agribusinessreview.comJUNE - 20238 opinionIN MYNET ZERO: ACTION THROUGH CARBON CONSCIOUS PROCUREMENT By Chris Millson, Head of Sustainability, Direct WinesThe meaning of "net zero" is murky and much muddled with another term: "carbon neutral". The two are linked - but they are certainly not interchangeable, as is widely believed. If you are confused, feeling like you need some help, you are in the majority. So below, amongst some provocation, some clarification.Published standards are a good place to start, and fortunately, we have one (PAS2060) which more-or-less clarifies the meaning of "carbon neutrality". To summarise (and to help you avoid having to read it), businesses need only measure their emissions, hit their reduction target, and (at a minimum) offset the remaining scope 1 and 2. Voila, carbon neutral. But even this simple summary introduces jargony terms which require brief explanation.Let's consider a vineyard as an example. Its scope 1 emissions are those relating directly to its operations ­ diesel for a tractor, gas for a boiler, refrigeration gas for a cooling system. Its scope 2 (indirect) emissions are those resulting from fuel combusted elsewhere, the energy from which is imported for use on site (electricity being the typical example). Scope 3 emissions, on the other hand, include emissions that result from activities upstream (think of the energy used to make fertilizer) as well as downstream (the manufacture of glass bottles, freighting, and recycling of glass post-use). Inevitably, scope 3 emissions dwarf scope 1 and 2, and although linked to Chris Millson
< Page 7 | Page 9 >