Transporting goods > Vehicles you own > Road

You produce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from this activity if your organization ships goods in cars, trucks, or buses. This includes goods you deliver to clients as well as goods that are delivered to you. This is a Scope 1 (direct) emission.

Enter your shipping data 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 distance (less accurate)
  • Option 3: Estimate by cost (less accurate)
• 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 delivers goods in company-owned cars, trucks, buses, or other vehicles that drive on the road

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 period.

Option 1: Actual consumption (most accurate)

You’ll get the most accurate results if you enter the actual amount of fuel your vehicles used during the year. This means you’ll need to know:

• Amount of fuel (litres or gallons)
• Type of fuel (for example, gasoline, diesel, or propane)

Note: Different vehicles produce different levels of emissions. For example, a gas truck might emit more GHGs than a hybrid car. Add separate entries to your inventory for each type of vehicle you own.

Option 2: Estimate by distance (less accurate)

If you don’t know how much fuel you used, you can estimate your average emissions based on the following information: 

• Weight of freight or goods (tonnes, short tons, or tonnes of carbon equivalents)
• Distance travelled (kilometres or miles)

If this is your first inventory year, some of this information might not be available yet. In that case, you’ll need to estimate the averages of the data you need, based on the data you have. For example, if you only know the origin and destination of a delivery, you’ll need to estimate the shipment weight. If you’re averaging the data you enter into Climate Smart, you’ll also need to know:

• Number of shipments you made

To prepare this data for Climate Smart, learn how to determine how many tonnes of goods per kilometre (t/km) you shipped.

Option 3: Estimate by cost (less accurate)

If you have receipts for the amount you spent on fuel during your inventory period, but don’t know the amount of fuel you used, you can estimate your average emissions based on:

• Cost of fuel to move or ship goods on the road (for example, through delivery cars or trucks)

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 fuel cards and receipts 

Your fuel cards and fuel receipts include important information you need for your inventory, such as:

• Cost of the fuel used by your vehicles, 
• Amount and type of fuel your vehicles needed.

If your organization has an online account with your fuel provider, you might be able to download a spreadsheet with your monthly fuel usage and cost.

Collect vehicle logs

Your vehicle logs and odometer readings can help you estimate the distance travelled.

Measure distance with the distance calculator

Not sure what the distance was between the origin and destination of a shipment? To measure how far a vehicle travelled, use the distance calculator.

Enter 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. 

Note: Lots of shipments to enter at once? Try importing your shipping data.

Add this activity to your inventory

Before you can enter information about your 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. Choose a calculation method:
   • If you have your fuel cards or receipts that show how much fuel your vehicles used, select Actual Consumption and enter your information into Climate Smart.
   • If you need to estimate your fuel usage based on how far your vehicles travelled, select Estimate by Distance. Enter the weight as 1 and the distance travelled as the value you calculated for D.
   • If you need to estimate your fuel usage based on cost, select Estimate by Cost and enter your information into Climate Smart.
2. Enter the start and end dates of the activity you’re measuring. These dates usually match the start and end of your inventory period.
3. Enter the cost of fuel (including taxes) for this entry. If you’re estimating this amount, select the checkbox next to Cost is estimate. If you’re estimating the amount, 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:
   • The start and end locations of your shipment
   • Type of shipment (inbound or outbound)
   • Vehicle make and model or identifier (for example, Ford Transit XLT, Freightliner M2, etc.)
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.