Upstream activities

Scope 3 refers to indirect emissions. Include all the other indirect emissions within your entire value chain, the upstream supply chain (suppliers), as well as downstream GHG emissions occurring with customers.

Upstream scope 3 emissions: 

1. Purchased goods and services. Extraction, production, and transportation of goods and services purchased or acquired by the reporting company in the reporting year.

2. Capital goods. Extraction, production, and transportation of capital goods purchased or acquired by the reporting company in the reporting year.

3. Fuel- and energy-related activities. Extraction, production, and transportation of fuels and energy purchased or acquired by the reporting company in the reporting year, not already accounted for in scope 1 or scope 2.

4. Upstream transportation and distribution. Transportation and distribution of products purchased by the reporting company in the reporting year (in vehicles and facilities not owned or controlled by the reporting company).

5. Waste generated in operations. Disposal and treatment of waste generated in the reporting company’s operations in the reporting year (in facilities not owned or controlled by the reporting company).

6. Business travel. Transportation of employees for business-related activities during the reporting year (in vehicles not owned or operated by the reporting company).

7. Employee commuting. Transportation of employees between their homes and their worksites during the reporting year (in vehicles not owned or operated by the reporting company)

8. Upstream leased assets. Operation of assets leased by the reporting company in the reporting year and not included in scope 1 and scope 2.

The categories are intended to provide companies with a systematic framework to organize, understand, and report on the diversity of scope 3 activities within a corporate value chain. The categories are designed to be mutually exclusive to avoid double counting of emissions between categories.