GLEC Framework

The framework provides a unified calculation approach across all transport modes—air, road, rail, sea, and inland waterways—as well as logistics hubs like warehouses and transshipment terminals. This eliminates the inconsistency of using disparate methodologies for different legs of a single shipment, enabling a true end-to-end carbon footprint from raw material extraction to final delivery. It harmonizes with existing mode-specific standards (e.g., IATA for air, Clean Cargo for sea) under one roof.

Unlike Tank-to-Wheel (TTW) methods that only measure tailpipe emissions, the GLEC Framework mandates a Well-to-Wheel scope. This accounts for the full lifecycle of the energy source:

• Well-to-Tank (WTT): Emissions from fuel extraction, production, refining, and distribution.
• Tank-to-Wheel (TTW): Emissions from fuel combustion in the vehicle. This prevents carbon leakage by capturing upstream energy impacts, making it essential for accurately comparing fossil fuels with alternative energies like electricity or hydrogen.

The framework provides a tiered system of default emission intensity factors (gCO2e/tonne-km) for use when primary data is unavailable. These factors are segmented by:

• Transport mode and vehicle/vessel type
• Fuel type and energy source
• Load factor and empty running percentage
• Geographic region This allows companies to move from basic spend-based estimates to more accurate activity-based calculations as their data maturity improves, following the GLEC Maturity Curve.

The GLEC Framework is the logistics sector's implementation guide for leading global accounting protocols. It is fully aligned with:

• Greenhouse Gas Protocol: The foundational corporate accounting standard.
• ISO 14083: The new international standard that formally superseded EN 16258, making GLEC the de facto industry guide for ISO compliance.
• CDP Reporting: It structures data to meet the Carbon Disclosure Project's logistics-specific reporting requirements.
• Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi): It provides the granular data needed to set and track science-based emission reduction targets for transport.

A critical feature is its methodology for allocating emissions to individual shipments on shared services like Less-than-Truckload (LTL) or container shipping. The framework defines allocation factors based on weight, volume, or a combination, ensuring that a single pallet on a shared truck is assigned a fair and defensible share of the total journey's emissions. This is essential for accurate product-level carbon footprinting and customer reporting.

The framework is specifically designed to address the most challenging parts of a corporate carbon footprint: Scope 3 emissions. It provides the methodology for:

• Category 4 (Upstream Transportation & Distribution): Emissions from inbound logistics and supplier transport.
• Category 9 (Downstream Transportation & Distribution): Emissions from outbound logistics to customers. This makes it the primary tool for companies seeking to manage the indirect emissions that often constitute the majority of their total carbon impact.