Klimabalance

Klimabalance is a term used to describe the net balance between anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions and removals within a defined boundary and time period. It is typically measured in CO2 equivalents (CO2e) to account for the different global warming potentials of greenhouse gases. A positive Klimabalance indicates that emissions exceed removals, while a negative balance indicates a net removal of greenhouse gases.

Calculations consider direct emissions (Scope 1), energy-related indirect emissions (Scope 2), and, increasingly, other indirect emissions in the value chain (Scope 3). Emissions are converted to CO2e using standard global warming potentials. Removals come from activities like forest growth, soil carbon sequestration, and certain technological measures. The boundary can be geographic (a company, a city, a country) and temporal (a calendar year or fiscal year).

Klimabalance is guided by international and national standards such as the GHG Protocol, ISO 14064, and IPCC methods. It underpins climate reporting, corporate sustainability strategies, and the evaluation of progress toward net-zero targets. In practice, it may be complemented by product-level life-cycle assessments and by climate compensation through offsets, depending on whether the emphasis is on emissions reduction or neutrality claims.

Applications include corporate annual reports, municipal planning, and policy analysis. Strengths of Klimabalance include a transparent way to compare performance over time and across organizations. Limitations arise from potential double counting, variability in emission factors, reliance on offsets, and the challenge of capturing all climate-relevant effects across complex value chains.