Carbon Accounting Explained: A Simple Guide for Small to Medium Business Owners
Running a business can feel like a juggling act. You’re thinking about clients, cash flow, your team, and maybe what you’re cooking for dinner.
So when someone says, “You should look into carbon accounting,” it’s easy to roll your eyes and add it to the never-ending list.
But it is no longer just big corporations feeling the pressure to report on their carbon footprint. With sustainability reporting standards introduced globally, carbon accounting is quickly becoming part of mandatory compliance.
That means even small and medium businesses will soon need to measure and disclose their environmental impact. This will not just be to tick a box, but to stay eligible for contracts, funding, and partnerships.
If you’re part of a supply chain for a larger company, chances are you’ll be asked to share your carbon data in the next few years. And yet, for most small business owners, the idea of carbon accounting sounds confusing, expensive, or simply not relevant.
But it doesn’t have to be.
Carbon accounting isn’t about being perfect, it’s about being aware. It’s the next step in running a responsible, future-proof business.
What is carbon accounting?
Carbon accounting is simply tracking where your emissions come from. The energy you use, the materials you buy, how your products are made, how your team travels, even how your waste is handled.
Instead of tracking dollars, you’re tracking carbon.
All those emissions are converted into one number: your carbon footprint, measured in tonnes of carbon-dioxide equivalent (CO₂e).
Every business has a footprint — whether it’s from electricity, fuel, suppliers, or deliveries. Carbon accounting helps you actually see it.
What Are The Three Scopes?
You’ll often hear about Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions.
Scope 1 – Direct emissions
The things your business physically controls: fuel for your car, gas heating, generators, or anything you burn or power yourself.Scope 2 – Indirect energy emissions
The electricity you buy to run your office, warehouse, or equipment. You might not create these emissions directly, but you’re responsible for using the energy.Scope 3 – Everything else in your value chain
This includes suppliers, deliveries, travel, packaging, and even how your product is used or disposed of.
For most businesses, Scope 3 makes up 80–90 % of total emissions.
Why it matters (beyond doing the right thing)?
Carbon reporting used to be something only big corporates worried about.
Now it’s moving into the mainstream and it’s reshaping how every business operates.
Large companies are already asking suppliers for emission data.
Investors are looking for transparency.
Customers want to support brands that align with their values.
When you start tracking your emissions, you often uncover cost savings. Wasted energy, inefficient transport, and unnecessary materials show up quickly when you start measuring.
Why accountants are the missing link?
At the end of the day, accounting is about measuring impact. We already track profit, cash flow, and performance. Carbon is another metric — one that tells the story of how your business interacts with the planet.
That’s why accountants are perfectly placed to help bridge the gap between financial clarity and environmental responsibility.
We understand data, systems, and reporting and we can translate that into something practical and strategic.
At Madina & Co, we look at carbon accounting the same way we look at your financials: with structure, logic, and the goal of helping you make confident, informed decisions.
How to start (without overwhelm)?
You don’t need to hire a sustainability consultant or overhaul your entire business overnight. Start small.
Here’s what you can do this month:
Check your electricity and fuel bills.
That’s your Scope 1 and 2 baseline.Look at your biggest suppliers.
Ask them if they’re tracking emissions. You might be surprised how many already are.Think about transport.
How does your team commute? How do you move your products?Add it to your rhythm.
Treat carbon data like financial data. Review it quarterly, set small reduction targets, and celebrate wins.
The goal isn’t to be carbon-neutral tomorrow.
It’s to start understanding where you are and build from there.
The bigger picture
Carbon accounting is about growth.
It helps you build a business that’s transparent, efficient, and aligned with where the world is heading.
It’s a way of saying: We know our impact, and we’re doing something about it.
That’s powerful for clients, for your team, and for your brand story.
Let’s make it practical
At Madina & Co, we believe clarity is more than just profit margins and tax returns.
It’s about understanding every part of your business, including the footprint it leaves behind.
We help founders and business owners build simple, measurable carbon baselines, interpret the data, and integrate sustainability into their overall strategy.
If you’re curious where to start, book a Carbon Clarity Session with us.
We’ll break it down in plain English, connect it to your numbers, and help you make sense of it all.