Greenhouse gas emissions accounting and reporting guidelines

The NSW Government is committed to achieving net zero emissions by 2050 and making NSW more resilient to a changing climate. 

The Greenhouse gas emissions accounting and reporting guidelines (the Guide) sets out a methodology for calculating and reporting greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The Guide supports NSW Government entities in meeting the requirements of the Net Zero Government Operations Policy (NZGO) and the TPG24-33 Reporting framework for first year climate-related financial disclosures (CRFD).

Download the Guide (PDF, 1.87 MB)

Supporting resources

The following resources support the consistent application of the Guide. Entities may use these resources or adopt alternative approaches that meet the requirements of the Guide: 

• Greenhouse gas reporting template (DOCX, 781 KB)
• Basis of Preparation: Greenhouse Gas Emissions Accounting and Reporting (DOCX, 3.17 MB)

What is included in the update?

This updated edition replaces the original Guide published in 2025. Importantly, it does not introduce any new reporting requirements. 
Instead, the updates provide additional guidance and practical examples to help entities calculate and report emissions more efficiently and consistently.

The updated Guide includes:

• expanded guidance, examples and resources on:
  • organisational and reporting boundary 
  • operational control
  • scope 1 fugitive emissions (refrigerants, medical gases and aircraft fuel)
  • estimating spatial and temporal missing data for emissions reporting
  • base year emissions and machinery of government changes.
• updated electricity emission factors 
• updated references to the latest available standards
• a new companion document, Basis of Preparation: Greenhouse Gas Emissions Accounting and Reporting. This document provides entities with a structured approach to documenting processes and promotes consistency and transparency across the sector. It is an optional supporting resource, and its use is entirely voluntary. 

Accounting and reporting principles

The accounting and reporting principles underpinning the Guide are based on the GHG Protocol Corporate Accounting and Reporting Standard. These principles are:

• relevance
• completeness
• consistency  
• transparency
• accuracy. 

Reporting emissions across government

NSW Government entities vary in size, structure, function, and operations. They also differ in their experience measuring carbon emissions and integrating this information into decision-making and daily operations.

The Guide provides a step-by-step methodology for measuring and reporting scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions.  

The methodology in the Guide recognises the complex structures within government by linking direct and indirect emissions from purchased electricity to the entities that control the operations. It supports consistent and standardised emissions reporting across NSW Government entities.

The methodology recognises the complexity of government structures by linking direct and indirect emissions to the entities that control the operations.

The Guide also includes methods for estimating emissions where data gaps exist and provides an approach for calculating market-based emissions.