A sustainable future: KVK and the CO₂ Performance Ladder

  • Edited 1 November 2024
  • 3 min
  • Sustainability

Whether big or small, every step businesses and organisations take affects the world around us. This also applies to KVK. That is why KVK is working towards a sustainable future. One of the ways we do this is by reducing our CO₂ emissions. We use the CO₂ Performance Ladder to do so: a system that helps governments and businesses to measure and reduce their CO₂ emissions..

KVK is a public body. It is our task to make sure that the impact we have on our environment is as positive as it can be. Nut just for entrepreneurs, but also for our governing body, partners, suppliers, and employees. In our annual plan for 2024 we have announced our ambition to have sustainable business operations by 2025. We will reach that goal by setting clear goals and taking concrete steps. Such as reducing our CO₂ emissions. 

What is the CO₂ Performance Ladder?

At KVK, we tackle our CO₂ emissions using the CO₂ Performance Ladder. This system helps organisations measure and reduce their CO₂ emissions, also known as the CO₂ footprint. The CO₂ Performance Ladder consists of 5 levels. The first 3 levels focus on reducing the CO₂ emissions of one's own organisation. Levels 4 and 5 also deal with emissions outside the organisation, such as those of suppliers and customers. If you meet the requirements of a level, you receive a certificate for that level. Each year, certified organisations are reassessed by an independent and accredited party.

In 2024, KVK will aim for level 3 on the Performance Ladder. So we focus on reducing CO₂ emissions within the organisation first. In doing so, we look critically at the energy consumption of the KVK locations, our vehicle fleet, and our business travel.

Our CO₂ footprint

To calculate our CO₂ footprint, KVK uses the Greenhouse Gas protocol. This is the most widely used method worldwide to map the emissions of organisations. As a result, we know exactly what KVK's CO₂ footprint is: 1,721 tonnes in 2023. That figure is based on total emissions from the 17 KVK locations, our leased and company cars, and business travel.

KVK's total CO₂ emissions amount to 1,721 tonnes.

  • 64.4 per cent of the total emissions are caused by electricity. This is equivalent to 1,108.54 tonnes.
  • 22.8 per cent of total emissions are caused by heating. This is equivalent to 391.97 tonnes.
  • 6.4 per cent of total emissions are caused by business travel by private cars. This is equivalent to 110.54 tonnes.
  • 2.7 per cent of total emissions are caused by ov trips. This is equivalent to 47.09 tonnes.
  • 2.3 per cent of total emissions are caused by leased cars. This is equivalent to 37.21 tonnes.
  • 1.2 per cent of total emissions are caused by air travel. This is equivalent to 21.25 tonnes.
  • 0.1 per cent of total emissions are caused by chauffeur services. This is equivalent to 2.33 tonnes.
  • 0.1 per cent of total emissions are caused by company cars. This is equivalent to 2.21 tonnes.

The calculations show that our electricity consumption is the largest source of environmental impact: it causes 64.4 per cent of our total carbon emissions. This includes lighting, ventilation, and all IT equipment at the KVK sites. Heating follows with 22.8 per cent of total emissions. Our sites mainly use natural gas for heating, with 3 sites using district heat or electric heating.

Business travel accounts for 12.8 per cent of our carbon emissions. Of this, most comes from travel by private cars, as shown in the figure above. Public transport contributes 2.9 per cent of the total, fuel consumption by company cars 0.1 per cent, and leased cars 2.3 per cent. Business air travel by KVK employees causes 0.1 per cent of total emissions. According to the collective labour agreement for the central government (CAO Rijk), employees are allowed to fly only if the train journey exceeds 8 hours or is more than one and a half times as long as the air journey.

Getting to work

Now that we know what our emissions look like, it is time to get to work. We have drawn up a CO₂ policy with concrete goals and measures. For instance, we are taking further energy-saving measures at our KVK locations in 2024. These include reducing the number of printers and adjusting lighting. We are also starting a new transport policy, encouraging even more employees to come to the office or business appointments by public transport or bicycle.

You will find more information about the concrete actions KVK takes towards CO₂ emission reduction in our CO₂ management plan (only available in Dutch).

Download the CO₂ management plan

Every year, we go through the steps of the CO₂ Performance Ladder again. We collect and monitor data on our footprint, assess whether we have achieved previous reduction measures, and look at what new measures we can take to further reduce our emissions. This is how we continue to work towards sustainable operations. Want to know more about our approach? From September, you can download our CO₂ management plan on this page.