Scope 3 · Category 5
Scope 3 Category 5: Waste generated in operations
Scope 3 Category 5 covers emissions from third-party treatment and disposal of waste generated in your operations — landfill, incineration, recycling and wastewater where relevant. Activity data is typically tonnes by waste stream and disposal route, taken from waste-contractor reports rather than estimated from headcount alone.
Category 5 covers third-party treatment of waste generated in your operations — landfill, recycling, incineration and related routes.
Use waste-transfer notes and contractor reports: tonnes by stream and treatment. Material-specific Activity Data Guide pages (refuse, plastic, paper, metal, construction) beat spend-only averages.
Employee commuting waste or product end-of-life (Category 12) are out of scope here. Wastewater may be included when material and treated off-site.
Related activity data
Related scopes
By activity data
By compliance framework
Frequently asked questions
- Why does treatment route matter so much?
- Landfill, recycling and combustion factors differ substantially. A blended ‘average waste’ line hides that — split streams when transfer notes allow.
- Is recycling zero emissions?
- No. Recycling still has processing emissions, though usually lower than landfill for many materials. Report the actual route your contractor uses.
- Can I estimate waste from headcount?
- Only as a last resort. Prefer weighed contractor data. Headcount estimates are hard to defend in audits and tenders.
- Does Category 5 include wastewater?
- Off-site wastewater treatment can be included when material. On-site treatment you control may sit in Scope 1/2 instead — follow your boundary.
- How does this relate to Category 12?
- Category 5 is waste from your operations. Category 12 is end-of-life of products you sold. Keep them separate.