Tech Emissions Higher from Creative Carbon Accounting

Accounting for the carbon emissions of a global technology enterprise is a highly complex process, with industry standards potentially allowing companies to understate their true carbon footprint

According to a report from The Guardian, many companies rely on official declarations of carbon emissions, which often include carbon offsets purchased from external sources. These offsets are used to lower the reported emissions figures, giving the impression that the companies are making significant progress in reducing their environmental impact.

However, the report highlights the importance of “location-based” emissions, a more direct metric that reflects the actual output from data centers and other facilities. This method shows that real emissions are often much higher than disclosed, with some estimates indicating emissions are over seven times higher than the reported figures.

Using “renewable energy certificates” also plays a key role in this discrepancy. While these certificates are designed to support the transition to clean energy, they can create a false impression of lower emissions, masking the true environmental cost of the technology sector.

In light of these findings, it is clear that emissions accounting practices in the tech industry may be contributing to an underestimation of the sector’s carbon footprint. The growing reliance on technology worldwide makes addressing the accuracy of emissions reporting more urgent than ever.