Data Quality (in Carbon Accounting)
Data quality in carbon accounting refers to the accuracy, completeness, consistency, and transparency of the emissions data and calculation inputs used to produce a GHG inventory. Higher data quality — using primary, measured data instead of estimates — produces more accurate and credible emission figures.
Data quality is a persistent challenge in carbon accounting, particularly for Scope 3 where organizations depend on external data sources. The GHG Protocol, PCAF, and other frameworks define data quality hierarchies that encourage progressive improvement.
A typical data quality hierarchy, from highest to lowest quality: supplier-specific primary data (measured and verified), product-specific data (based on known product characteristics), average data (industry or sector averages), spend-based estimates (economic input-output models), and extrapolated data (scaling from a sample to the full population).
Tracking data quality over time is as important as tracking emissions. An organization that improves its Scope 3 data quality from 80% spend-based to 50% activity-based has meaningfully improved the credibility of its inventory, even if the headline number changes.
PCAF's data quality scoring system (1–5 scale) has become a model beyond financial services. Companies increasingly report data quality scores alongside emission figures to provide stakeholders with transparency about the reliability of reported numbers.
Gravity tracks data quality at the individual record level, showing which emissions are based on primary data, which use averages, and which rely on estimates. This granular visibility helps organizations prioritize data improvement efforts where they will have the most impact.
Frequently asked questions
What is data quality in carbon accounting? +
Data quality refers to the accuracy, completeness, and reliability of emissions data and calculation inputs. Higher-quality data uses primary measurements from suppliers rather than spend-based estimates, producing more accurate and credible GHG inventories.
How do you improve carbon data quality? +
Improve data quality by replacing spend-based estimates with activity-based data, engaging suppliers for primary emissions data, verifying data against source documents, and systematically tracking data quality scores over time to measure progress.
Related terms
Carbon Accounting
Carbon accounting is the systematic process of measuring, recording, and reporting the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions produced by an organization, product, or activity. It follows standardized methodologies — most commonly the GHG Protocol — to quantify emissions across Scope 1 (direct), Scope 2 (purchased energy), and Scope 3 (value chain) categories, producing an auditable inventory that underpins disclosure, reduction planning, and regulatory compliance.
Scope 3 Emissions
Scope 3 emissions are all indirect greenhouse gas emissions that occur in an organization's value chain — both upstream (suppliers, purchased goods, business travel, employee commuting) and downstream (product use, end-of-life treatment, investments). Scope 3 typically represents 70–90% of a company's total carbon footprint.
PCAF (Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials)
PCAF is a global partnership of financial institutions that develops and maintains the standard methodology for measuring and disclosing greenhouse gas emissions associated with financial portfolios — known as financed emissions. The PCAF Standard covers six asset classes and provides attribution formulas for allocating emissions to lenders and investors.
Emission Factor
An emission factor is a coefficient that converts an activity measurement — such as litres of fuel burned, kilowatt-hours of electricity consumed, or dollars spent on a commodity — into a quantity of greenhouse gas emissions, typically expressed in kilograms or tonnes of CO₂ equivalent (tCO₂e).
Spend-Based Method
The spend-based method estimates greenhouse gas emissions by multiplying procurement expenditure (in dollars or other currency) by economic emission factors that represent the average emissions intensity per unit of spend in a given sector. It is the most accessible Scope 3 estimation approach but also the least precise.