundaries: likewise, defining the scope and boundaries of emissions sources can be challenging, especially for large or diversified organizations
• Evolving regulations: regulations and international initiatives are becoming increasingly stringent and popular, and promoting the usage of CO₂ accounting adds complexity to compliance and reporting efforts.

To juggle the complexities of carbon accounting from data quality, measurement, and verification, as well as the variety of reference initiatives, and market practices, ISO 14064 offers a robust solution. Real estate leaders are getting more interested in carbon accounting optimization and they require comparative analysis of accounting methodologies.

ISO 14064 shows an incentive to meet regulatory and stakeholder requirements for emissions reporting. Additionally, it allows identifying opportunities for improvement, assuring the completeness and accuracy of GHG inventory. By being certified under ISO 14064, organizations demonstrate commitment to climate action and carbon reduction goals to reach net zero while enhancing the credibility and trustworthiness of publicly reported emissions data.

Structural overview

ISO 14064 is a 3-part certification. Each part focuses on a different technical aspect. 

• ISO 14064-1 GHG inventory: this first part addresses the inventory of gas emissions within an organization using a bottom-up approach to data collection, consolidations, and emissions specifications
• ISO 14064-2 Application:  the second part of the standard addresses quantifying and reporting emissions reductions from project activities. 
• ISO 14064-3 Verification: lastly, the third part of the standard establishes a verification process for greenhouse gas statements. 

Deepki CO_² matcher module is ISO 14064-1

Deepki CO_² matcher module is ISO 14064-1 certified by Bureau Veritas, ensuring our methodology complies with the highest carbon accounting standards to provide our clients with complete, consistent, and accurate carbon data.

Here is an in-depth look at how Deepki’s tools and methodology comply with ISO 14064-1 certification standards:

• Step 1 – Establish the organizational boundary: Deepki’s methodology focuses on the operational emissions of our client’s real estate portfolio, 

• Step 2 -Choose your base year and emissions reporting period: our platform Deepki Ready calculates emissions for all the years for which we collected data,

• Step 3 – Classify your emission sources: operational emissions from the property portfolio are attributed to either Scope 1, Scope 2, or Scope 3 (categories 3, 8, 13, or 15 depending on their source and who controls them), 

• Step 4 – Quantify your GHG emissions: Deepki Ready allows its users to perform automatically the GHG computation,

• Step 5 – Report your GHG emissions inventory: Deepki provides its clients with a robust methodology and transparent assumptions,

• Step 6 – Obtain third-party verification and assurance: Using a software that is ISO 14064-1 certified facilitates any third-party verification.