Heat > Purchased

You produce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from this activity if your building is heated with energy that’s produced offsite by another company or organization. This is a Scope 2 (indirect) emission.

Note: If your buildings are heated by electricity, for example, if your buildings have baseboard heaters, you’ll need to add Electricity > Purchased instead. If your building is heated by boilers, you’ll need to add Heat > Generated instead.

Enter information about the heat you purchased into Climate Smart to calculate the emissions from your inventory period.

On this page:

• Examples of emission sources
• Prepare the data you need
  • Option 1: Actual consumption (most accurate)
  • Option 2: Estimate by size and location (less accurate)
  • Option 3: Estimate by cost (least accurate)
  • Option 4: From a specific emissions factor (rare cases)
• Find your emissions data
• Enter data into your inventory

Examples of emission sources

Not sure if you should report this emission source? You should consider tracking this activity in your inventory if:

• Your organization participates in a district energy system that heats your buildings with steam (steam is heated offsite and delivered to your building through pipes, making it a scope 2 emission)

Prepare the data you need

To get your emissions data ready for Climate Smart, choose one of the following options based on the information that’s available to you. This will be the method you use to calculate the GHGs emitted by your organization’s activities.

Remember to collect information for the relevant inventory year.

Option 1: Actual consumption (most accurate)

You’ll get the most accurate results if you enter the following information from your district heating provider:

• Amount of fuel needed to generate steam (gigajoules, therms, or British thermal units)
• Type of fuel (diesel, kerosene, etc.)

Option 2: Estimate by size and location (less accurate)

If you don’t have information from your heating provider, you can estimate your average emissions based on the following information:

• Size of your office or facility (warehouse, plant, etc.) in square meters or square feet
• Type of fuel (diesel, kerosene, etc.)

Option 3: Estimate by cost (least accurate)

If you know how much you paid for heat from a utility provider during your inventory period, you can use this data to estimate your emissions. You might choose this method if you don’t have utility bills, but you do have:

• Receipts
• Bank or credit card statements
• Financial accounting records (for example, QuickBooks)

Option 4: From a specific emissions factor (rare cases)

In rare cases, you might need to add data to your inventory from a specific emissions factor. This might be the case if you’re a regulated reporter, meaning the government needs your organization to report specific information from your major sources of emissions.

If this applies to your organization, you’ll need to know:

• Amount of heat purchased (gigajoules, therms, or British thermal units)
• Your emissions factor (in kilogram CO₂e/unit)

Find your emissions data

Not sure where to find the data you need? Try the following suggestions:

Ask your accounting department

Your accounting department might already have the information you need! Ask your accounting team about collecting data for your emissions inventory.

Check your heating bills

Your utility bills (for example, Central Steam bills) include important information you need for your inventory, such as:

• Cost
• Location
• Amount and type of fuel you purchased

If your organization has an online account with your energy provider, you might be able to download a spreadsheet with your fuel usage and cost for each billing period.

Note: Your billing periods might not match the dates you’re measuring – that’s okay! Pick a one-year period that’s closest to your inventory start and end dates to estimate the amount of electricity purchased during your inventory period.

Enter your data into your inventory

When you’re ready to track emissions from this activity, you can start entering the data you’ve collected into Climate Smart.

Add this activity to your inventory

Before you can enter information about your greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, you need to add this activity to your inventory. Learn how to add new activities to your inventory.

Add an entry to your inventory

To enter your data into Climate Smart:

1. Select a calculation method:
   
   • If you’re entering the exact amount of electricity you purchased, select Actual Consumption and enter your information into Climate Smart.
   • If you need to estimate based on your building size and location, select Estimate by Area and enter your information into Climate Smart.
   • If you need to estimate based on cost of heating, select Estimate by Cost and enter your information into Climate Smart.
   • If you’re reporting a specific emissions factor, select From a Specific Factor and enter your information into Climate Smart.
2. Enter the start and end dates of the activity you’re measuring. These will usually match the start and end dates of your inventory period.
3. Enter the cost of the heat you purchased (including taxes). If this amount is an estimate, select the checkbox next to Cost is estimate. Tell us if you paid in Canadian Dollars (CAD) or United States Dollars (USD) from Currency the drop-down list.
4. Under Description, enter information such as:
   • Utility provider name
   • Utility account number
5. In the Note box, enter optional information including any details that might be helpful for you (or your Climate Smart Advisor, if applicable) in the future.
6. When you’re done, click ADD ENTRY. Your entry will appear in the table below.