Material Use

These are emissions factors (usually expressed as kg CO₂e per tonne) that help estimate the carbon impact of materials a company procures (i.e. buys and uses), based on how those materials were produced.

If a material is made from primary sources (i.e. virgin/raw materials), the conversion factor accounts for:

  • Extraction (mining, logging, etc.)
  • Primary processing (turning raw resources into usable materials)
  • Manufacturing (making the final product)
  • Transportation to the buyer
  • It stops at the point of sale – it does not cover what happens when the material is used or discarded.

If a material is made from secondary sources (i.e. recycled materials), the conversion factor includes:

  • Sorting (separating recyclable materials from waste)
  • Processing (cleaning and preparing them for reuse)
  • Manufacturing and transportation
  • Again, it ends at the point of sale.

These factors help organisations:

  • Quantify efficiencies from using fewer materials (e.g., less packaging or thinner cans).
  • Show the environmental benefit of choosing recycled materials over primary ones (because recycled materials generally have lower emissions).
  • Make procurement decisions that align with sustainability goals.

This value links to the Master Value EN1 GHG Emissions value.

EN1.3.7

Material Use

Environment
  • Measuring GHG Emissions

Key Value

252 per tCO2e or 25.2p per kgCO2e

The monetised value of CO2 emissions for material use

  • Construction: Average construction: £19 per tonne
  • Organic: Compost derived from food and garden waste: £29 per tonne
  • Metal: mixed cans: £1287 per tonne
  • Plastic: average plastics: £797 per tonne
  • Paper and board: mixed: £323 per tonne

This value represents a cost or disbenefit through the creation of the GHGs emitted.

Conversion factors should be used to report Scope 3 emissions for material use. For more information about principles for GHG accounting and reporting and three “scopes” of emissions, please visit MeasureUp EN1 GHG Emissions value.

According to the 2021 carbon values from DESNZ/BEIS, Carbon values in £2020 prices per tonne of CO2: central series for 2023 is £252 per tCO2e or 25.2p per kgCO2e. For more information, please visit MeasureUp GHG Emissions value.

UK government’s Greenhouse Gas Conversion Factors – 2024 reports the kgCO2e for material use for different activities and materials. Access the data.

Primary material production*
Activity Material Unit kg CO2e Monetised Value
Construcion Average construction tonnes 74.88652 £19
Organic Compost derived from food and garden waste tonnes 114.83347 £29
Metal Metal: mixed cans tonnes 5105.63851 £1287
Plastic Plastics: average plastics tonnes 3164.78049 £797
Paper Paper and board: mixed tonnes 1282.74402 £323

*The materials are made from virgin stock.

Please visit the government conversion factors for greenhouse gas reporting website for further guidance.

This value represents a cost or disbenefit through the creation of the GHGs emitted.  The value should therefore not be presented as a positive value or added to an overall social value figure.

Local Needs Analysis Data Source

Before using this MeasureUp value, we encourage you to assess the local need in relation to the activity or outcome.

Here is the most useful initial data source for assessing local need in relation to this value.

To do a local needs analysis for material use, use the Local Authority Consumption Account tool which allows you to view and compare Carbon Footprint for localities across the UK.

You can generate graphs that shows the different type of material emissions for different UK regions at different points in time. You can view emissions for a single region or compare multiple regions, broken down by different categories and subcategories, with the option to switch between per capita and total emissions figures. When comparing multiple regions, per capita tends to be a more useful measure.

Bronze

Effort

Accuracy

Monetised value:

At the Bronze level, you should calculate the approximate CO2 emissions from material use.  Represent the cost or disbenefit of the emissions from consumption of procured materials based on their origin.

Here’s an example

A company is assessing the carbon and financial impact of its annual material procurement across different business units.

At its construction division, the company procures 500 tonnes of general construction material annually. It selects the ‘Average construction’ material type, which has an emissions factor of 74.89 kg CO₂e per tonne and a monetised carbon value of £19 per tonne.

  • Annual emissions: 500 × 74.89 = 37,443 kg CO₂e
  • Monetised carbon value: 500 × £19 = £9,500

At a separate site focused on consumer goods packaging, this company procures 100 tonnes of packaging made from mixed metal cans. This material has a much higher emissions factor of 5105.64 kg CO₂e per tonne, with a monetised carbon value of £1287 per tonne.

  • Annual emissions: 100 × 5105.64 = 510,564 kg CO₂e
  • Monetised carbon value: 100 × £1287 = £128,700

Total monetised value from material use for this company is £128,700+£9,500 = £138,200

Silver

Effort

Accuracy

Monetised value:

At the Silver level, you should calculate the emissions by activity, by type of material based on their origin, as each produces different levels of carbon emissions. Represent the cost or disbenefit of the emissions from travel by land.

UK government’s Greenhouse Gas Conversion Factors – 2024 reports the kgCO2e by activity, by type of material based on their origin. Access the data.

Activity List of Materials
Construction Aggregates; Average construction; Asbestos; Asphalt; Bricks; Concrete; Insulation; Metals; Soils; Mineral oil; Plasterboard; Tyres; Wood
Other Books; Glass; Clothing; Food and drink
Organic Compost derived from food and garden waste
Electrical items Electrical items – fridges and freezers; Electrical items – large; Electrical items – IT; Electrical items – small; Batteries – Alkaline; Batteries – Li ion; Batteries – NiMh
Metal Metal: aluminium cans and foil (excl. forming); Metal: mixed cans; Metal: scrap metal; Metal: steel cans
Plastic Plastics: average plastics; Plastics: average plastic film; Plastics: average plastic rigid; Plastics: HDPE (incl. forming); Plastics: LDPE and LLDPE (incl. forming); Plastics: PET (incl. forming); Plastics: PP (incl. forming); Plastics: PS (incl. forming); Plastics: PVC (incl. forming)
Paper Paper and board: board; Paper and board: mixed; Paper and board: paper

Here’s an example

A construction company is assessing the environmental impact of its annual material procurement across different business units.

Primary material production
Activity Material Tonnes kg CO2e per tonnes Monetised Value
Construction Bricks 500 241.7 (500* 241.7)*£0.252= £30,454
Construction Concrete 1000 118.7 (1000*118.7)*£0.252=£29,912
Construction Insulation 1000 1861.7 (1000*1861.7)*£0.252=£469,148
Construction Metals 5000 3815.8 (5000*3815.8)*£0.252=£4,807,908
Total Monetised Value £5,337,422

Gold

Effort

Accuracy

Monetised value:

At the Gold level, you would be expected to

  • Measure more accurately using more specific data for you in-scope activities.
  • Track the emissions over time. Steps in tracking emissions (choosing a base year and recalculating base year emissions) are explained in detail in the GHG Protocol Chapter 5 – Tracking Emissions Over Time

Here’s an example

A construction company is assessing the carbon and financial impact of its annual material procurement across different business units. Lets assume that they use primary material production in 2023 and closed-loop source if avaliable (The materials  are made from recycled content where the previous product was the same as the new product.) in 2024.

Primary material production Closed-loop source
Construction

Material

 tonnes kg CO2e per tonnes kg CO2e per tonnes Monetised Value in 2023 (Primary material production) Monetised Value in 2024 (Closed-loop source)
Bricks 500 241.7 NA (500* 241.7)*£0.252= £30,454 (500* 241.7)*£0.252= £30,454
Concrete 1000 118.7 3.2 (1000*118.7)*£0.252=£29,912 (1000*3.2)*£0.252=£806.4
Insulation 1000 1861.7 1852 (1000*1861.7)*£0.252=£469,148 (1000* 1852)*£0.252=£466,704
Metals 5000 3815.8 1630.8 (5000*3815.8)*£0.252=£4,807,908 (5000* 1630.8

)*£0.252=£2,054,808
Total Monetised Value £5,337,422 £2,552,772

The monetised value of the reduction in greenhouse gas emission from 2023 to 2024 for material usage is £5,337,422 – £2,552,772 = £2,784,650.

Gold+

Effort

Accuracy

Monetised value:

In the Gold+ level of GHG emission values, you can focus on better management and improvement of your reporting on the GHG emissions.

The following steps could be useful: 

  • Set clear targets and a target date 
  • Provide resources to take the actions necessary to meet your target 

Environmental Reporting Guidelines: In the  Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting Guidance (SECR) there are two types of targets outlined:  

  • An absolute reduction target which compares absolute figures in the target year to the base year 
  • An intensity target based in an appropriate other unit or normalising factor (e.g. kgCO2e per km/miles driven) 

For more information please visit Environmental Reporting Guidelines: Including streamlined energy and carbon reporting guidance (SECR). 

The actions under Gold+ for the environmental values in MeasureUp are also in line with the eighth Principle of Social Value ‘Be Responsive’ which represents the imperative for organisations to respond to impact measurement or ‘Social Value accounts’ with action to improve positive impact and decrease negative impact. Users of this Standard will create a structured ‘impact management approach’ that can guide decision making at strategic, tactical, and operational levels to optimise impacts on wellbeing. 

Value Type: Activity What's this?
UN SDG Categories:
  • 11. Sustainable Cities and Communities
  • 13. Climate Action
 What's this?
2020 Social Value Models:
    • MAC 4.1 Additional environmental benefits
    • MAC 4.2 Influence environmental protection and improvement
    • Policy Outcome 4: Effective stewardship of the environment
    • Theme 3: Fighting Climate Change
 What's this?
2025 Social Value Models:
What's this?

Evidence

Measure Up focuses on empowering you to numerically measure the impact you’re having. We recommend that numeric reports are backed up with stories and other types of evidence to help illustrate, in human terms, the impact that’s being made on individuals.

We recommend seeing consent from one or more participants in your intervention to collect and tell their story. This should include a little background on the participant, a summing up of life before the intervention, the human impact of the intervention, and the longer term (if known) impact on the person’s life outside of, and after, the intervention.

Providing photographs, audio recordings, video interviews or even artefacts from the intervention (for example, writing, paintings, music, etc from creative interventions) can add more colour, and convey the emotional impact of interventions more directly.

In some cases it’s appropriate to anonymise or abbreviate the personal information of case study participants. No story should be published or shared without the recorded consent of the individual(s) it concerns. Individuals continue to own the rights to their stories and if they request you stop sharing the story or making it available online you should do so promptly and without need for justification.

More help

We want to empower anyone to perform and improve their impact measurement – without needing a degree in economics.

If you need any more help, or just someone to do the legwork for you we can help signpost you to software, training and consultancy to help you get to grips with the impact you’re having.

Data Sources