How is Scope 3 waste emissions calculated and reported?

When businesses start tracking carbon emissions, they often focus first on energy and fuel — Scope 1 and Scope 2. But for most organisations, Scope 3 emissions make up the majority of their total footprint, and waste is one of the easiest and most visible categories to measure and reduce.

picture of sustainability officer reviewing emissions data and recycling reports on a laptop, on How Is Scope 3 Waste Emissions Calculated and Reported?

What Are Scope 3 Waste Emissions?

Scope 3 emissions are the indirect greenhouse gases (GHG) generated by activities outside your direct control — including those from waste generated in your operations but managed by third parties. These emissions occur during collection, transport, treatment, and disposal of waste and recycling materials.

Examples include:

Emissions from landfill decomposition of waste materials
Transport-related emissions from waste collection vehicles
Processing emissions from recycling, composting, or recovery facilities

Why Reporting Scope 3 Waste Emissions Matters

For businesses with net zero or ESG targets, Scope 3 reporting is essential for transparency and credibility. It also supports regulatory readiness as sustainability reporting becomes mandatory under frameworks such as ASRS, TCFD, and GRI.

Accurate Scope 3 waste data helps your business to:

Track progress toward emissions reduction goals
Identify opportunities to divert waste from landfill
Benchmark environmental performance across sites
Support customer and stakeholder ESG disclosures

How Scope 3 Waste Emissions Are Calculated

Scope 3 waste emissions are calculated by multiplying the weight (in tonnes) of each waste stream by an official emission factor. These emission factors are published by the Australian Government’s Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (DCCEEW) in the National Greenhouse Accounts (NGA) Factors.

The basic formula is:

Emissions (tCO₂e) = Quantity of waste (tonnes) × Emission Factor (tCO₂e per tonne)

Each waste type has a unique emission factor depending on its disposal method. For example:

General waste to landfill — higher emission factor (methane from decomposition)
Recycled cardboard — low emission factor (avoids virgin material production)
Food and organics processed via composting — lower than landfill due to methane capture

Example: Calculating Scope 3 Waste Emissions

Let’s say your business generated 50 tonnes of general waste and 20 tonnes of cardboard recycling in a year:

General waste: 50 t × 1.9 tCO₂e/t = 95 tCO₂e
Cardboard recycling: 20 t × 0.05 tCO₂e/t = 1 tCO₂e

Total Scope 3 waste emissions: 96 tCO₂e

By increasing recycling or introducing organics separation, that total can drop by 20–40% in the first year.

Data You’ll Need for Accurate Reporting

To calculate Scope 3 waste emissions with confidence, you’ll need:

Waste quantities (tonnes) by stream (general, cardboard, organics, plastics, etc.)
Destination types (landfill, recycling, recovery, composting)
Service provider records — weighbridge dockets, monthly reports, or waste transfer notes
Emission factors from the most recent NGA Factors publication

Nationwide Waste Solutions provides consolidated monthly data and diversion reports that can feed directly into your emissions reporting and ESG platforms.

Reporting Scope 3 Waste Emissions

Reporting can be done in several formats depending on your business size and reporting framework:

Internal ESG reports — monthly or quarterly dashboards tracking diversion and tCO₂e
External disclosures — under frameworks such as GRI 305-3 or TCFD
Regulatory readiness — alignment with Australian Sustainability Reporting Standards (ASRS)

Good reporting goes beyond numbers — it includes context, trend analysis, and evidence of continuous improvement.

Reducing Your Scope 3 Waste Emissions

Once you know your baseline, the next step is reduction. Strategies include:

Increasing recycling streams (cardboard, soft plastics, food waste)
Educating staff to reduce contamination
Right-sizing bins and service frequencies
Working with suppliers on packaging reduction and product stewardship

Nationwide helps businesses implement these measures through waste assessments, training, and KPI-driven reporting.

How Nationwide Waste Solutions Supports Scope 3 Reporting

As Australia’s leading waste management brokerage, Nationwide Waste Solutions simplifies Scope 3 reporting by consolidating data from multiple providers into one transparent, auditable format. We help you:

Access accurate, site-level waste data across all streams
Calculate tCO₂e using the latest NGA emission factors
Track diversion improvements and emissions reductions over time
Generate monthly and quarterly ESG-ready reports

Our account management team works closely with sustainability leaders to make Scope 3 reporting simple, defensible, and value-driven.

Ready to Measure and Reduce Your Scope 3 Waste Emissions?

Start by benchmarking your current waste data. Nationwide Waste Solutions can identify your baseline, calculate your emissions, and deliver a plan to reduce them — without disrupting operations.

Talk to our team today about accurate Scope 3 waste reporting and landfill diversion strategies for your business.