Sustainability in business

Understand your energy use and emissions

What are Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions?

Scope 1 emissions are released directly from activities involved in operating your business. A business has direct control or owns the sources of these emissions.

Examples include:

• emissions produced during the manufacturing of a product.
• emissions from petrol or diesel burnt by the business fleet.
• emissions from refrigerant leaks and spills.

Scope 2 emissions are generated indirectly through purchase and use of electricity, steam, heat, or cooling. For example, indirect emissions are produced by coal being burned in another facility but the electricity generated from that coal is used by your business.

Scope 3 emissions are produced by your suppliers contributing to your product and customers using your product. Often your business does not have any control over these emissions.

Find more information here.

Calculate your energy emissions

Before venturing down the path to zero energy emissions, set your emissions benchmark with the Clean Energy Regulator’s Energy Threshold Calculator. Businesses can track reductions year-on-year by calculating benchmark emissions. This helps provide transparent reporting for supply chains, government and customers.

The Threshold Calculator is designed in accordance with the National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting Regulations 2008 and allows businesses to analyse all scope 1 and 2 energy emissions resulting from operational energy uses.

Access the Energy Threshold Calculator here.

Tourism Emissions Reduction program

This five-stage program guides tourism businesses through developing a carbon emissions report and emissions reduction plan. The program provides digital tools such as an emissions estimator calculator and generates a QR code to display on websites so customers can learn about your emissions reduction journey. This program has been developed by the Australian Tourism Industry Council and ERC Australia.

Find more info here.

Energy calculator for events

GreenPower’s event calculator helps estimate your event’s energy use by calculating the different areas of energy use at your event. The calculator then provides you with estimated carbon savings if GreenPower is to be purchased.

Find more info here.

Improve your energy efficiency

Energy efficiencies in your business

Learn and uncover valuable information, resources, tools and funding to help your business better understand energy and become a more efficient consumer. Find pathways to reduce your energy costs and transition to low-emissions technology.

This website includes information on:

• energy management for business: understand and save on energy.
• sector guides: learn sector specific strategies and opportunities to create energy efficiencies.
• equipment guides: identify equipment efficiencies.
• energy efficiency skills and training.
• industrial energy tools: actions and strategies to create efficiencies in industrial equipment.
• case studies.
• grants and funding.
• business support and advice.
• your rights as a customer.

Read full details here.

This website is delivered by the Department of Climate Change, Energy and Water.

ecoBiz - sustainability support

ecoBiz is a free sustainability program delivered by Business Chamber Queesnland, created in partnership with the Queensland Government to help businesses audit their resource use, manage carbon emissions and save on costs while reducing waste, water and energy consumption.

The ecoBiz program has been supporting Queensland businesses to achieve their sustainability goals for more than 10 years.

Find out more here.

Tips and actions for better energy efficiency

Businesses can start to improve energy efficiency in the workplace by making small changes with little to no cost. Further financial investment in altering and improving equipment can be made for long-term improvement in efficiency and cost.

Learn how to save energy in the following areas here.

• Office equipment.
• Lighting.
• Heating, ventilation and air conditioning.
• Refrigeration.
• Compressed air.
• Process cooling and refrigeration systems.
• Solar power system.

Find the right electricity retailer

Electricity and gas comparison tool

Energy Made Easy is a free, independent government service that allows you to compare energy companies and plans to best suit your needs. The platform has been developed to allow you to better navigate often complex electricity and gas retail markets.

Find out more here.

WATTever provides impartial comparisons on energy and gas prices to help your business choose a contract that can save money and reduce emissions. Find resources that give guidance on purchasing not just energy contracts but also batteries, solar panels, heating and cooling, lighting and more.

Find out more here.

The Green Electricity Guide

The Green Electricity Guide is a Greenpeace developed platform that rates energy retailers based on their support for renewable energy and reliance on fossil fuels. Use the guide to learn which energy retailers align with your business and follow their instructions to learn how to switch.

Find more info here.

Switch to renewable energy

Understand renewable energy options for your business

Business Renewables Centre Australia has developed a diagnostic tool to help your business understand renewable energy options. Answer three questions to learn more information on the renewable energy options suited for your business.

Find out more here.

GreenPower - Accredited retail renewable energy

GreenPower is an independent government accreditation scheme that guarantees renewable electricity is sourced from Australian renewable energy generators, like solar and wind. Buying GreenPower through your electricity retailer ensures that your renewable electricity source is independently accredited and no double-counting or greenwashing of environmental benefit occurs. Speak to your energy retailer to learn if GreenPower is an option and the cost involved.

Find out more here.

How does GreenPower work?

A renewable energy certificate called Large-scale Generation Certificate (LGC) is created for each megawatt hour added to the grid by a large-scale renewable source such as a solar farm or wind farm. Renewable energy consumption can then be claimed when an LGC is purchased and retired (cannot be traded on). Choosing GreenPower through your electricity retailer ensures that your electricity demand from the grid is matched with your nominated amount of  LGCs that are retired on your behalf. GreenPower takes care of the accreditation and auditing behind the scenes so you don’t have to think about it.

What are the benefits of GreenPower?

• Improve your environmental performance rating and be included in environmentally screened funds.
• You can reduce your electricity emissions (Scope 2 emissions) in most carbon sustainability reporting. This includes reporting under Climate Active which contributes to carbon neutral certification.
• Increase employee trust and attractiveness with strong social and environmental values and leadership.
• Disclose your GreenPower purchase as part of National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting .

How is GreenPower different to carbon neutral plans?

It might be confusing to find that some electricity retailers offer ‘carbon neutral’ electricity plans. In a carbon neutral plan, electricity retailers calculate the emissions associated with your electricity use and purchase carbon offsets to cancel out your emissions. These carbon offsets are generated from climate projects across the world such as tree planting, savannah burning, waste management and avoided deforestation.

GreenPower is Australia’s only government-lead voluntary   renewable energy accreditation scheme. Choosing 100% GreenPower in your electricity plan ensures that your electricity retailer purchases the equivalent amount of Australian generated renewable electricity to meet your demand.

How to find GreenPower and make the switch

1. Call your current provider and ask to switch to 100% GreenPower. Please note that retailers can call their GreenPower accredited product something different. Look out for the “GreenPower Accredited” logo. You can also check what your retailer calls their GreenPower product on the GreenPower website here . 
2. Find the greenest electricity option through the Green Electricity Guide .
3. Compare prices from other electricity companies through Energy Made Easy .

Find an electricity retailer that provides GreenPower here.

Webinar - Connect Your Business to GreenPower

Sunshine Coast Council partnered with Noosa Council to deliver the Connect Your Business to GreenPower webinar. GreenPower program directors facilitated the webinar and covered:

• how Greenpower works
• why it’s a smart renewable electricity choice for businesses
• how to easily connect to GreenPower.

Watch the full webinar here.

Energy-efficient equipment rebate

The Queensland Business Energy Saving and Transformation Rebates makes energy-efficient equipment more affordable for small and medium-sized businesses. Rebates of up to $12,500 are available for eligible businesses purchasing eligible equipment. Businesses are required to have spent a minimum of $8,000 (GST exclusive) on the purchase and installation of the equipment.

Find more info here.