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Data Quality & Sources

Our Approach

We believe carbon tracking should be both accessible AND credible. That's why we combine official data sources to give you accurate, citable emission factors for Nordic freelancers and small businesses — every factor links back to its source.

Primary Data Sources

Electricity (Nordic Grids)

  • IEA / EEA: grid intensity data for Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and Finland
  • Fingrid Open Data: real-time CO₂ intensity of electricity consumed in Finland

Grid data reflects the actual energy mix in each country, including the high share of renewables in Nordic grids.

Transportation (Updated Annually)

  • UK DEFRA Government Conversion Factors (2025)

DEFRA factors are used by thousands of UK businesses and are recognized internationally. Updated annually.

Heating & Fuels (Updated Annually)

  • UK DEFRA fuel conversion factors
  • Finnish Energy (Energiateollisuus) district heating statistics

National statistics reflect how district heat is actually produced, and DEFRA fuel factors are recognized internationally.

Materials, Purchases & Supply Chain

  • EXIOBASE 3.8.2 environmentally extended input–output database

EXIOBASE uses environmentally extended input–output analysis to capture full supply-chain emissions per euro spent, not just direct emissions.

Standards Compliance

Our calculations follow:

  • GHG Protocol Corporate Accounting and Reporting Standard
  • ISO 14064-1 for organizational carbon inventories
  • ISO 14067 for product carbon footprints

Data Updates

  • Electricity factors: updated as IEA, EEA, and Fingrid publish new data
  • Transport factors: Annually (July, with DEFRA updates)
  • Other factors: Annually or as sources update
  • Major methodology changes: Communicated to all users

Quality Assurance

  • Multi-source verification where possible
  • Every factor is stored with its source, methodology, and validity period
  • Aligned with international reporting standards
  • Transparent methodology documentation

Limitations & Uncertainty

All emission factors have inherent uncertainty:

  • Regional variations may exist within countries
  • Actual emissions depend on specific circumstances
  • Spend-based estimates (per euro spent) carry more uncertainty than activity-based entries
  • We err on the side of slightly overestimating

Questions?

For detailed methodology questions, contact: methodology@susti.fi