Environment and Climate Change Canada launches new Greenhouse Gas Calculator for Organic Waste Management

By | 2022-10-18

Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) is pleased to announce the launch of the online Greenhouse Gas Calculator for Organic Waste Management. The Calculator is a great resource for those working to measure greenhouse gas (GHG) impacts and mitigate emissions, including local governments, project developers, waste generators, and others. 

The Calculator can assist in estimating the impact of different organic waste management approaches, including composting, anaerobic digestion, incineration, and landfilling, on GHG emissions. It also takes into consideration various streams of organic waste including mixed municipal solid waste, source-separated organic waste, and single-stream waste (e.g. yard waste).

Make the most of the Calculator by comparing up to four scenarios (one baseline and three alternative) for managing the same quantity and composition of organic waste. The Calculator will generate GHG emissions results for the various scenarios and calculate the impact on emissions, assisting users in their policy and program discussions. Customization is available for elements such as location (province, territory, or national), landfill gas recovery practices, type of energy generated (e.g. renewable natural gas) and transportation distance, enabling users to compensate for a variety of external factors.

For example, the Calculator can estimate the GHG emission reductions that could occur when a municipality begins to compost organic waste instead of sending it to a landfill.

How to Access the Calculator

The GHG Calculator for Organic Waste Management is available for download as a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet from https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/managing-reducing-waste/municipal-solid/waste-greenhouse-gases-canada-actions/calculator.html. The accompanying User Guide, also available for download, provides details on how to use the Calculator and view the results. A video tutorial will also be published on the website in the coming weeks.

We hope you find the Calculator helpful as we work together towards mitigating GHG emission impacts to meet the Government of Canada’s Global Methane Pledge, which aims to reduce global methane emissions by 30 percent below 2020 levels by 2030.

Contact us

Still have questions? Please send an email to ec.ges-dechets-ghg-waste.ec@ec.gc.ca with the subject line “GHG Calculator for Organic Waste Management” and one of our team members will follow-up.