OPINION: Summer 2023 – a season of weather extremes – has ended with a deadly hurricane in the Southern US, causing President Joe Biden to observe that the impact of the climate crisis can no longer be denied.
The US hurricane is the latest in a series of catastrophic climate events that add impetus to the global race to Net Zero, and, more than ever, organisations are being placed under the carbon reduction microscope by governments and consumers alike.
Evidence of climate-friendly change at every level of business operations is now a ‘must-have’ component for organisations wanting to compete in the modern carbon-conscious economy. This means demonstrating emissions-busting measures in their supply chain as part of Scope 3 reporting.
Although not yet obligatory, the need to deliver Scope 3 reporting is steadily gaining momentum. The new Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) will strengthen and extend existing EU reporting requirements from January next year. This will herald a stricter Scope 3 reporting regime for thousands of UK companies that trade in Europe.
As increasing numbers of businesses start to grapple with the complexities of Scope 3, the waste handling sector can prove an invaluable source of support – by helping its customers to demystify Scope 3 reporting, providing ready-made reportable data and harnessing game-changing carbon reduction methods.
Here are four areas that responsive waste handlers should be focusing on right now:
Helping to explain where waste disposal fits in
It’s always good to start with the basics, and making customers aware of how their waste disposal falls under Scope 3 will get them ahead of the curve.
In a nutshell, Scope 3 emissions are segmented into 15 different categories covering a host of everyday business activities. ‘Waste Generated in Operations’ is counted as one of these Scope 3 categories and focuses on emissions created by the third-party treatment and disposal of an organisation’s waste.
It can also include emissions produced while transporting waste from the organisation to the waste handler.
When reporting on Scope 3 waste disposal emissions, organisations will need to set out greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions calculations relating to their waste disposal routes – which could include landfill, recycling, composting, energy from waste combustion, recovery from SRF and RDF export.
Efforts should be made as soon as possible to gather accurate data on waste disposal emissions and consider how those emissions can be reduced quickly and cost-effectively.
Getting data savvy
Waste handlers who can help organisations pull together the required data efficiently and in an easy-to-report manner will immediately stand out from the crowd.
GHG emissions estimations will need to be worked out for each applicable waste disposal route.
The first step will involve collaborating with customers to help them understand which of the Scope 3 carbon emissions calculation methods is the most appropriate to apply for their waste disposal operations.
Depending on the quality, type and quantity of data they have to work with, they can select one of three calculation methods to apply. And may use a mixture of the three to reach a final, overarching emissions amount.
- The supplier-specific method – This involves collecting waste-specific scope one and scope two emissions data directly from waste treatment companies.
- The waste-type-specific method – This involves using emission factors for specific waste types and waste treatment methods.
- The average-data method – This involves estimating emissions based on total waste going to each disposal method (e.g. landfill) and average emission factors for each disposal method.
For the waste-type-specific method and the average-data calculation methods, businesses must source relevant waste tonnage figures and waste stream emissions factors. So, waste handlers should focus on supporting customers to identify their available data, which calculation method is the most accessible, and where they can source the necessary figures.
Turning to tech
Science is always one step ahead. Some revolutionary methods are emerging that can shrink supply chain emissions and move organisations more rapidly along the road to Net Zero.
Waste handlers, with their fingers on the pulse, will be able to offer their customers Scope 3 gains – not only through knowledge sharing but by adopting new technology themselves.
Biotechnology, as applied by Advetec, for example, can reduce greenhouse gas emissions from unrecyclable waste. We use blends of bacteria – or bio-stimulants – to digest unrecyclable waste and have successfully employed this science to stabilise, reduce and repurpose unrecyclable waste that would otherwise be sent to landfill or for incineration by turning it into Solid Recovered Fuel (SRF).
Advetec’s XO technology shrinks the quantity of organic matter found in contaminated waste by reducing moisture using accelerated aerobic digestion. This can reduce the overall waste mass by half and its volume by up to 70%. For every two tonnes of unrecyclable waste that go through the XO machine, 1.2 tonnes of CO2 are saved. The ‘floc’ that’s left can be used as a coal replacement product, helping energy-intensive industries such as cement production to decarbonise.
Starting supportive dialogues now
The pressure is on organisations to demonstrate supply chain emissions accountability and evidence of their fight against climate change.
Waste handlers can help their customers live up to these responsibilities and report accurately on the carbon impact of their waste. By engaging with customers proactively now, waste handlers can forge supportive partnerships and, more importantly, broaden the uptake of carbon-cutting solutions.
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