Breaking the barriers: Overcoming the challenges of emissions baselining

For any organisation committed to net zero establishing a carbon emissions baseline is the essential first step. It’s the foundation for understanding your environmental impact, setting meaningful targets, planning effective reductions and delivering a sustainability reporting framework.

Despite its importance, many organisations delay this step. In this blog, we explore what a baseline is, why it matters, what to include, and how to overcome common barriers.

What is a sustainability reporting emissions baseline?

A carbon emissions baseline is a 12-month snapshot of your organisation’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions over a defined period. It provides a reference point for tracking progress and is broken down into three categories Scope 1, Scope 2 and Scope 3.

• Scope 1: Includes direct emissions from the organisation’s operations – vehicles, facilities, owned boilers, furnaces, generators, fugitive emissions from air conditioning or refrigeration systems.
• Scope 2: Indirect emissions from the generation of purchased energy—such as electricity, steam, heating, and cooling—consumed by your organisation. This includes electricity bought from the grid to power office buildings or data centres, district heating or cooling purchased for facilities, and steam acquired for use in industrial processes.
• Scope 3: These are all other indirect emissions that occur in the value chain, both upstream and downstream.

Emissions are reported in tonnes of CO₂e (carbon dioxide equivalent), often normalised per employee, per square metre, or per £1 million revenue. This allows for meaningful year-on-year comparisons, even as your organisation grows or changes.

Why is setting a baseline so important?

Without a baseline, a net zero strategy lacks credibility. You cannot measure progress, evaluate decisions, or demonstrate impact without knowing your starting point.

A robust baseline enables you to:

• Identify where emissions are concentrated
• Compare performance over time
• Prioritise high-impact reduction opportunities
• Justify investment and resource allocation
• Report progress internally and externally

It also supports compliance with frameworks like the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), which requires all targets to be measured against a defined base year.

Baselining is not just about compliance—it informs everyday decisions across IT, estates, procurement, and operations.

What must be included in an emissions baseline?

The short answer, everything that’s materially relevant.
Scope 1 and 2 should always be included. They are often easier to measure and may already be required under frameworks like:

• Streamlined Energy & Carbon Reporting (SECR)
• Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme (ESOS)
• Government Greening Commitments (GGCs).

Scope 3 is more complex, but typically the largest share of emissions. They include:

• Purchased goods and services
• Business travel and commuting
• Waste and water
• Capital goods
• Cloud computing and IT services
• Downstream emissions from product use.

Even if your emissions reporting data isn’t perfect, start with what you have. Use spend-based estimates, vendor averages, or standard emissions factors. Transparency is key document your assumptions and improve accuracy over time.

Why do organisations delay this process?

Despite increasing pressure, many organisations remain cautious about setting a baseline—not due to a lack of concern, but because the process can feel complex, unrewarding, or fraught with political sensitivities.
The common barriers are:

• Limited access to reliable data: Emissions reporting data lives in legacy systems, spreadsheets, or contracts no one has reviewed in years. Data is scattered, ownership is unclear, and sustainability isn’t embedded in day-to-day roles.
• High cost: There’s often no dedicated budget for sustainability reporting and the required data collection and analysis. Baselining can feel like a cost centre with no immediate return.

Delaying only increases future costs, limits your options, and undermines credibility.

How to move forward

Consider baselining as an investment in future-proofing your organisation—not just a sustainability reporting requirement. Show how baselining supports broader organisational goals like cost savings, compliance, and innovation.

Tips for emissions reporting:

• Break down data silos by adopting unified platforms that consolidate information across systems—enabling a single, auditable source of truth for Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions and supporting carbon reduction efforts
• Follow established frameworks, use the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Protocol or Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) guidance.
• Tackle one emissions category at a time—Scope 1, then Scope 2, then Scope 3. A phased approach is better than waiting for the “perfect” moment. Progress beats perfection.
• Sustainability is a shared responsibility. Empower teams with the tools and permission to act. Embed responsibility by make emission reporting part of a core team objectives.
• Engage cross-functional teams involving procurement, IT, HR, and estates early in the process.

The first step to net zero

If your organisation has a net zero target, baselining isn’t optional—it’s essential. The only real choice is whether to start now or wait until it’s urgent and disruptive.

Baselining isn’t a side task; it’s the foundation of any credible emissions strategy. Without it:

• Targets lack context
• Actions lack focus
• Strategy lacks accountability

Creating an emissions baseline can seem daunting—but the longer you wait, the harder it becomes. Early action builds internal capability, identifies opportunities, and avoids last-minute panic when reporting deadlines loom.

At TEAM Energy, we believe sustainability reporting should be practical, actionable, and embedded into everyday operations. Baselining is not just a technical task it’s a strategic enabler.

Start with what you can measure. Improve over time. But most importantly start now.