# What must a public GHG Protocol report contain, and what is optional?

Canonical: https://senseible.earth/answers/ghg-protocol-public-report-required-and-optional-contents

The GHG Protocol Corporate Standard requires a public report to give the boundaries and reporting period, total Scope 1 and 2 independent of any trades, each scope, all six gases, the base year, biogenic CO2 separately, the methods and any exclusions. Scope 3, ratios, offsets and assurance details are optional.

## Required: the company and the boundary

- The organisational boundary chosen, including the consolidation approach.
- The operational boundary chosen, and, if Scope 3 is included, a list of the activities covered.
- The reporting period.

## Required: the emissions

- Total Scope 1 and 2 emissions, independent of any trades such as sales, purchases, transfers or banking of allowances.
- Emissions data separately for each scope.
- Data for all six gases separately (carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons (PFCs) and sulphur hexafluoride (SF6)), in metric tonnes and in tonnes of CO2 equivalent.
- The base year, and an emissions profile over time consistent with the recalculation policy, with context for any big change that triggered a recalculation.
- Direct CO2 from biologically sequestered carbon, such as burning biomass or biofuels, reported separately from the scopes.
- The methods used, with a reference or link to any calculation tools.
- Any specific exclusions of sources, facilities or operations.

## Optional

- Scope 3 emissions from activities with reliable data, and a split by facility, country, source or activity type.
- Ratio indicators such as emissions per tonne produced, a comparison with benchmarks and a summary of reduction programmes.
- Emissions from gases outside the Kyoto Protocol, reported apart from the scopes.
- Offsets bought or sold, shown separately from the inventory.
- An outline of any external assurance and a copy of its statement.

## Confidential figures and short versions

If data for a specific gas or facility, or a ratio, would harm business confidentiality, it need not be public, but it can be made available to those auditing the data if confidentiality is secured. A short summary need not carry everything, but it must link to a public full report where all the information is available.

## Example: the headline lines of a small plant's report (example figures)

- Period: 1 April 2025 to 31 March 2026. Approach: operational control.
- Scope 1: 842 tonnes (t) carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e). Scope 2: 1,310 t CO2e. Scope 1 and 2 total: 842 + 1,310 = 2,152 t CO2e
- Biogenic CO2 from the wood-fired dryer: 96 t, shown on its own line and not added to the total
- Offsets bought: 100 t. They do not reduce the 2,152 t; they are shown separately.

Example figures to show the layout. Use your own records.

## What Senseible does here

Senseible turns invoices, bills and slips into Scope 1, Scope 2 and supplier Scope 3 lines, each with its factor and source, and drafts reports from your uploaded records. The drafts are self-declared, not third-party assured.

- [Can a GHG report subtract offsets](https://senseible.earth/answers/can-a-ghg-report-subtract-carbon-offsets)
- [Biogenic CO2 in a GHG report](https://senseible.earth/answers/iso-14064-1-biogenic-co2-reporting)
- [How to choose a base year](https://senseible.earth/answers/how-to-choose-base-year-carbon-inventory)
- [BRSR reporting](https://senseible.earth/brsr-reporting)

Sources: [GHG Protocol Corporate Accounting and Reporting Standard, revised edition, Chapter 9](https://ghgprotocol.org/sites/default/files/standards/ghg-protocol-revised.pdf)

Last reviewed 2026-11-04. Based on the revised edition of the Corporate Standard. Re-check when the GHG Protocol publishes its revised standard.