0.1 - Objectives and principles of the Bilan Carbone®
What objectives and principles must the Bilan Carbone® meet?
The Bilan Carbone® subscribes to the objectives of low-carbon transition approaches in general. The section below presents the specific objectives and principles of the Bilan Carbone®.
Objectives of the Bilan Carbone®
Stakeholder engagement the organization's internal and external stakeholders in a transition approach, through awareness-raising, empowerment, coconstruction and the reporting of transformations enabled by the transition plan.
Account for as rigorously and comprehensively as possible the organization's greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, whether they are direct or indirect, covering the boundaries of the organization's responsibility and dependence.
To develop a transition plan and reduction of the organization's GHG emissions and vulnerabilities that is ambitious, manageable, operational, and consistent with the emissions accounting.
The Bilan Carbone® is not merely an administrative process, a standard or a reporting of excellence: it is the most reliable means to steer the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.
Anna CRETI, 2024, president of the ABC
The Bilan Carbone® approach can be applied to an organisation, a product or a territory. This methodology deals only with the Bilan Carbone® Organisation.
⏳[WIP] The methodological principles of the Bilan Carbone® Organisation also apply to Product or Territory approaches. They are not presented here and will be the subject of further reflections over the coming years.
These objectives are broken down into several levels according to the maturity of the organisation concerned in terms of carbon accounting and low-carbon transition strategy. Organisations are encouraged to meet the continuous improvement requirements and to increase their level of maturity, notably during Bilan Carbone® renewals.
Let us recall here that with the Bilan Carbone® we do not measure an organisation's responsibility for global warming; we identify its potential for action to best size its transition plan. The objective is to transform the organisation to adapt it to the low-carbon world of tomorrow.
Principles of the Bilan Carbone®
The Bilan Carbone® enables a strategic analysis of GHG emissions. To do so, it adheres to the following principles:
Low-carbon strategy : the approach seeks to add a mitigation dimension to the organisation's strategy
Long-term vision : the approach contributes to defining the organisation's long-term low-carbon transition vision
Anticipation : the approach encourages anticipating upcoming changes
Pragmatism : the approach requires remaining pragmatic regarding the results obtained, which are not always those anticipated beforehand.
In addition, in order to provide reporting of excellence, the Bilan Carbone® adheres to the following principles:
Consistency : the approach is consistent with current challenges, i.e. with national and international strategies to combat climate change (National Low Carbon Strategy, Paris Agreement, …), and promotes the emergence of a low-carbon society.
Accuracy : the biases and uncertainties inherent to the approach are qualified, quantified and reduced to the maximum.
Significance : the approach seeks to cover as many emissions as possible, and to prioritise action on all so-called significant emissions.
Evaluation : the approach must lead to results that can be evaluated, notably through the assessment review. This procedure is optional, but must be applicable to all the approach's requirements.
Transparency : the approach must be sufficiently transparent, and the results obtained must be published on the platform of the Observatory of Carbon Accounting in France (OCCF).
The use of the Bilan Carbone® logo is conditioned on respect for these principles.
The Bilan Carbone® is compatible with other existing methodologies, including the main ones such as ISO 14064-1-2:2019, the GHG Protocol or national regulations (it complies with French regulation, and therefore with the Regulatory GHG Assessment). The Bilan Carbone® at its third maturity level (Advanced) covers the majority of CSRD ESRS E1. Bilan Carbone® results can be used within these approaches.
Do you have a question about understanding? Consult the FAQ. The method is living and therefore likely to evolve (clarifications, additions): find the track of changes here.
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