Emissions reporting

In developing our Pathway to Net Zero, we reviewed our greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions sources following the Greenhouse Gas Protocol. In line with work established by the Higher Education Funding Council for England, before its duties were divided between the Office for Students and Research England , all scope 1 and scope 2 emissions plus business travel and commuting emissions are included in our core carbon footprint, which forms our net zero by 2030 target.

Broader scope 3 (supply chain) emissions are incorporated in our wider “net zero plus” ambition to achieve zero direct emissions by 2050, with a small number of emissions sources considered out of scope (students in private accommodation and visitor travel).

• Scope 1 definition: Direct emissions from owned or controlled sources, e.g. natural gas used in boilers.
• Scope 2 definition: Indirect emissions from the generation of purchased energy consumed by the University , e.g. purchased electricity.
• Scope 3 definition: All other indirect emissions that occur in a company’s value chain, e.g. business travel or purchased goods and services.

The Pathway to Net Zero sets out three specific objectives relating to emissions reporting:

We will report on our progress annually, but we will also track GHG emissions quarterly, allowing us to respond quickly to emerging problems.

Scope 1 and 2 estate-based emissions are reviewed quarterly within the Climate Plan quarterly reports and this data is used as part of net zero delivery. We report on other emissions sources annually using a range of methodologies outlined later in this report. 

We are currently recruiting for a new Net Zero Data Manager who will lead a full review of emissions reporting. This will include indicative quarterly measures across a range of emissions sources and ensure consistency and clarity of data.

We will report our emissions in line with the GHG Protocol Corporate Standard.

We are starting our first annual GHG reporting since the Climate Plan was approved and it will be aligned to the GHG Protocol Corporate Standard. We will report our emissions as both location-based and market-based. 2021/22 emissions data will be available by January 2023 and will be reviewed by the Research Partnership Committee.

We will determine fixed milestones and interim targets as soon as possible.

We are close to finalising our net zero programme delivery plans, including the potential to increase the pace of emissions reduction against the pathway. This will be completed in spring 2023 after reviewing the retrofit and energy infrastructure feasibility studies. This will enable us to determine fixed milestones and interim targets and update our original pathway. This updated pathway will be reviewed by the Research Partnership Committee.

The methodology and frequency of reporting of emissions varies by scope:

• Scope 1 and 2 estate-based emissions were originally based on HESA methodology, but this did not allow for regular data analysis, so new processes have been established to review draft scope 1 and 2 emissions quarterly. 
• We have calculated additional, non-energy-related scope 1 emissions to support the inclusion of these sources in our pathway. These include livestock emissions at the University Farm and fugitive emissions associated with air conditioning units.
• We report business travel emissions annually, after consolidating booking information with emissions calculations.
• We calculate staff and student commuting emissions annually, based on travel survey data.
• Further work is underway to more accurately calculate scope 3 emissions associated with the wider supply chain.

Scope 1 and 2 estate-based emissions

Work on the quarterly reporting of scope 1 and 2 estate-based emissions has highlighted differences with the methodology used to calculate Higher Education Statistics Agency emissions data, which informed the original baseline for estate-based scope 1 and 2 emissions. 

As a result, our quarterly data for this category of emissions is about 1% higher than the equivalent HESA reporting period. We will address this disparity over the coming months so that we can report emissions in line with the GHG Protocol Corporate Standard.

Draft data for the 2021–22 academic year – using the new methodology, which is not directly comparable with the HESA baseline – indicates an increase of 1.4% compared with the previous year, from 44,012 tonnes CO₂e to 44,627 tonnes CO₂e.

The monthly breakdown of the data shows that the first part of the last academic year, in the run up to the approval of the Climate Plan, drove the overall increase in emissions. This was primarily a result of additional COVID-19 ventilation requirements during winter months.

Emissions levels in early 2022 stabilised versus the previous year. Estate-led interventions – including a partial shutdown of underused services during the summer break – then contributed to reduced summer emissions compared to 2020–21, supported by a small drop in the carbon intensity of grid electricity.

Read an accessible description of Figure 2 in our companion document (Word).

Scope 1 agricultural emissions

Scope 1 agricultural emissions are associated with livestock at the University Farm. The original net zero baseline calculated annual emissions at 7,795 tonnes CO₂e.

As part of the Net Zero Farm sub-programme, a review of livestock emissions calculations has determined that the emissions associated with the farm should be significantly lower than first calculated, at approximately 1,300 tonnes CO₂e per annum. This figure is 84% lower than the figure quoted in the original emissions baseline.

The recalculated baseline figure will be incorporated into a review in early 2023 which will determine the interim targets and milestones associated with the Net Zero Pathway. The likely impact will be a reduction in the remaining emissions that would require offsetting.

Other scope 1 emissions

We have calculated the emissions associated with the escape of gases from air-conditioning units, which highlights an additional 728 tonnes of CO2e emissions. We will incorporate this work into future reporting and intervention plans, as appropriate.

Business travel emissions

Business travel emissions data for the 2021–22 academic year will be available by the end of 2022 and we will incorporate it into annual emissions reporting. Initial analysis of travel spend data for this period shows that we are travelling less for business and academic purposes compared with the 2018-19 baseline, however the quantity of travel has increased significantly since the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions in the UK.

We recognise that this is a concerning trend as we seek to reduce our travel emissions, and are aware of this in the work within the Achieving Sustainable Travel principle.

Staff and student commuting emissions

Staff and student commuting emissions are calculated using annual travel survey data. No travel survey took place in 2019–20 and 2020–21, so emissions for these periods were estimated, with the most recent travel survey covering the 2021–22 period.

This latest travel survey data shows that student commuting emissions have risen slightly since 2018–2019, while staff commuting emissions have decreased significantly due to hybrid working.

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