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Audit-Ready Carbon Reporting for E-Commerce

Track fulfillment center energy, packaging materials, last-mile delivery, and customer returns across e-commerce operations.

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The Industry Hotspot: Last-Mile Delivery Emissions

50-60% from last-mile delivery

For e-commerce retailers, 50-60% of order-level carbon footprint comes from last-mile delivery (diesel vans: 0.2-0.3 kgCO2/km × 10km average delivery = 2-3 kgCO2 per order). Fulfillment centers account for 20-30% (HVAC, robotics, lighting). Packaging materials 10-15%. NetNada calculates kgCO2 per order, tracks delivery route efficiency, and compares courier carbon intensity.

SASB Industry Definition

E-Commerce industry entities provide an online marketplace for other entities or individuals to sell their goods and services, as well as retailers and wholesalers that provide an exclusively web-based platform for consumers to buy goods and services. Entities in this industry sell to consumers as well as to other businesses. Because of the accessibility of e-commerce sites, the industry is a global marketplace for buyers and sellers.

Industry-Specific Carbon Accounting

No generic solutions. Metrics, data sources, and reporting aligned to E-Commerce operations.

Carbon per Order Calculation

Calculate kgCO2e per order: Fulfillment center allocation (0.5 kgCO2) + Packaging (0.3 kgCO2 cardboard) + Last-mile delivery (2.5 kgCO2 diesel van) = 3.3 kgCO2 per order. Track by product category and delivery option.

kgCO2/order tracked

Delivery Route Efficiency Analysis

Import courier delivery data (distance, vehicle type, stops per route). Calculate kgCO2/delivery. Benchmark: Standard delivery (2-3 days, consolidated routes) vs Express (next-day, dedicated vehicle) has 50-80% higher carbon intensity.

Route optimization insights

Packaging Carbon Intensity

Track packaging materials per SKU: Small item (50g cardboard = 0.05 kgCO2), Large item (500g = 0.5 kgCO2), Fragile (bubble wrap + cardboard = 0.8 kgCO2). Monitor right-sizing initiatives reducing excess packaging.

Packaging emissions tracked

Fulfillment Center Energy Allocation

Allocate warehouse electricity, heating, and robotics energy to orders processed. Example: 1M orders/month from facility using 500 MWh = 0.5 kWh per order × 0.7 tCO2/MWh grid = 0.35 kgCO2 per order allocated.

Warehouse carbon allocated

Customer Carbon Footprint Dashboard

Offer customers post-purchase carbon footprint display: 'Your order generated 3.2 kgCO2e (equivalent to 15km car travel)'. Option to offset via carbon credits. Track customer engagement with carbon transparency.

Customer carbon dashboard

SASB CG-EC Metrics Automation

Auto-generate disclosure: Total Scope 3 logistics emissions, packaging waste diverted from landfill, data center energy consumption. Footnotes cite GLEC Framework for logistics emissions.

SASB CG-EC compliant

Product Features for E-Commerce

Use Carbon Data Uploader to import courier delivery data, warehouse energy bills, and packaging material purchases from supply chain systems. Learn more →

The Scope 3 Calculator automates downstream transport emissions (Category 9) from courier delivery data—no manual route calculations. Learn more →

Related Solutions

See our Carbon Accounting solution for end-to-end e-commerce emissions including data centers, warehouses, and delivery logistics.

View solution

E-Commerce Case Studies

How entities in this industry use NetNada to solve carbon accounting challenges.

Online Marketplace (50M orders/year)

Challenge

Customers demanded carbon transparency for delivery options. Had courier contracts but no methodology to calculate kgCO2 per delivery type (standard vs express).

Solution

Used NetNada to calculate: Standard delivery (consolidated route, 2-day) = 2.1 kgCO2/order. Express delivery (dedicated route, next-day) = 4.8 kgCO2/order. Displayed carbon footprint at checkout.

Result

18% of customers opted for lower-carbon standard delivery when shown carbon difference. Reduced express deliveries by 12%, saving 15,000 tCO2/year.

Fashion E-Commerce Retailer

Challenge

Returns (25% of orders) doubled logistics emissions but weren't tracked in carbon reporting. Needed to account for round-trip delivery carbon.

Solution

NetNada calculated returns impact: Forward delivery (2.5 kgCO2) + Return delivery (2.2 kgCO2) = 4.7 kgCO2 total for returned items. Allocated to Scope 3 Category 9.

Result

Disclosed 18% higher logistics emissions when including returns. Launched packaging optimization to reduce damage-related returns, decreasing return rate to 21%.

SASB Disclosure Topics for E-Commerce

Material sustainability topics beyond emissions that investors and stakeholders expect disclosed per SASB standards.

Data Center Energy Management

environment

Track data center and cloud computing energy for website, app, and transaction processing. Report PUE (Power Usage Effectiveness) and % renewable energy. Monitor server efficiency improvements.

Packaging & Waste

environment

Report packaging materials per order (kg cardboard, plastic, void fill). Track % recycled content in packaging. Monitor packaging optimization initiatives and waste reduction programs.

Last-Mile Delivery Emissions

environment

Calculate Scope 3 Category 9 emissions from courier delivery. Track % of deliveries via electric vehicles. Report average delivery distance and consolidation rates.

Product Safety & Counterfeit Goods

governance

Monitor marketplace seller compliance with product safety regulations. Track counterfeit product removals. Report customer complaints and product recalls.

Data Security & Privacy

governance

Track customer data breaches and security incidents. Report compliance with GDPR, CCPA. Monitor fraud prevention measures and transaction security.

NetNada tracks all SASB material topics, not just emissions. Our platform supports disclosure across environmental, social, governance, and business model topics relevant to your industry.

E-Commerce FAQs

Common questions about carbon accounting for this industry

How do you allocate courier delivery emissions when using third-party carriers?
Two methods: (1) Primary data: Request courier to provide kgCO2 per delivery based on vehicle type, route distance, stops. (2) Distance-based: Estimate delivery distance (customer postal code to fulfillment center) × vehicle emission factor (diesel van 0.25 kgCO2/km, EV 0.05 kgCO2/km). GLEC Framework recommends primary data from couriers where available.
Should we account for customer car trips to stores that e-commerce avoids?
Avoided emissions are not reported in GHG Protocol Scope 1-3 inventory. However, can calculate separately for marketing claims: If customer drives 10km round-trip to store (2.5 kgCO2) vs delivery van adds 0.5 kgCO2 per package to consolidated route, home delivery saves ~2 kgCO2. Requires assumptions about customer behavior—disclose methodology if claimed.
How do you account for packaging waste in carbon footprint?
Packaging production emissions (Scope 3 Category 1) = cardboard 1.0 kgCO2/kg, bubble wrap 3.5 kgCO2/kg. End-of-life: if customer recycles cardboard, carbon benefit from avoided virgin production. If landfilled, methane from degradation (minor for cardboard). Report packaging production emissions; note recycling rates don't reduce your Scope 3 (customer choice).
What's the carbon intensity of data centers for e-commerce transactions?
E-commerce transaction processing uses ~0.001-0.005 kgCO2 per order (website hosting, payment processing, recommendation algorithms). Negligible compared to logistics (2-5 kgCO2/order). Cloud providers (AWS, Azure, Google Cloud) provide customer carbon footprint dashboards showing actual compute emissions. Report as Scope 3 Category 1 (purchased cloud services).

Calculate Carbon per Order for E-Commerce Operations

See how online retailers track warehouse energy, courier delivery emissions, and packaging carbon—offering customers transparent delivery carbon footprints.

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