What is Purchased Goods and Services?

Everything your organisation purchases as an organisation typically causes emissions due to goods being produced and services being provided. More specifically, as defined by the GHG Protocol, Purchased goods and services includes all upstream (cradle-to-gate) emissions occurring due to the production and provisioning of goods and services which are not otherwise included in the other categories of upstream scope 3 emissions (i.e., category 2 through to category 8).

While the GHG Protocol’s standard inventory development process does not explicitly account for water use, at Plan A, we think it is crucial to explore complementary approaches to address water-related impacts on emissions. Although specific guidance on calculating water-related Scope 3 emissions is limited, our team of carbon accounting experts find that water usage best corresponds to Scope 3, Category 1: Purchased Goods and Services.

By utilising the 'Water consumption' calculation method, the Plan A Sustainability Platform allows you to calculate the emissions associated with the use of tap water in the given location and timeframe. This calculation method captures emissions from tap water treatment before entering the local distribution network and the transportation of water to the end-consumer.

All expenses that fall under Scope 1 and Scope 2 should not be included in PGAS.

All costs associated with any of the following categories should also be excluded from PGAS:

Employee salaries must also be excluded. Relevant employee data must instead be accounted for in Organisational Data and Employee Commute.

There should not be any expenses related to carbon offsets or credits included in the Purchased Goods and Services category. Learn more about how to report on compensated emissions here.

Here are some examples of what may be included in PGAS:

In your spend data, you may notice some negative figures, reflecting refunds. These should still be included in your data upload so that previously reported emissions relating to refunded goods can be deducted from your carbon balance accordingly. Negative spend data will be reflected as negative emissions values in the month the refund was given.

If you only have spend data for certain emission categories, for which we have no spend-based calculation method, Purchased Goods and Services can be used to ensure that these emissions are not missed. This, however, is not a GHG Protocol compliant approach and should only be used as a last resort, with the intention of re-uploading data under the correct category once it is obtained.

Purchased Goods and Services emissions are Scope 3 emissions.