2.2 - Organisational boundary
How to define the study boundaries for a complete accounting?
The Bilan Carbone® method is applied here at the scale of an organisation, whose definition includes any company, local authority, association, public establishment, company, corporation, firm, authority, institution, or a part or combination of the preceding entities.
The establishments, equipment and facilities of the organisation constitute the organisational boundary to be considered during the Bilan Carbone®. In order to define the organisational boundary, the organisation shall diagram its organisational chart by listing all buildings, agencies, subsidiaries, customers, suppliers, etc. that orbit it.
🌐 English version of this image.
As part of a Bilan Carbone® and regardless of the (Advanced level) covers the majority of CSRD ESRS E1. Bilan Carbone® results are usable within these initiatives. targeted, 100% of the equipment and facilities over which the organisation exercises operational controlmust be included in the organisational boundary, that is, which it operates and uses. Any other choice shall be justified.
🔎 This requirement corresponds to the “operational control” approach of the Regulatory GHG Assessment, and of the ISO 14064-1:2018 standard.
🔎 To express the Bilan Carbone® with an "analytical" reading, in coherence with the analytical carbon accounting, the organisational boundary considers or defines the analytical dimensions of the organisation.
Within the framework of the Bilan Carbone®, it is possible to restrict the boundary to part of the organisation, at the scale of a site, a project, a construction site, or an event. The flexibility this introduces to the boundary can be relevant to adapt to certain needs (decision-making, action management, etc.).
This choice is justified, transparent, and included in the deliverables.
🔎 If the Bilan Carbone® is to serve a specific regulatory reporting, the organisational boundary is that of the Legal entity subject to the regulation. The reporting of the Regulatory GHG Assessment shall concern the SIREN of the organisation in question. The sustainability reporting CSRD shall concern the same reporting company as the financial statements.
In the remainder of the document, the Bilan Carbone® method uses only the term “organisation”. It refers to the organisational boundary retained here (including if it is part of the organisation or a group of organisations); and therefore differs from a Individual, Product or Territory. Certain specificities are related to local authorities or associations.
Double counting is inherent to the exercise. Emissions for which the organisation is responsible and dependent overlap with some dependency and responsibility emissions of another organisation. In the consolidation between several sites of the same organisation (so-called multi-site approach), care must be taken to exclude double counting within that consolidation.
Do you have a comprehension question? Consult the FAQ. The method is living and therefore likely to evolve (clarifications, additions): find the track of changes here.
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