The Universal Postal Union (UPU), the International Post Corporation (IPC) and PostEurop, a UPU restricted union, have finalized the greenhouse gas emission inventory standard for the postal sector.
The standard is an advanced methodology that the postal operators of UPU member countries can now use to collect comprehensive data about their greenhouse gas emissions. The tool provides information on quantitative reporting, how and where to collect relevant data as well as explanations on the right indicators to use for the postal sector.
The data collected will enable the International Bureau to better assess the global footprint of postal operators worldwide and develop measures to help these operators reduce their carbon emissions.
Based on standards
The new methodology is based on documents from the World Resources Institute and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, the International Energy Agency, the Global Reporting Initiative and the ISO 14000 standards.
Given member countries’ different levels of development in this field, the UPU provides two resources to gather data about carbon emissions. The new detailed standard sets out the optimum terms of reference for gathering data, while a simplified guide defines the UPU inventory’s minimum scope.
According to the preliminary results of the UPU’s first global inventory, published last December, postal buildings and vehicles worldwide produced an estimated 26 million tons of carbon emissions in 2008.
New survey
The UPU’s 191 member countries will soon receive a new survey asking them to collect more detailed data about sources of greenhouse gas emissions, including indirect emissions produced by suppliers, for example. The International Bureau will then use this data to calculate their emissions.
With its Greenhouse Gas Global Overview and Mitigation Project, launched in 2008, the UPU aims to asset the impact of postal operations on climate change and work with countries and their postal operators to reduce their carbon footprint.