What an activity is
An activity is a single source of emissions you want to track. Examples:
Denver Office - Electricity
Leland Warehouse - Natural Gas
Leland Warehouse - Propane Forklift #3
Corporate - Air Travel
Purchased Goods - Packaging
Each activity has:
Field | Required | Description |
ref_id | Yes | Unique identifier, for example |
label | Yes | Display name, for example "Denver Office - Electricity" |
category | Yes | GHG category code, for example |
active_at | No | Date the activity started (YYYY-MM-DD) |
retired_at | No | Date the activity ended (YYYY-MM-DD) |
Activities also carry tags, such as the facility they belong to and any tags needed for emission factor assignment.
Choosing a category
The category tells Measure which part of the GHG Protocol the activity falls under, and it determines which emission factors can apply. Choose carefully, because the wrong category means the wrong factor.
Code | Category |
s1.1 | Stationary combustion |
s1.2 | Mobile combustion |
s1.3 | Fugitive emissions |
s1.4 | Process emissions |
s2.1 | Electricity |
s2.2 | Chilled water |
s2.3 | District heat and steam |
s3.1 | Purchased goods and services |
s3.2 | Capital goods |
s3.3 | Fuel- and energy-related activities |
s3.4 | Upstream transportation and distribution |
s3.5 | Waste generated in operations |
s3.6 | Business travel |
s3.7 | Employee commuting |
s3.8 | Upstream leased assets |
s3.9 | Downstream transportation and distribution |
s3.10 | Processing of sold products |
s3.11 | Use of sold products |
s3.12 | End-of-life treatment of sold products |
s3.13 | Downstream leased assets |
s3.14 | Franchises |
s3.15 | Investments |
One activity per source
Create a separate activity for each thing you want to track on its own. A facility that uses electricity and natural gas needs two activities. A facility with three propane forklifts that you track individually needs three activities, for example "Leland Warehouse - Propane Forklift #1," "#2" and "#3."
Activities without a facility
Not every activity belongs to a facility. Many Scope 3 activities, such as purchased goods and services or capital goods, apply to the company as a whole. Leave the facility tag off these activities rather than assigning them to an arbitrary site.
Active and retired dates
Use active_at and retired_at to record when an activity started and stopped, for example when a facility opens or a vehicle is sold. Both are optional.
Consumption data is counted only for the days between these dates. If a consumption period runs past active_at or retired_at, Measure prorates it by number of days, and the portion outside the activity's dates does not generate emissions. For example, if an activity is retired on March 15, a March 1 to March 31 bill counts only for March 1 to 15.
An activity only appears in an inventory period if it is active for at least part of your selected inventory year.