FEM 2024 - Energy & Ghg Level 1 (Part 2)

Table of Contents

1. Enpurchco
2. Enpurchco Verification and Scoring
3. Ensourcetrackopt
4. Ensourcetrackopteach
5. Ensourcetrackopteachmethod
6. Ensourcetracksepdomprod
7. Ensourcetracksepdomprod Verification and Scoring
8. Ensourcevehicletrackopt
9. Ensourcevehicletrackopt Verification And Scoring

Enpurchco

Does your facility purchase Carbon Offsets? 

1. The intent of this question is to demonstrate if you have purchased and retired carbon offsets in this reporting period.
2. Answer Yes if your facility purchased and retired carbon offsets for the reporting period. If another business entity (e.g., Manufacturing group or brand partner) purchased and retired the carbon offsets on behalf of your facility, it must have been registered/retired under your facility’s name and location (i.e., legal business entity name and address) as listed on your Worldly account.
3. If you answer Yes to this question, you will be asked additional questions about your purchased carbon offsets.
   • What was the registry the offset was registered under?
   • If Other, please describe.
   • How many carbon offsets (in Metric Tons CO2e) were purchased and retired in the reporting year?
   • Please upload your purchase invoices or other supporting documents.
4. Answer No if your facility purchased, but did not retire the carbon offsets.
5. Additional information

Guidance for Higg FEM:

This question is not scored in the 2024 Higg FEM reporting year. Scoring may be applied in future reporting years.

What is the intent of the question?

• The intent of this question is for companies to demonstrate that they have purchased and retired carbon offsets in the Higg FEM reporting year.

Technical Guidance:

Carbon offsets are market-based instruments that are designed to lower the amount of GHG in the atmosphere (mainly CO2). Offsets provide credits that can be purchased and applied to reduce an organization’s carbon footprint by accounting for CO2 emission reductions that occur elsewhere. Carbon offsets fund specific projects that either lower CO2 emissions, or sequester CO2, meaning they take some CO2 out of the atmosphere and store it. Common examples of projects include reforestation, construction of renewable energy infrastructure, carbon-storing agricultural practices, and waste and landfill management.   

There are a number of carbon offset schemes that are available globally, and the specific requirements relating to the purchase and use of offsets are typically defined by the jurisdiction or scheme under which they are issued. Several carbon offset schemes are listed below:

• CDM Registry (Clean Development Mechanism) - https://cdm.unfccc.int/about/index.html 
• American Carbon Registry (ACR) - https://americancarbonregistry.org/ 
• Gold Standard Registry - https://www.goldstandard.org/resources/impact-registry 
• Climate Action Reserve (CAR) - https://www.climateactionreserve.org/ 
• Social Carbon Registry - https://www.socialcarbon.org/ 
• Plan Vivo Registry - https://www.planvivo.org/ 
• Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) Registry - https://verra.org/programs/verified-carbon-standard/ 
• Climate, Community, & Biodiversity Standards (CCBS) Registry - https://www.climate-standards.org/ccb-standards/ 

Carbon Offset projects typically allow users to purchase a specified amount of Carbon equivalents in tonnes (tonnes of CO2e) and are registered in a tracking system as part of the offset scheme. Offsets will have several unique identification and data attributes associated with them such as:

• Project name/type
• A unique identification number or Registry system ID
• Total of carbon offset (in CO2e) 

Retiring Carbon Offsets

Once the end user of the offset claims the carbon credit to offset their emission, it is then retired and no longer available to be used. Each carbon offset scheme/registry will have established criteria and/or procedures for the purchase and retirement of offsets that should be followed.

Resources:

Details on specific carbon offset schemes can be found at the links provided above. Additionally, an overview of how offsets can be applied in a GHG accounting program can be found in the GHG Protocol at the link below:

• Greenhouse Gas Protocol – Corporate Standard -   https://ghgprotocol.org/corporate-standard 

Enpurchco Verification and Scoring

How This Will Be Verified:

This question is unscored.

Documentation Required: 

• Documentation to show you have purchased/retired carbon offsets in the reporting year including proof of purchase and any other relevant documentation required by the respective offset scheme to demonstrate the facility’s ownership and purchase/retiring of the offset.
• If the offset was purchased by another company (i.e., manufacturing group or brand partner) and retired under the facility’s name, documentation must be available to demonstrate that the offset was purchased retired for the specific facility name and location (i.e., legal business entity name and address) as registered on their Higg.org account.
• GHG accounting records that show the facility’s GHG emissions and demonstrate that offsets were appropriately accounted for.

Interview Questions to Ask: 

• Staff responsible for managing the carbon offsets must be knowledgeable on the respective offset scheme and be able to explain the facility’s procedures for utilizing the offsets (e.g., purchasing and retiring, GHG accounting and inclusion of offsets in GHG reporting).

Inspection - Things to Physically Look For: 

• Observations onsite of the facility’s energy use and GHG emissions are consistent with the reported offsets used.

Ensourcetrackopt

5. Does your facility track any of its energy use? (excluding energy used for company owned and controlled vehicles) (Ref ID - ensourcetrackopt)

Answer Yes if:  Your facility tracks the quantity of energy used for one (1) or more of your energy sources (excluding energy used for company owned and controlled vehicles).

Note: If your facility did not track energy use from one (1) or more of your energy sources in the reporting year, you should answer No to this question.

If you answer Yes to this question, you will be asked the following set of questions to provide details on your facility’s energy tacking and use.

Ensourcetrackopteach

6. Does your facility track energy use from each energy source your facility utilizes? (Ref ID - ensourcetrackopteach)

• Answer Yes if: You track the quantity energy used from all sources at your facility.
• Answer Partial Yes if: You track the quantity energy used from least one (1) but not all sources at your facility.
  If you answer Yes or Partial Yes to the question above, you will be asked the following sub question on energy tracking. 

Ensourcetrackopteachmethod

6.1. Is your facility able to separate and report energy use by facility type for tracked energy sources directly from captured data without relying on estimation? (Ref ID - ensourcetrackopteachmethod)

What is the intent of this question?

• The intent of this question is for facilities to indicate whether their reported energy usage split across different facility types is based  on estimates or based on direct measurement of energy sources at each applicable  facility type.
• Answer Yes if : Your energy usage for all tracked energy sources is based on data measured directly at each facility type
• Answer Partial Yes if : Your energy usage for some, but not all tracked energy sources is based on data measured directly at each facility type and other tracked energy usage is calculated  using an estimation methodology.
• Answer No if: Your facility uses an estimation methodology to calculate the breakdown of energy usage for all energy sources across all facility types.

Ensourcetracksepdomprod

Does your facility identify and track separately energy use in domestic vs. production?

1. Answer Yes if: You track the quantity of energy used for domestic use and production use separately.
   1. If you answer Yes to this question, you will separately report details on your facility’s domestic and production energy use for each applicable energy source.
   2. If you have also selected multiple facility types, then you will separately report details for each selected facility type.
   3. If you answer No to this question, you will be asked to complete a single table to provide details on your facility’s total energy use for each applicable energy source.
   4. The following question on your facility’s energy use will be asked for each applicable energy source:
      • Does your facility use this energy source (for domestic/production use, or in this facility type)?
      • Does your facility track its energy use from this source?
      • What is the quantity of energy used by this source during this reporting year?
      • Unit of Measure
      • Which method was used to track this energy source?
      • What was the frequency of measurement?
      • Provide any additional comments. 
2. Definitions
   1. Domestic Energy Use
      1. Energy that is consumed in non-production related areas and/or buildings such as employee washrooms, domestic only wastewater treatment plant, or office areas separated from production, canteen and kitchen, security posts, external lighting (e.g. roadway or landscape lighting), medical center, etc.
   2. Production Energy Use
      1. Energy that is directly or indirectly consumed in production related activities or production areas such as production equipment operations, onsite energy generations for production (e.g. steam or electricity), industrial wastewater treatment plant, production area lighting, heating, ventilation and cooling, etc.
      2. If industrial and domestic wastewater are treated together, energy use from the combined wastewater treatment plant should be included in production energy use.
3. Details about reporting domestic vs production energy usage at your facility.

Guidance for Higg FEM:

What is the intent of the question?

The intent of this question is for facilities to demonstrate that they have identified and track energy use from all energy sources.

Technical Guidance:

Measurement of energy use from all sources is the foundation of energy management and the overall sustainability program for a company. Measurement of all energy sources allows you to identify areas of significant energy use, detect any abnormal consumption, establish energy reduction targets, and calculate GHG emissions.

When establishing your energy tracking and reporting program, start by doing the following:

• Map out business and operational processes to identify sources of energy use.
  • Note: Energy consumed by facilities or tenants on-site that are NOT owned or controlled by your facility should be excluded from your energy reporting in the Higg FEM.
• Establish procedures to collect and track energy use data:
  • Use utility bills to determine the quantity of purchased electricity, steam, and other sources where applicable.
  • Track other fuels used for onsite energy generation such as diesel in generators and coal in boilers owned or controlled by the facility.
  • Install sub-meters to track the amount of renewable energy generated if renewable energy is generated in-house.
  • If estimation techniques are used to determine energy use, the calculation methodology should be clearly defined and be supported by verifiable data.
• Record tracking data (e.g., daily, weekly, monthly consumption records) in a format that is easy to review [e.g., spreadsheet (e.g., Microsoft Excel) or similar data analytics program that allows export of data in a human readable format (e.g., Excel, csv)] and maintain relevant supporting evidence for review during verification.

Reporting Energy Data in Higg FEM

Note: When reporting energy data in the FEM, Facilities should refer to the “Reporting Energy Use in the FEM for Purchased Electricity, Purchased Renewables, Onsite Renewables and EACs” in the Introduction section of this Guidance. 

Before reporting energy data in the FEM, data quality checks should be performed to ensure that the data AND the processes used to collect and record the data are effective at producing accurate energy data.

Do:

• Review source data (e.g., utility invoices, meter logs, etc) against aggregated totals to ensure it is accurate. 
• Compare the current year with historical data. Any significant changes (e.g., an increase or decrease of over 10%) should be attributable to known changes. If not, further investigation may be warranted.
• Ensure the most recent and updated versions of data tracking spreadsheets are being used and that all automated calculations/formulas are correct.
• Ensure the proper units are reported and verify any unit conversions from source data to reported data.
• Review any assumption or estimation methodology/calculations to ensure accuracy.
• Add notes in the “Provide any additional comments” field to describe any data assumptions, estimation methodology, or other relevant comments on the data for a particular source.

Do Not:

• Report data that is not accurate (e.g., the data source is unknown or has not been verified).
• Report estimated data if it is not supported by verifiable and reasonably accurate estimation methodology and data (e.g., engineering calculations).

Ensourcetracksepdomprod Verification and Scoring

How This Will Be Verified:

When verifying a facility’s energy data, Verifiers must review all aspects of the facility’s energy tracking program that could produce inaccuracies including:

• The initial data collection processes and data sources (e.g., invoices, on-site meters, metering logs, etc.); and
• The process and tools used to aggregate the data (e.g., spreadsheet calculations, unit conversions, etc.)

If any inconsistencies or errors are noted, the reported information must be corrected where possible and detailed comments should be included in the Verification Data field.

Full Points

Facilities will receive full points for tracking energy use from all energy sources.

Documentation Required:

• Documentation that supports the reported energy use data which may include:
  • Energy consumption records (e.g., utility bills, metering records, etc)
    • Note: Annual consumption records compiled in a spreadsheet (e.g., Excel) is ok if detailed consumption records are available for review. 
  • Energy meter calibration records where applicable (e.g., as per manufacturer’s specifications)
  • Documented estimation methodologies if applicable. 

Interview Questions to Ask:

• Staff responsible for managing energy are able to explain the facility’s energy tracking program (e.g., how energy sources are identified, and energy quantities are tracked). 
• Key staff should understand:
  • The procedures in place for tracking energy use.
  • How data quality of the energy use tracking program is maintained.
  • Any estimation methodologies used to calculate annual energy use.

Inspection - Things to Physically Look For:

• All energy sources observed are properly identified and tracked.
• Appropriate equipment for energy use measurement (e.g., meters) if applicable.

Partial Points

• Partial Points will be awarded if energy use from at least one (1) energy source is tracked in full.

Ensourcevehicletrackopt

8. Does your facility track the use of every energy/fuel source used by company owned and controlled vehicles? (Ref ID - ensourcevehicletrackopt)

Answer Yes if:  Your facility tracks the quantity of energy/fuel consumption for all energy sources used for company owned and controlled vehicles.

Answer Partial Yes if: Your facility tracks the quantity of energy/fuel used for at least one (1), but not all your energy sources used for company owned and controlled vehicles.

If you answer Yes or Partial Yes to this question, you will be asked to complete a table with the following questions to provide details on your facility’s energy/fuel use for each applicable energy source:

• Does your facility track its energy/fuel use from this source?
• What quantity of energy/fuel is used by this source during this reporting year?
• Unit of Measure
• Which method was used to track this energy/fuel source?
• Provide any additional comments.

Note: If your facility uses fuels for vehicles onsite, you should not report the energy use in this question unless it has been subtracted from the facility’s overall energy use for the respective energy source reported in the overall facility energy consumption data in the question(s) above.  

Suggested Uploads

• Documentation that demonstrates the facility has identified and is tracking energy/fuel consumption energy sources used for company owned and controlled vehicles. (e.g., an inventory and/or tracking records for energy/fuel use, samples of energy purchase invoices or metering records etc.)

Note: Uploading of all energy/fuel purchase bills is not required, however they should be available for review at the time of verification.

What is the intent of the question?

The intent of this question is for facilities to demonstrate that they have identified and track energy/fuel consumption for all energy sources used for company owned and controlled vehicles.

Technical Guidance:

Measurement of energy/fuel use for company owned and controlled vehicles is an important part of understanding your facility’s energy and carbon footprint. It also allows you to identify areas of significant energy use, detect any abnormal consumption, establish energy reduction targets, and calculate GHG emissions.

Note: The principles and technical guidance provided for the Higg FEM question above “Does your facility track any of its energy use?” should also be applied for tracking energy/fuel use for company owned and controlled vehicles. 

Ensourcevehicletrackopt Verification And Scoring

How This Will Be Verified:

When verifying a facility’s energy data, Verifiers must review all aspects of the facility’s energy tracking program that could produce inaccuracies including:

• The initial data collection processes and data sources (e.g., invoices, on-site meters, metering logs, etc.); and
• The process and tools used to aggregate the data (e.g., spreadsheet calculations, unit conversions, etc.)

If any inconsistencies or errors are noted, the reported information must be corrected where possible and detailed comments should be included in the Verification Data field.

Full Points

Facilities will receive full points for tracking energy/fuel use from all energy sources used for company owned and controlled vehicles.

Documentation Required:

• Documentation that supports the reported energy/fuel use data which may include:
  • Energy consumption records (e.g., energy/fuel purchase invoices, metering records, etc)
    • Note: Annual consumption records compiled in a spreadsheet (e.g., Excel) is ok if detailed consumption records are available for review. 
  • Documented estimation methodologies if applicable. 

Interview Questions to Ask:

• Staff responsible for managing energy are able to explain the facility’s energy/fuel use tracking program for company owned and controlled vehicles (e.g., how energy sources are identified, and energy quantities are tracked). 
• Key staff should understand:
  • The procedures in place for tracking energy/fuel use.
  • How data quality of the energy use tracking program is maintained.
  • Any estimation methodologies used to calculate annual energy/fuel use.

Inspection - Things to Physically Look For:

• All energy/fuel sources used for company owned and controlled vehicles observed are properly identified and tracked.
• Appropriate equipment for energy use measurement (e.g., meters) if applicable.

Partial Points

• Partial Points will be awarded if energy/fuel use from at least one (1) energy source for company owned and controlled vehicles is tracked.