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Focus on climate protection: New system for transparent emissions tracking!
The University of Paderborn and partners are developing a carbon tracking system to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in industry.
Focus on climate protection: New system for transparent emissions tracking!
The reduction of greenhouse gases represents a central challenge for industry. High costs and the complex interactions between production, energy and information technology make it difficult to identify suitable measures. A promising project in this context is “Climate bOWL”, which was initiated by partners from science and business and has a total volume of around 3.16 million euros. It runs for three years and was completed at the end of March. The aim of the project was to develop a product-specific carbon footprint tracking system for the targeted reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, reports University of Paderborn.
The support system developed enables automated data processing, which contributes to increasing transparency regarding emissions. The identification of emission sources along the entire value chain in industrial production is crucial. Prof. Dr.-Ing. Henning Meschede, the scientific leader of the project, emphasizes that the holistic approach is necessary for a precise assessment of emissions. The result is a system that allocates greenhouse gas emissions to consumers based on energy and material flow data. The progress lies primarily in the transparent presentation of information for each product and all actors involved.
Role of industry and climate goals
Industry plays a central role in the climate problem, both directly and indirectly. Since the beginning of industrialization, humanity has released large amounts of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, leading to rising temperatures and extreme weather events. From 1995 to 2023, greenhouse gas emissions from industry fell by 35%, while in the same period gross value added increased by almost 32%, which can be attributed to increased efficiency in production. The Federal Environment Agency documents that the federal government has set ambitious goals for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the Climate Protection Act: by 2040, a reduction of 88% below the 1990 level should be achieved, with the goal of greenhouse gas neutrality by 2045.
A key result of the “Climate bOWL” initiative is that through carbon tracking, companies can not only better understand their ecological impact, but also identify new business opportunities. This tracking of carbon emissions makes it possible to set priorities for reduction measures and achieve global climate goals. On average, the supply chain accounts for 11.4 times more emissions than operational emissions. This highlights the importance of comprehensive emissions management to increase efficiency and improve profitability through sustainable practices such as Carbon chain explained.
In summary, the finding is that climate neutrality requires a real avoidance of greenhouse gas emissions and that this requires innovative systems like that of “Climate bOWL” to support companies in achieving their climate goals through targeted efficiency measures. As demands for transparent carbon disclosure increase, companies must adapt to not only meet regulatory requirements, but also to withstand pressure from investors and civil society.