Carbon Neutral Government program one percent rule

For many public sector organizations (PSOs), dealing with small emissions sources can be challenging. If an emissions source is onerous to collect and is expected to comprise less than one percent of the PSO's total emissions inventory, it is considered out of scope.

What could be a small emissions source?

A source in this context refers to a category, not a piece of equipment. For example, natural gas mobile emissions might fall under this rule, a particular natural gas vehicle will not. 

Some examples of small emissions sources could be:

• Hydrofluorocarbon emissions from refrigeration equipment
• Combustion emissions from propane
• Combustion emissions from lawn mowers

Use this flow chart to determine if a source falls under this rule.

One percent rule flow chart overview 

Do you have or can you easily estimate consumption data?

Often, even if a source is small, consumption data is available. For example, you only have one diesel truck and you have a system in place for tracking fuel consumption. In this case, the truck's consumption data would be available.

There are several ways to estimate consumption data:

Estimating internally 

You can estimate using what you know about your organization. For example, if you have refrigerant emissions data from one fridge you can estimate consumption from a second similar fridge.

Estimating buildings using the Clean Government Reporting Tool (CGRT)

You can use the CGRT to estimate your building’s emissions from the:

• Building's floor space
• Number of months the building was occupied during the reporting year,
• Location and primary function of the property
• Energy source type (for example, Electricity, BC – Integrated Grid – BC Hydro)

Contact the carbon neutral government team at Carbon.Neutral@gov.bc.ca if you need any help estimating with the CGRT.

Does the source represent one percent or less of total emissions?

Is the source expected to be insignificant when compared to your total emissions? If you are unsure about how to determine whether the emissions source is likely to be small, contact Carbon.Neutral@gov.bc.ca.

Report this emissions source through your PSO CCAR

For instructions on how to create your PSO CCAR, refer to the Carbon Neutral Government program requirements.

If you have any questions contact the carbon neutral government team at Carbon.Neutral@gov.bc.ca.