WASH

GHG from Sanitation

We measure the climate footprint of a country’s sanitation. As human waste is stored, emptied, transported, treated and dumped, it releases methane and nitrous oxide that national climate inventories barely capture. We quantify those emissions across the whole service chain, map them by region and sanitation type, pinpoint the biggest sources, and model how much can be cut with climate-smart sanitation.

IPCC methodology Whole service chain Regional mapping Mitigation scenarios
Sanitation service chain as a greenhouse-gas source — containment, emptying, treatment and disposal
How it works

The sanitation service chain as emission sources

Emissions arise at every stage between the toilet and final disposal. We trace each one along the chain.

Containment

Pits, septic tanks and latrines generate methane, especially under wet, anaerobic conditions.

Emptying & transport

Diesel-powered emptying and haulage add operational CO₂ across the collection network.

Treatment

Ponds and treatment systems emit methane wherever sludge is not fully stabilised.

Disposal & discharge

Dumping, open defecation and nitrogen discharge to water release methane and nitrous oxide.

We apply IPCC Tier 1+ methodology — default emission factors strengthened with national activity data, full pathway disaggregation, and transparent assumptions across the whole service chain.

What you get

From raw emissions to climate-ready insight

Outputs built to inform policy, target mitigation, and stand up to scrutiny.

National emissions inventory

A transparent national inventory combining CH₄, N₂O and CO₂ into a single CO₂-equivalent figure.

Regional & pathway breakdown

A breakdown by region and pathway that shows where emissions concentrate, so mitigation can be targeted.

Mitigation scenarios

Business-as-usual versus climate-smart sanitation scenarios that quantify the mitigation opportunity.

MRV-ready output

Output that feeds national GHG inventories, climate reporting and sector planning.

Bring sanitation into your climate reporting

Quantify the emissions, find the biggest sources, and model the mitigation opportunity for your national programme.

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