PCF: Emission factors and standards compliance

These adjustments are required to ensure conformity with the ISO 14067, Catena-X and PACT standard.

Emission factors

We have updated and added emission factors to improve alignment with ISO 14067, PACT and Catena-X requirements.

Land Use Change:

• Catena-X and PACT: Renamed the factor to "emissions from direct land use change" to clarify that it covers emissions only. Indirect land use change and CO₂ removals are excluded.
• ISO 14067: The factor "emissions and removals from direct land use change" is available instead to clarify that it covers both emissions and CO2 removals resulting from the direct conversion of one land-use category to another. Indirect land-use change is excluded.

Biogenic CO2 and CH4 Emissions:

• ISO 14067: Added a separate biogenic CO2 and CH4 emission factor alongside biogenic CO2 removals to provide a clearer breakdown of biogenic emissions and removals. 

Fossil Aircraft Emissions:

• ISO 14067: Added a separate fossil aircraft emission factor to provide a more detailed breakdown of fossil emissions. The factor is included within total fossil emissions.

User notices

User notices have been added where certain features cannot provide the complete set of emission factors required for a standards-compliant breakdown:

• Direct CO₂e values: Only a single value can be captured. Additional CO2e values cannot be provided.
• Electricity factors: Automatically assigned factors based on country and year include only one emission factor. For a complete breakdown, we recommend using suitable electricity factors from ecoinvent. The electricity module may still be used where accepted by the relevant partner requirements.
• Freight module: Automatically assigned factors based on supplier's and destination's location include only one emission factor. For a complete breakdown, we recommend using suitable logistics factors from ecoinvent. The freight module may still be used where accepted by the relevant partner requirements.
• ISO 14067-specific user notices:

• • Activity-based emission factors: ecoinvent should be selected as the source to capture the total and partial emission factors consistently. For all other databases, only one emission factor is captured.
  • Spend-based factors: Factors based on Exiobase include only one emission factor. For a complete breakdown, we recommend using ecoinvent with an appropriate inflation adjustment.
  • Predefined activities: The available activities include only one emission factor. For a complete breakdown, we recommend using the activity-based search via ecoinvent or entering the factors manually.

For more details, please refer to the specific Helpdesk articles.