Counting carbon emissions with the pennies (From Gazette)

Access Accounting software makes firms greener

1:30pm Tuesday 26th May 2009 in Search

DEDHAM-based Access Accounting has put its software skills to work and created a programme to calculate carbon emissions.

While inputting financial data, companies can use the firm’s Accounting for Carbon Emissions software to see areas where they can cut back and be greener, such as fuel consumption.

Kevin Misselbrook, customer service director, said: “We looked at the financial functions and thought when businesses tracked expenses and financial expenditure, it would be relatively easy to use the same system to compute carbon emissions at the same time.

“This means a company can look at their financial position as well as their carbon footprint, to identify which areas of the business are creating the most carbon emissions. They can then set budgets and make behavioural changes. The message we want to get out is that you can’t manage it if you don’t measure it.”

Mr Misselbrook said Access Accounting had been collecting such statistics for about two years and using them to help improve its own “green” status.

This includes setting a tight budget for its IT department to make the best use of energy and changing its attitude to business travel, by greater use of video conferencing.

It has also been encouraging its staff to use car sharing.

East of England MEP Richard Howitt has been campaigning for businesses to consider their environmental impact He recent visited Access Accounting to see how the program worked.

He said: “Europe has committed itself to tough targets of further cutting carbon. by 2020 “We need businesses to step up to the challenge if we are going to reach this target.”