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MetricClimate and greenhouse gas emissions

GHG intensity per physical output

Measurement answer

What this metric measures

GHG intensity per physical output relates greenhouse gas emissions to a named and measured physical-output unit for the same reporting boundary and period. The output kind, unit, scale, allocation policy, included emissions scopes and gases are mandatory context.

Specification

Metric specification

Result format
Single value
Unit
Metric tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent per named physical-output unit (tCO₂e / [physical-output unit])
Reporting basis
Reporting period
Aggregation
Ratio of aligned emissions and physical-output totals
Pillar
Environmental
Topic
Climate and greenhouse gas emissions
Controlled domain
Climate and greenhouse gases
Entity type
Metric

Reporting boundary

Greenhouse gas emissions and the named physical-output denominator are aligned to the same activity, facility or organizational perimeter and reporting period, with output kind, row-level unit, scale, allocation policy, included scopes and gases declared.

Verified source occurrences

Framework coverage

This is one canonical metric. The bindings below show every verified framework occurrence without creating duplicate metric pages. Edition, disclosure, role, and relationship remain source-specific.

  • Measurement Authority

    GHG Protocol

    Table 1.1 — Accounting of green power purchases [metric; tons GHG per kWh; emission rate]
    Publisher
    GHG Protocol
    Edition
    2015 publication
    Requirement
    Not Specified
    Relationship
    Reuses Canonical Metric
    Mapping outcome
    Reused
    Source locator
    PDF page 13, Table 1.1, “Accounting of green power purchases” row
    Open official framework source
  • Adopting Disclosure

    GRI Standards

    Source evidence
    Publisher
    Global Reporting Initiative
    Edition
    GRI 305: Emissions 2016, effective 1 July 2018
    Requirement
    Not Specified
    Relationship
    Defines Disclosure
    Mapping outcome
    Direct Evidence
    Source locator
    Disclosure 305-4 and related compilation requirements
    Open official framework source
  • Adopting Disclosure

    PCAF Standards

    a198ad1832cf1f761644
    Publisher
    Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials
    Edition
    Second Edition, December 2025
    Requirement
    Not Specified
    Relationship
    Reuses Canonical Metric
    Mapping outcome
    Reused
    Source locator
    PDF page 100, Table 6-1
    Open official framework source
  • Adopting Disclosure

    PCAF Standards

    feaefd3361511b259c3b
    Publisher
    Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials
    Edition
    Second Edition, December 2025
    Requirement
    Not Specified
    Relationship
    Reuses Canonical Metric
    Mapping outcome
    Reused
    Source locator
    page 101, paragraph 3
    Open official framework source
  • Adopting Disclosure

    PCAF Standards

    27d18e84-4c57-4392-9f1c-f7839906a704
    Publisher
    Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials
    Edition
    Third Edition, December 2025
    Requirement
    Not Specified
    Relationship
    Reuses Canonical Metric
    Mapping outcome
    Reused
    Source locator
    Page 166, Emission Intensity bullets and Box 6.1-4 table, “Physical emission intensity” row
    Open official framework source
  • Adopting Disclosure

    PCAF Standards

    c02bb466-aa11-419a-b789-f9f285e3b3c9
    Publisher
    Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials
    Edition
    Third Edition, December 2025
    Requirement
    Not Specified
    Relationship
    Reuses Canonical Metric
    Mapping outcome
    Reused
    Source locator
    PDF page 16, Table 2-1, Physical emission intensity row
    Open official framework source
  • Measurement Authority

    PCAF Standards

    9b9a0c17-e4a8-4449-b852-5f40233e8472
    Publisher
    Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials
    Edition
    First Version, December 2023
    Requirement
    Not Specified
    Relationship
    Reuses Canonical Metric
    Mapping outcome
    Reused
    Source locator
    PDF page 42, EMISSION INTENSITY
    Open official framework source

Value structure

Dimensions and units

Unit
Metric tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent per named physical-output unit (tCO₂e / [physical-output unit])
Reporting basis
Reporting period

Unit meaning: A contextual physical-intensity unit whose output kind, unit, scale, measurement basis and allocation policy must be named alongside the emissions numerator.

Published dimensions

  • GHG intensity per physical output
  • Physical-output kind
  • Physical-output unit
  • Allocation policy

Calculation method

Formula information

Status
Specified
Formula type
Intensity

Formula

I = Q ÷ A

Divide the qualifying impact quantity by the declared activity, output, or financial denominator using compatible boundaries and periods.

Variables

SymbolVariableDefinitionUnit
Qqualifying impact quantityImpact quantity within the qualifying population and boundary defined for GHG intensity per physical output.Dimensionless
Aactivity denominatorDeclared activity or financial denominator for the qualifying population and boundary defined for GHG intensity per physical output.Dimensionless

Verified sources

Evidence and status sources

Sustopedia checked each record-specific claim directly against primary publisher material. Labels distinguish current measurement authority from future compatibility and corroborative, legal, edition, or method status context. Corroborative evidence can support a stated limitation but cannot establish the core measurement by itself.

Measurement evidence

  • Measurement evidenceChecked 15 August 2026

    GRI 305: Emissions 2016

    Publisher
    Global Reporting Initiative
    Edition
    GRI 305: Emissions 2016, effective 1 July 2018
    Locator
    Disclosure 305-4 and related compilation requirements

    Supports: Official publisher reference linked specifically to the Sustopedia metric “GHG intensity per physical output”; interpret it with the source-edition basis and limitations shown on this page.

    Open official source

Use with context

Interpretation boundaries

Method disclosures required

Source-edition basis: GRI 305: Emissions 2016, effective 1 July 2018.

  • Emissions numerator, included scopes and gases
  • Physical-output kind, unit, scale and measurement basis
  • Alignment of activity boundary and reporting period
  • Allocation policy for shared facilities, processes or products
  • Zero and missing denominator treatment

Record-specific limitations

  • Values using different physical-output kinds or units are not directly comparable.
  • Product mix, capacity utilization and allocation policy can change the ratio without a proportional emissions change.
  • The included emissions scopes, gases and global-warming-potential edition must be stated.
  • Zero or unavailable physical output requires an explicit not-calculable treatment.

Interpret this metric with the stated reporting boundary, period convention, value shape, and unit. Results prepared with different boundaries or conventions may not be directly comparable.

Measurement evidence supports the core record-specific claims described above. Corroborative evidence can support limitations, while compatibility and status sources provide their separately labelled context. None of these cards by itself determines an organisation's legal applicability, filing readiness, assurance status, or compliance conclusion.