Managing Greenhouse Gas Boundaries ISO 14064-1

» Purpose, Scope and Position in the ISO GHG Family

• ISO 14064-1:2018 sets principles and requirements at the organization level for quantification and reporting of GHG emissions and removals.

• It covers the design, development, management, reporting and verification of an organization’s GHG inventory.

• The standard is GHG programme-neutral – if an external GHG programme applies, its requirements are additional.

ISO 14064-1 forms part of the ISO 14060 family:

• ISO 14064-2 – project-level baselines and monitoring.

• ISO 14064-3 – verification and validation of GHG statements.

• ISO 14065 – requirements for validation/verification bodies.

• ISO 14066 – competence of validation/verification teams.

• ISO 14067 – carbon footprint of products.

The document is the generic standard for organization-level GHG inventories and is the central reference for corporate carbon accounting.

» Key Terms and Concepts

ISO 14064-1 defines a harmonised vocabulary for GHG accounting:

• Greenhouse gas (GHG) – gaseous constituent of the atmosphere that absorbs and emits infrared radiation (e.g. CO₂, CH₄, N₂O, HFCs, PFCs, SF₆, NF₃).

• GHG source / sink / reservoir – processes or components that release, remove or store GHGs.

• GHG emission / removal – release of a GHG to, or withdrawal from, the atmosphere.

Key inventory and reporting concepts: 

• GHG activity data – quantitative measures that lead to emissions or removals (e.g. fuel used, kWh, tonnes of product).

• GHG emission factor / removal factor – coefficients that link activity data to emissions or removals.

• GHG inventory – list of sources and sinks with quantified emissions and removals.

• GHG statement – factual GHG declaration forming the subject of verification or validation.

• GHG report – standalone document that communicates an organization’s GHG information.

Boundary and governance terms:

• Organization – person or group of people with responsibilities, authorities and relationships to achieve objectives.

• Organizational boundary – grouping of activities or facilities over which the organization has operational or financial control or equity share.

• Reporting boundary – grouping of GHG emissions and removals within the organizational boundary plus significant indirect emissions caused by the organization’s activities.

• Base year – specific historical period used for comparison over time.

• GHG reduction initiative / GHG project – activities that reduce emissions or enhance removals.

• Uncertainty – parameter describing dispersion of possible values around a quantified result. 

Biogenic and land-use related terms (biomass, biogenic carbon, direct land-use change, anthropogenic vs non-anthropogenic biogenic emissions) support correct treatment of land and biomass-related GHG flows.

» Principles for GHG Quantification and Reporting

ISO 14064-1 requires that all GHG-related information is based on six core principles:

• Relevance – select sources, sinks, reservoirs, data and methods appropriate to the needs of intended users.

• Completeness – include all relevant emissions and removals.

• Consistency – enable meaningful comparisons over time.

• Accuracy – reduce bias and uncertainties as far as practical.

• Transparency – disclose sufficient, appropriate information for users to make decisions with reasonable confidence.

These principles guide the application of every requirement in the standard and underpin a “true and fair” GHG account.

» Managing GHG Inventory Boundaries (Organizational & Reporting)

This is a central part of ISO 14064-1 and defines how GHG boundaries are managed.

Organizational boundaries

The organization must define and document its organizational boundaries and consolidate facility-level emissions/removals using one of two approaches:

• Control approach

Account for 100% of GHG emissions and removals from facilities under financial or operational control.

• Equity share approach

Account for emissions and removals according to equity share (percentage of economic interest) in facilities.

When multiple entities own or control a facility, they are encouraged to adopt the same consolidation approach. The chosen method must be consistent with the intended use of the inventory and must be documented and reported.

Reporting boundaries

The organization must establish and document reporting boundaries, identifying direct and indirect emissions and removals.

Direct GHG emissions and removals

• Emissions from sources owned or controlled by the organization.

• Must be quantified separately by gas (CO₂, CH₄, N₂O, NF₃, SF₆ and other relevant groups) in tonnes CO₂e.

• Removals should also be quantified where applicable.

Indirect GHG emissions

• Emissions that are a consequence of the organization’s activities but occur at sources not owned or controlled by the organization (typically across the value chain).

• The organization shall:

  • define and explain criteria for significance of indirect emissions,

  • identify and evaluate indirect emissions using these criteria,

  • quantify and report significant indirect emissions, and

  • justify any exclusions.

Criteria for significance may include emission volume, influence on sources/sinks, data availability and accuracy, regulatory or buyer requirements and concerns of interested parties. Guidance is provided in Annex H.

GHG inventory categories (mandatory at organizational level):

• (a) Direct GHG emissions and removals;

• (b) Indirect GHG emissions from imported energy;

• (c) Indirect GHG emissions from transportation;

• (d) Indirect GHG emissions from products used by the organization;

• (e) Indirect GHG emissions associated with the use of products from the organization;

• (f) Indirect GHG emissions from other sources.

Within each category, non-biogenic, biogenic, anthropogenic and (if reported) biogenic non-anthropogenic emissions must be separated.

Managing boundaries correctly is essential for a robust, decision-grade GHG inventory and for aligning with external schemes such as the GHG Protocol scopes.

» Quantification of GHG Emissions and Removals

Identification of sources and sinks

• Organizations must identify and document all relevant GHG sources and sinks within the reporting boundaries and categorize them in line with the six inventory categories.

• Sources and sinks that are excluded must be identified, with an explanation of why they are not relevant.

Selection of quantification approach

• Organizations must choose quantification methodologies that minimise uncertainty and yield accurate, consistent and reproducible results, considering technical feasibility and cost.

• They must explain and document quantification approaches and any changes over time.

Data selection and collection

• Identify and document data for each source or sink (primary, site-specific and secondary data).

• Define data characteristics (e.g. averages, measurement basis, sources).

• Annex C provides guidance on data selection, collection and use.

GHG quantification models

• Models must be selected or developed (unless pure measurement is used).

• The organization must justify model choice, including: representativeness, limits of application, uncertainty and rigour, reproducibility, acceptability, origin and recognition, and consistency with intended use.

Calculation, GWPs and specific treatments

• Emissions and removals must be calculated according to the chosen approach and converted to tonnes CO₂e using appropriate global warming potentials (GWPs).

• The latest IPCC GWPs with a 100-year time horizon should be used; deviations must be justified and the GWPs reported.

• Biogenic emissions/removals must be quantified according to Annex D (biogenic GHG and CO₂ removals).

• Emissions/removals from imported and exported electricity must follow Annex E (treatment of electricity).

• Specific guidance for agriculture and forestry is provided in Annex G.

Base-year GHG inventory

• Organizations must establish a historical base year for comparison and/or programme requirements.

• Base-year emissions/removals should be quantified using data representative of current reporting boundaries and verifiable data.

• The base year must be explained and documented, and a consistent base-year inventory developed.

• A base-year review and recalculation procedure is required for significant structural changes, methodology changes or discovered errors. Production level changes alone are not a basis to recalculate the base year.

» Mitigation Activities and Targets

ISO 14064-1 allows organizations to reflect mitigation activities alongside their inventory:

• GHG reduction initiatives – activities (not organized as projects) that reduce/prevent emissions or enhance removals.

• If quantified and reported, initiatives and their GHG differences must be documented separately, with description of boundaries, methods and classification of differences as direct or indirect.

• GHG emission reduction or removal enhancement projects and offsets must be reported separately from reduction initiatives.

• Organizations may set GHG targets (absolute or intensity) and must specify period, base/reference year, categories covered and amount of reduction. Climate science, reduction potential and international/sector context should be considered.

» GHG Inventory Quality Management

GHG information management

Organizations must establish and maintain procedures to:

• ensure conformity with ISO 14064-1 principles and intended uses;

• perform regular checks for accuracy and completeness;

• identify and correct errors and omissions;

• document and archive relevant records and GWPs;

• define responsibilities and authority for inventory development;

• train inventory teams;

• maintain data-collection systems, accuracy checks, internal audits and technical reviews;

• review improvement opportunities in information management.

Document retention and record keeping

• Procedures are required for document retention and record keeping in support of verification.

Assessing uncertainty

• Organizations must assess uncertainty at category level, considering data and models.

• If quantitative estimation is not feasible or cost-effective, a qualitative assessment must be conducted and justified.

GHG reporting

When and why to prepare a GHG report

• A GHG report should be prepared when needed for intended uses (e.g. programmes, internal/external users) and shall be prepared when:

  • the organization seeks verification of its inventory, or

  • it makes a public GHG statement claiming conformity with ISO 14064-1.

Reports must be complete, consistent, accurate, relevant and transparent.

Planning the report

Planning requires documenting: purpose, intended use/users, responsibilities, frequency, structure, content, and dissemination policy.

Required content

The GHG report must at least include:

• description of the organization and reporting period;

• responsible person/entity;

• documentation of organizational and reporting boundaries, including significance criteria for indirect emissions;

• quantified direct emissions by gas and, if applicable, direct removals;

• treatment and separate quantification of biogenic CO₂;

• quantified indirect emissions by category;

• base year and any recalculations;

• quantification approaches and factors used, with any changes explained;

• description and results of the uncertainty assessment;

• statement of conformity with ISO 14064-1;

• disclosure on verification (type, level of assurance);

• GWPs used and their sources.

Recommended and optional information

Recommended items include GHG policies, reduction initiatives, offsets/projects, facility-level data, indicators, benchmarks, management procedures, prior-year emissions and explanations of changes.

Optional items can include:

• market-based results from contractual instruments for GHG attributes, reported separately;

• offsets or carbon credits, with scheme disclosure and no netting against inventory totals;

• GHG stored in reservoirs.

Organization’s role in verification

• Organizations may choose to have their GHG inventory verified.

• Verification must be consistent with the needs of intended users and follow ISO 14064-3.

• Requirements for verification bodies and team competence are given in ISO 14065 and ISO 14066.

» Annexes and Supporting Guidance

ISO 14064-1 includes several annexes that support implementation:

• Annex A (informative) – process to consolidate data using control or equity share approaches.

• Annex B (informative) – detailed categorization of direct and indirect emissions with examples and subcategories (combustion, LULUCF, energy, transport, purchased goods/services, use of sold products, investments, etc.).

• Annex C (informative) – guidance on selection, collection and use of data for quantifying direct emissions.

• Annex D (normative) – treatment of biogenic GHG emissions and CO₂ removals.

• Annex E (normative) – treatment of electricity (imported and exported).

• Annex F (informative) – structure and organization of a GHG inventory report.

• Annex G (informative) – agricultural and forestry guidance.

• Annex H (informative) – guidance for identifying significant indirect emissions.

Adaptation Notice under the ISO – International Organization for Standardization

This text has been adapted in accordance with the guidelines set forth by the ISO – International Organization for Standardization. In our efforts to ensure transparency, accountability, and alignment, we have carefully reviewed and incorporated ISO. This adaptation process reflects our commitment to high-quality, accurate, ensuring that the information presented adheres to internationally recognized standards.