PERFORM Performance Metrics | Emissions
Emissions
According to the World Green Building Council, buildings contribute to 39% of the global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions related to energy, with 28% of those emissions representing operational activities and 11% representing materials and construction activities.
Organizations with carbon- and energy-intensive real estate portfolios could face increasing financial risks – from higher utility costs to carbon taxes to new regulations – or depreciating property value as market demand from investors and tenants shifts to low-emissions buildings.
Investing in energy and GHG reduction measures provides cost savings through reduced utility and operational expenses and proactively mitigates the potential future risk of financial penalties associated with a carbon tax or trading system, for example. Beyond financial considerations, addressing GHG emissions in real estate portfolios is vital for increasing resilience against climate-related risks, such as extreme weather events and emerging regulations, allowing properties to maintain a competitive advantage in the market.
GHG emissions are categorized into three scopes:
Scope 1 emissions are direct GHG emissions that occur from sources owned or controlled by the portfolio (e.g., natural gas/fuel, refrigerant leakage, etc.).
Scope 2 emissions are indirect GHG emissions associated with the purchase of electricity, steam, heating or cooling.
Scope 3 emissions are the result of activities not owned or controlled by the reporting organization that the portfolio indirectly affects in its value chain.
Two performance metrics are available in the “Emissions” category:
Total GHG Emissions
GHG Emissions Intensity
Total GHG Emissions and GHG Emissions Intensity
INTENT
To reduce the environmental and economic harm associated with a real estate portfolio’s greenhouse gas emissions from energy use.
METRIC DEFINITIONS
Total GHG Emissions
GHG Emissions Intensity
Total GHG emissions per unit area across the real estate portfolio for a specific period.
UNITS OF MEASURE
Total GHG Emissions
Metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2e).
GHG Emissions Intensity
Metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2e)/unit area.
VERIFICATION SCOPE
Total GHG Emissions
Performance Approach A (absolute performance): Verification of total GHG emissions (scope 1 and scope 2) across the defined portfolio for the reporting year.
Performance Approach B (performance change): Verification of the change in total GHG emissions (scope 1 and scope 2) from a baseline year across the defined portfolio.
GHG Emissions Intensity
Performance Approach A (absolute performance): Verification of GHG Emissions Intensity across the defined portfolio for the reporting year.
Performance Approach B (performance change): Verification of the change in GHG Emissions Intensity from a baseline year across the defined portfolio.
Claims related to utilizing carbon offsets to achieve net zero emissions and/or carbon neutrality will not be verified.
REQUIREMENTS
Total GHG Emissions
Provide Total GHG Emissions (scope 1 and scope 2) in metric tons of CO2e for all properties in the defined portfolio for the reporting year (Performance Approach A) and for the reporting year and a baseline year (Performance Approach B).
Ensure GHG Emissions are accounted in accordance with the principles and methodologies outlined in one of the following standards. If a different standard is used, additional information confirming the methodology is similar to these standards must be provided.
Determine Emissions Factors utilizing one of the following emission factor databases:
Utility-specific emission factors for electricity (market-based).
Other country-, state-, or province-specific published emission factors.
Published hourly electric emissions factors for the property’s utility, balancing authority area, grid region, state, province or country.
Determine Energy Conversion factors using one of the following references:
Other country-specific government published conversion factor.
For Performance Approach B, ensure GHG emissions for the baseline year are calculated in the same manner as the reporting year.
Estimations:
If GHG emissions data for a particular energy source is partially unavailable or unreliable for a property in the portfolio, it is acceptable to use estimations to determine the emissions for those properties. In such cases, no more than 5% of the total portfolio’s emissions may be estimated within a single reporting year of 12 contiguous months. Additionally, for GHG emissions sources contributing to more than 15% of a property’s emissions, no more than three months of data within a single reporting year of 12 contiguous months should be estimated. Justification should be provided if there is more than three months of estimated data for such cases.
Exclusions:
Exclusions may be necessary for several reasons, including the availability of data, materiality (i.e., emissions sources might be considered too small to impact the overall inventory) and choice in methodology (i.e., different frameworks like the GHG Protocol or ISO 14064 have specific guidelines on what should be included or excluded). If excluding emissions, information demonstrating that excluded emissions are estimated to be less than 5% of the total emissions should be provided.
GHG Emissions Intensity
In addition to the requirements noted above, provide the total gross floor area excluding parking for the portfolio for the reporting year (Performance Approach A) and the reporting year and a baseline year (Performance Approach B).
VERIFICATION EVIDENCE
Portfolio-Level Documentation:
Policies: Provide documentation (e.g., policies, narratives, reports, letter from CEO, etc.) that indicates the organization’s intent or commitment toward emissions reduction including specific targets or goals set.
Methodology: Provide documentation that summarizes the methodology used to calculate the GHG inventory, including:
GHG inventory for reporting year:
Reporting period the inventory covers.
Standards, methodologies, assumptions, estimations, exclusions and/or calculation tools used.
If excluding refrigerant emissions, confirm it is only for properties where refrigerants are used for space cooling, space heating and have limited refrigeration.
Source of the emission factors and the global warming potential (GWP) rates used, or a reference to the GWP source.
Source of the conversion factors used.
Consolidation approach for emissions, whether equity share, financial control or operational control.
GHG sources, sinks and reservoirs (SSRs) included within the inventory.
Description of the procedures and systems used to collect, document and process GHG emissions data.
Description of quality control procedures applied (e.g., internal audits, comparison with last year’s data, recalculation by second person, etc.).
GHG inventory base year (Performance Approach B only): Provide documentation that summarizes the base year, including:
Reporting period the base year covers.
Methods for determining the selected base year.
Letter of attestation from senior/executive leadership or the individual/entity calculating the GHG emissions confirming the base year emissions were calculated in a similar manner as the reporting year OR third-party verification of base year emissions. If base year emissions were previously verified by GBCI, this evidence is not required.
GHG inventory restatement, if applicable, for Performance Approach B: Provide documentation summarizing restatements of the base year GHG inventory, including:
Portfolio’s restatement policy and percentage threshold for a restatement.
Structural changes to the organization that contributed to the restatement (e.g., acquisitions, divestitures, in-sourcing/outsourcing).
Changes in GHG inventory that contributed to the restatement (e.g., calculation methodology changes, identified errors).
3. Plans and Actions: If applicable, provide documentation describing plans the organization has in place that assisted in achieving the target and actions/strategies implemented to achieve emissions reductions. Include a list of GHG reduction measures that were implemented, the amount of emissions saved by each implemented measure, any forward-looking plans or strategies to continue reducing emissions.
Property-Level Documentation:
Property-Level Data: Provide GHG Emissions data and Energy Use by data source for every property in the portfolio for the reporting year (Performance Approach A) and reporting year and a baseline year (Performance Approach B) utilizing the PERFORM Property-Level Data Form. For GHG Emissions Intensity, provide gross floor area for every property. Alternative documentation (e.g., spreadsheets prepared for internal tracking or other reporting entities like GRESB®, ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager, etc.) may be provided if it includes the same information as required in the PERFORM Property-Level Data Form.
Property-Level Sample Documents: Provide the following documentation for a sample of SQRT(n) properties, where ‘n’ is the total number of properties in the portfolio. A list of properties selected for sampling will be provided during the portfolio creation process via the Multiple Property Upload Template.
Monthly Energy Consumption: Provide monthly energy consumption per energy source. Electricity from the grid must be reported separately from renewable electricity generated on site. For non-metered delivered fuels (e.g., propane or oil), total delivered quantity should be reported by delivery date.
Utility Invoices: Provide utility invoices for all fuels, with consumption values and dates highlighted; or confirmation that utility data or calibrated meter data for the referenced meter was directly imported from the utility. Internal meter reading logs may be provided in place of utility invoices where the latter are not available, but a narrative should be provided to explain the circumstances (e.g., the property does not have utility meters and energy consumption is measured with building-owned meters, etc.).
Site-specific inspection/maintenance reports (e.g., refrigerant maintenance slips). If applicable, documentation showing refrigerants are only used on-site within space cooling/heating equipment and therefore excluded from emissions.
Fuel receipts or spreadsheets (e.g., purchased fuel for fleet/forklifts, environmental data collection documents, etc.).
Documentation showing emissions factor calculations including emissions factors used.
A GHG inventory that has received third-party limited or reasonable assurance can be provided in lieu of the property-level documentation listed above. In such cases, provide the third-party limited or reasonable assurance report or letter, including the reporting scheme used (e.g., AA1000AS, ISAE 3000, ISAE 3410, Assurance Engagements on Greenhouse Gas Statements, ISO 14064-3, etc.).
CALCULATION GUIDANCE
Total GHG Emissions
Calculate GHG Emissions using the equation below:
Activity Data:
Activity data includes detailed information on all activities that emit GHG emissions within the identified boundary. For example:
Utilities
Natural gas
Electricity
Steam
District heating and cooling
Fuel usage (operational equipment)
Backup generators
Lawn equipment
Water heating / cooking (if different than utilities)
Maintenance equipment
Refrigerants
HVAC or other cooling equipment
Fuel usage (fleet) – optional, see guidance on mobile combustion below
Owned or operationally controlled vehicles
Emission Factors:
Emission factors represent the amount of GHGs emitted per unit of activity. These factors vary based on aspects like fuel type and location. Determine emissions factors utilizing one of the following emission factor databases:
Utility-specific emission factors for electricity (market-based).
Other country-, state-, or province-specific published emission factors.
Published hourly electric emissions factors for the property’s utility, balancing authority area, grid region, state, province or country.
Conversion Factors:
Utilize energy conversion factors to translate activity data units to correct units that align with the emission factor. Determine Energy Conversion factors based on one of the following references:
Other country-specific government published conversion factor.
Time Period:
Collect data for the relevant reporting period. This period can be a calendar year or a fiscal year.
Reporting Boundary:
Establish a consolidation approach for the GHG inventory prior to calculation. This will determine the exact boundary of calculations for a portfolio.
GHG Emissions Intensity
GHG Emissions Intensity is calculated by dividing the total emissions by the total gross floor area of the portfolio excluding parking.
TE = Total emissions GFAP = Total gross floor area of the portfolio excluding parking
Performance Change:
Performance change between the reporting year and a baseline year is calculated for this metric by using the percentage change formula:
RY = Reporting Year Value BY = Baseline Year Value
Emissions Scope
Refrigerants:
Embodied Carbon:
Embodied Carbon is not considered part of the “Emissions” metric for the purposes of verification and as such, these may be excluded from the total emissions reported.
Carbon Offsets:
While reduction strategies should be prioritized over the purchase of carbon offsets, offsets may be used to neutralize residual GHG emissions if the offsets are third-party verified. Third-party verified carbon offsets can be applied to scope 1 emissions (e.g., emissions from unintended leakage or other discharge of gases/vapors from operational equipment) and scope 2 emissions. The GHG Protocol requires that carbon offsets be separated out from a GHG inventory. If offsets are purchased, they must be included separately from the GHG inventory. For example, if a portfolio’s emissions are 1,000 MT CO2e and 1,000 carbon offsets are purchased with one offset equaling 1 MT CO2e) then the inventory results cannot be zero. The inventory must reflect what was originally measured and include additional documentation for the number of offsets and the amount of emissions being offset. Acceptable third parties that verify carbon offsets include Green-e Climate Standard, Verra, The Gold Standard, Climate Action Reserve, American Carbon Registry, CDM and SCS Global Services.
Renewable Energy Procurement:
As outlined in the GHG Protocol, renewable energy credits (RECs) or green power may be counted as part of a portfolio’s scope 2 market-based calculations as long as the RECs or Green Power are third-party certified.
Green Power and RECs must be tracked and/or labeled through a third party: Green-e® Renewable Energy Standard for the project location, EKOenergy, Gold Standard, Guarantees of Origin (GoOs), I-REC(E) standard, T-RECs (in Taiwan), Green Electricity Certificates (GECs) in China, J-Credits and Green Electricity Certificates (in Japan), Tradable Instruments for Global Renewables (TIGRs).
Alternatively, the renewable energy will be recognized as satisfying these third party and location criteria if it meets the technical criteria for any of the following:
LEED v4.1 or later: Tier 2 or Tier 3 renewable power.
Climate Group RE-100
U.S. EPA Green Power Partnership
Sections 4.2.4 to 4.2.7 of “Implementing Instructions for Executive Order 14057”, The White House Council on Environmental Quality.
Additionally, the portfolio must provide evidence that its procured off-site renewable energy is generated by renewable projects that are in the same country or region where the portfolio is located.
Mobile Combustion:
The GHG Protocol states that if a portfolio has properties that include directly controlled vehicles or other operational equipment, emissions from those vehicles may be included in the total scope 1 emissions of the portfolio, but it is not required to be included for the verification of this metric. Transportation that is not in direct control or ownership of the property or portfolio (e.g., employee commuting, travel, etc.) would be categorized as scope 3 emissions and thus need not be included in the verification of this performance metric. Submitting emissions reduction claims for mobile combustion activities only will not be allowed. Mobile combustion should be combined with the other applicable scope 1 and scope 2 activities.
Scope 2 Location-based and Market-based Calculations:
Location-based emissions use grid average emission factors to calculate GHG emissions and market-based emissions use utility-specific or market-based instrument (e.g., RECs) emission factors. If the portfolio has operations in locations where renewable energy credits are available to be purchased, it is required by the GHG Protocol to calculate both location-based and market-based emissions. If the portfolio does not purchase RECs and is unable to find utility-specific emission factor for each location, the portfolio will need to use the same emission factor as location-based calculations to determine market-based emissions.
Calculation Tools
REFERENCES
TERMINOLOGY
Baseline Year or Base Year: A specific year (12-month period) that is used to track changes in performance over time. (Source: ENERGY STAR and GHG Protocol)
Boundaries: GHG accounting and reporting boundaries can have several dimensions (e.g., organizational, operational, geographical, business unit, target, etc.). The inventory boundary determines which emissions are accounted and reported by the company. (Source: GHG Protocol)
Carbon Offset: A tradeable document that represents one MTCO2e of reduced greenhouse gas emissions from a dedicated project or activity. Such an offset must be real, permanent and verified, and demonstrate additionality. Carbon offsets are generally used to offset non-electricity emissions.
CO2 Equivalent (CO2e): The universal unit of measurement to indicate the global warming potential (GWP) of seven greenhouse gases expressed in terms of the GWP of one unit of carbon dioxide. It is used to evaluate releasing (or avoiding releasing) different greenhouse gases against a common basis. (Source: GHG Protocol)
Embodied Carbon: The greenhouse gas emissions associated with the raw material extraction, manufacturing and processing, transportation, and installation of a building material. (Source: USGBC/RMI Report)
Emissions Factor: A factor allowing GHG emissions to be estimated from a unit of available activity data (e.g., tons of fuel consumed, tons of product produced, etc.) and absolute GHG emissions. (Source: GHG Protocol)
GHG Emissions: The total GHG emissions emitted by a real estate portfolio over a specific period. GHG emissions include the seven gases listed in the GHG Protocol: carbon dioxide (CO2); methane (CH4); nitrous oxide (N2O); hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs); perfluorocarbons (PFCs); nitrogen trifluoride (NF3) and sulfur hexafluoride (SF6). They are expressed in CO2 equivalents (CO2e).
GHG Emissions Intensity: The total GHG emissions per unit area across the real estate portfolio for a specific period.
GHG Inventory: A greenhouse gas (GHG) inventory is a list of emission sources and the associated emissions quantified using standardized methods. (Source: U.S. EPA)
Global Warming Potential (GWP): A factor describing the radiative forcing impact – the degree of harm to the atmosphere – of one unit of a given GHG relative to one unit of CO2. (Source: GHG Protocol)
Green Power: a subset of renewable energy composed of grid-based electricity produced from renewable energy sources (Source: LEED)
Renewable Energy: Energy sources that are not depleted by use. Examples include energy from the sun, wind and small, low-impact hydropower, plus geothermal energy and wave and tidal systems. (Source: LEED)
Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs): A tradeable document that represents the non-power attributes of renewable electricity generation. RECs are issued by third-party tracking systems for every megawatt-hour (MWh) of renewable energy delivered to the electricity grid by a renewable energy asset. A certificate is assigned a unique numbering and includes the specific date, time and location of the generation.
Scope 1 Emissions (Scope 1): Direct GHG emissions that occur from sources that are owned or controlled by the portfolio (e.g., natural gas/fuel, refrigerant leakage).
Scope 2 Emissions (Scope 2): Indirect GHG emissions associated with the purchase of electricity, steam, heating or cooling.
Scope 3 Emissions (Scope 3): Emissions that are the result of activities not owned or controlled by the reporting organization that the portfolio indirectly affects in its value chain.
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