Abstract

ESPINDOLA, César  and  VALDERRAMA, José O. Carbon Footprint: Part 2: Enterprises Viewpoint, Doubts and the Future. Inf. tecnol. [online]. 2012, vol.23, n.1, pp. 177-192. ISSN 0718-0764.  doi: 10.4067/S0718-07642012000100018.

In this second part of the series, the viewpoint of the enterprises and their position with respect to the implementation of carbon footprint (CFP) quantification. The criteria for classification of emissions and the main methodologies for calculating the CFP are discussed and analyzed. The main questions and doubts about the CFP, on the subjects to be discussed and the alternatives of solution. A comparison of the main four methods currently used for determining the CFP and a method named Abacus for quantifying emissions of equivalent CO₂ that allows identifying the common characteristics to all of them. All this can serve as basis for decision-making to adopt a given methodology. It is concluded that if the present situation of confusion of the different approaches to quantify the CFP continues, the companies and governments are loosing a great opportunity to arrive to a new environmentally sustainable economy.

Keywords : carbon footprint; CFP; enterprise viewpoint; equivalent CO₂.