Carbon footprint using the Compound Method based on Financial Accounts. The case of the School of Forestry Engineering, Technical University of Madrid

Environmental information is required in order to make sustainable consumption decisions. Carbon Footprint offers a new scheme for reporting direct and indirect greenhouse gas emissions. The latest advances in Organization-Product-Based-Life-Cycle Assessment such as the Compound Method based on Financial Accounts provide an opportunity to work with easy-to-obtain data and to calculate both product Carbon Footprint and corporate Carbon Footprint. This work determines the Carbon Footprint of the School of Forestry Engineering (Technical University of Madrid) using this approach. It is designed to fulfill two objectives: (1) to evaluate Compound Method based on Financial Accounts as a tool for carbon footprinting; and (2) to provide an analytical basis for the implementation of carbon management plans. The total Carbon Footprint of the School of Forestry Engineering in 2010 was 2147 t CO2eq, of which 59.0% corresponds to scope 3 emissions. Changes in consumption patterns are easier to capture due to the wide range of consumption categories considered with this approach. We conclude that Compound Method based on Financial Accounts is a practical method that correctly assesses the amount of direct and indirect greenhouse gas emissions. Calculation of Carbon Footprint using this method provides an analytical basis for the implementation of carbon management plans in university centers. This work has led to the integration of new schemes for sustainable development in the School of Forestry Engineering.