How much of the paraffin wax I buy does the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) count as emitted, and does that fit a candle maker?
The IPCC 2006 Tier 1 method assumes 20 percent of paraffin wax is used in a way that emits carbon dioxide (CO2), mainly by burning candles. That is about 589.6 kilograms of CO2 per tonne of wax. It is a mixed-use default; on our reading, a candle maker whose wax is all burnt would understate by copying it.
What the IPCC method says
The 2006 Guidelines, Volume 3 Chapter 5, treat paraffin wax as a non-energy product. Equation 5.4 is: CO2 emissions = wax consumption x carbon content x oxidised during use (ODU) factor x 44 / 12, where 44 / 12 is the mass ratio of CO2 to carbon. The equation takes wax consumption in terajoules (TJ), not tonnes, so convert tonnes to energy first, as the per tonne steps below do.
The Tier 1 defaults are a carbon content of 20.0 kilograms of carbon per gigajoule (GJ) on a lower heating value basis and an ODU factor of 0.2. The Guidelines word it as: "It can be assumed that 20 percent of paraffin waxes are used in a manner leading to emissions, mainly through the burning of candles." Volume 2 Table 1.2 gives a net calorific value of 40.2 GJ per tonne for paraffin waxes.
Per tonne of wax
- 40.2 GJ x 20.0 kilograms of carbon per GJ = 804 kilograms of carbon in a tonne of wax.
- Tier 1 emitted share: 804 x 0.2 = 160.8 kilograms of carbon, and 160.8 x 44 / 12 = 589.6 kilograms of CO2.
- Full burn of the same tonne: 804 x 44 / 12 = 2,948 kilograms of CO2. The Guidelines' combustion factor for paraffin waxes is 73,300 kilograms of CO2 per terajoule, which gives 2,946.7 kilograms with the rounded factor. 20 percent of 2,948 is the 589.6 above.
Why a candle maker should not copy the 0.2
This is our reading, not the Guidelines' words. Section 5.3.2 lists candles, corrugated boxes, paper coating, board sizing, food production, wax polishes and surfactants as uses of wax in general; it does not give the mix behind the 0.2. The Guidelines also say Tier 2 uses a country-specific ODU factor based on knowledge of how wax is used. A candle maker's wax is the burning end of that mix, so applying 0.2 to wax that all goes into candles would understate the use phase.
The Guidelines also say the default carbon content carries an uncertainty of about plus or minus 5 percent and that the ODU factor of 0.2 "exhibits an uncertainty of about 100 percent".
How this fits the candle footprint page
Our candle page works the burning step as 0.85 x 44 / 12 = about 3.1 kilograms of CO2 per kilogram of candle, from the wax being roughly 85 percent carbon. The IPCC defaults imply 804 kilograms of carbon per tonne, which is 80.4 percent, so full burn is 2.95 kilograms per kilogram. The 0.85 figure gives a result about 6 percent higher (3.117 against 2.948). Both are estimates of full burning; neither is a measured value. Pick one, name it, and keep it for every year.
The IPCC counts by sector and does not use Scopes. Where emissions from wax products are reported by the IPCC (industrial processes), and where incineration or heat recovery moves them (waste or energy), is the Guidelines' allocation, not a Scope rule.
A candle maker buying 10 tonnes of wax in a year
- IPCC Tier 1 default across a mixed national use: 10 x 589.6 = 5,896 kilograms of CO2
- All of it burnt, with the IPCC carbon content: 10 x 2,948 = 29,480 kilograms of CO2
- All of it burnt, with the 85 percent carbon share on our candle page: 10 x 3,117 = 31,167 kilograms of CO2
- Difference between the two full-burn figures: 31,167 minus 29,480 = 1,687 kilograms
The 10 tonnes is an example. If the candles are sold, the burning happens at your customers, and whether you report it at all depends on your reporting boundary.
What Senseible does here
Senseible reads fuel invoices and electricity bills into dated records, so the liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and power of your melting and moulding room show up once uploaded. It does not work out what happens to the candles after sale; keep the wax tonnes in your own sheet.
Sources: IPCC 2006 Guidelines, Volume 3 Chapter 5 (Equation 5.4, Section 5.3.2), IPCC 2006 Guidelines, Volume 2 Chapter 1 (Tables 1.2, 1.3, 1.4)
Last reviewed 2026-11-05. Defaults are from the 2006 Guidelines. Check whether your buyer or verifier asks for a different edition before using them.