Climate Change: The
Implications for Carbon
Accounting and
Management in the Tourism
Sector
Paul Hooper & Rachel Dunk
Centre for Aviation, Transport and the Environment
Manchester Metropolitan University
8th International Conference on
Responsible Tourism
MMU 4th April 2014
Outline
• Mandate of action
• Guidance and options for footprinting and
accounting procedures
• The ‘tourism system’
• Implications for carbon accounts and emissions
mitigation
Tourism & Climate Change
Creates
Tourism
Impacts
Affect
Tourism Growth
Erxleben and Sallwey (2007)
UNWTO (2011)
Global Tourism and
Climate Change
• Tourism (including day-trips) is
responsible for 4.95% of global CO2
emissions
– Up to 14% if measured as radiative forcing
(The warming caused by CO2 and other GHGs).
• If tourism was a country it would be the
5th biggest polluter worldwide (similar to
Japan).
• Global tourism emissions projected to
grow by 152% by 2035.
Sources: Peeters and Dubois (2010); UNWTO-UNEP-WMO (2008)
Breakdown of tourism
emissions
Other activities
4%
Accommodation
21%
Other transport
3%
Car
32%
Air transport
40%
Radiative forcing
Accommodation
9%
Other activities
2%
Other transport
2%
Car
15%
Air transport
72%
Implications for Tourism
• Growing CC emissions from tourism in the
context of policy commitments to radical cuts
in GHG emissions
• Need to take efficient and effective actions
• Important to demonstrate carbon responsibility
• Case for growth is getting more difficult –
credibility crucial
Carbon account……
Activity data to carbon account
Determining carbon emissions requires data
on:
– The activity generating the carbon
emissions (quantity, type, organisation)
– The carbon output per unit activity.
This is usually expressed as an
emissions/conversion factor
Units of activity x EF = total CO2 generated
So what should be included
in a carbon account?
Scope Options – GHG Protocol
• Define three scopes (or boundaries) for
GHG/carbon emissions accounting
1. Direct GHG emissions from all sources owned
by the company (stationary and mobile
combustion)
2. Plus indirect GHG emissions from purchase of
electricity
3. Optional step – indirect emissions from
company’s upstream and downstream
activities (provides an ‘opportunity to be
innovative in GHG management’)
How far is far enough?
• Carbon Reduction Commitment
– mandates reporting for larger
organisations (>6000MWh)
– Focuses on fuels and electricity consumed
(i.e. Scope 1 & 2 emissions)
• However DEFRA Guidance:
– Sets no minimum size threshold
– Covers wider range of emissions
– Does not specify a minimum level of
reporting (emphasises completeness)
So what should be done
about Scope 3 Emissions
• Challenging given the variety of
organisations in the tourism sector
• Best to start with an appreciation of the
‘tourism system’ for completeness
• ICARB identified a range of system carbon
emission sources from:
– Inputs
– Outputs
– Outsourcing
• Inputs
–
–
–
–
Scope 3 Emissions for
Tourism
Food & drink
Cleaning materials
Visitor travel
Water supply
• Outputs
– Water
discharge/treatment
– Solid waste:
• Green waste
• Recyclates
• Landfill
• Outsourcing
– Laundry
– Accounting
– Maintenance/grou
nds keeping
– Cleaners
– Catering
– Entertainment
But this is too difficult, isn’t it?
So why take on Level 3?
• ACI International (2009) have
something to offer:
Guidance Manual: Airport Greenhouse
Gas Emissions Management
References
• ACI (International) (2009) Guidance Manual: Airport GHG Emissions
Management, ACI World Environment Standing Committee
• DEFRA (2013) Environmental Reporting Guidelines: including
mandatory GHG emissions reporting guidance.
• DEFRA GHG Conversion Factor Repository available at
www.ukconversionfactorscarbonsmart.co.uk/
• Erxleben, T. and Sallwey, L. (2007) The impact of current developments
on the baggage flow at airports and derived trends in airport logistics.
Elektroniczne czasopismo naukowe z dziedziny logistyki, 3 (1), No. 5.
• Peeters, P. And Dubois, G. (2010) Tourism travel under climate change
mitigation constraints. Journal of Transport Geography, 18 (3),447-457.
• UNWTO (2011) Tourism Highlights 2009 Edition. http://unwto.org
• UNWTO-UNEP-WMO (2008) Climate Change and Tourism: Responding
to Global Challenges. UNWTO, Madrid.
• WBCSD and WRI (2004) The Greenhouse Gas Protocol.