ISO 16759:2013

INTERNATIONAL ISO
STANDARD 16759
First edition
2013-07-01
Graphic technology — Quantification
and communication for calculating
the carbon footprint of print media
products
Technologie graphique — Quantification et communication relatives
au calcul de l’empreinte carbone des produits imprimés
Reference number
©
ISO 2013
© ISO 2013
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ii © ISO 2013 – All rights reserved

Contents Page
Foreword .iv
Introduction .v
1 Scope . 1
2 Normative references . 1
3 Terms and definitions . 1
3.1 Terms relating to carbon footprint . 1
3.2 Terms relating to greenhouse gases . 2
3.3 Terms relating to life cycle assessment . 3
3.4 Terms relating to organisations and consumers . 4
3.5 Terms relating to printed media product and process — Prepress . 4
3.6 Terms relating to printed media product and process — Press . 5
3.7 Terms relating to printed media product and process — Postpress. 6
3.8 Terms relating to data and data quality . 7
4 Principles for carbon footprint quantification . 8
4.1 General requirements . 8
4.2 Life cycle perspective . 8
4.3 Relative approach and functional unit . 8
4.4 Relevance . 8
4.5 Completeness . 8
4.6 Consistency . 9
4.7 Accuracy . 9
4.8 Transparency . 9
4.9 Avoidance of double counting . 9
4.10 Implementation criteria . 9
5 Methodology . 9
5.1 General requirements . 9
5.2 Goal and scope .10
5.3 System boundary definitions .11
5.4 Time boundary for data .12
5.5 Carbon footprint quantification of life-cycle stages .12
6 Reporting .17
6.1 General .17
6.2 Documentation requirements.17
6.3 Interpretation of the carbon footprint of a product .18
7 Communication requirements .18
7.1 General .18
7.2 Interpretation and comparison .19
7.3 Product definitions and product category rules (PCRs) .19
Annex A (informative) General requirements and guidelines for CFP communication options —
Greenhouse gases .20
Annex B (informative) Inventory analysis of input criteria used to define the product profile .23
Annex C (informative) Operations and materials in processes and data collection items within the
system boundary .26
Annex D (informative) Intergraf recommendations on CO emissions calculation in the
printing industry .30
Annex E (normative) Guidelines for comparisons of the carbon footprints of print media .34
Annex F (informative) Calculation samples by Europe, Germany and Thailand .35
Bibliography .41
Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) is a worldwide federation of national standards
bodies (ISO member bodies). The work of preparing International Standards is normally carried out
through ISO technical committees. Each member body interested in a subject for which a technical
committee has been established has the right to be represented on that committee. International
organizations, governmental and non-governmental, in liaison with ISO, also take part in the work.
ISO collaborates closely with the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) on all matters of
electrotechnical standardization.
The procedures used to develop this document and those intended for its further maintenance are
described in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1. In particular the different approval criteria needed for the
different types of ISO documents should be noted. This document was drafted in accordance with the
editorial rules of the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2. www.iso.org/directives
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of
patent rights. ISO shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights. Details of
any patent rights identified during the development of the document will be in the Introduction and/or
on the ISO list of patent declarations received. www.iso.org/patents
Any trade name used in this document is information given for the convenience of users and does not
constitute an endorsement.
The committee responsible for this document is ISO/TC 130, Graphic technology.
iv © ISO 2013 – All rights reserved

Introduction
Reduction of worldwide greenhouse gas (GHGs) emissions is central to the mitigation of climate
change (see Annex A), considered to be arising from natural and anthropogenic activities. Industry and
governments are already aware of the importance of contributing to this reduction, both nationally and
internationally. The printing and associated industries (prepress, finishing, postpress, paper making
and related services) have substantially reduced their GHG emissions in recent years. Although this
data reduction can be formally captured and measured, it is difficult to compare without a common
reference methodology.
This International Standard has been developed to provide a consistent framework methodology
for carbon footprint calculation. It is written for prepress, print service providers, printers, media
companies, other print content publishers, related industry associations and providers of carbon
footprinting tools. It offers a program-neutral method for calculating and communicating the life cycle
GHG emissions of print media products, based on calculated CO e values, for the single impact category
of climate change. This single criteria approach provides the foundation for future work addressing
multicriteria impacts which assess all potential impacts that a print media product can have on the
environment. This International Standard is based on work done for ISO/TS 14067 and PAS 2050 to
provide a specific implementation for the graphic arts industry. Multicriteria calculations based on all
four phases of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), as outlined in ISO 14040, are not within the scope of this
International Standard. Further information for conducting LCA are outlined in ISO 14044.
According to this International Standard, quantification of the carbon footprint of a print media product
requires a defined goal and scope for the carbon footprinting study. This International Standard also
requires a specification of the system boundaries and process inventory as the basis for calculations. It
allows for calculations of the whole or part life cycle of print media products.
This International Standard provides consistency, transparency, flexibility and accountability for print
media carbon footprint quantifications and their communication. It may provide the following benefits
to companies, public bodies and consumers, industry and regulatory bodies:
— consistency in carbon footprint calculator design, to aid relevance and applicability for different
print media product sectors and geographies;
— provide print buyers and consumers with a means of quantifying and communicating the carbon
footprint of print media products using a common methodology and defined boundaries;
— provide the printing industry with a framework for quantifying and communicating the carbon
footprint of print media products using a common methodology and defined boundaries;
— encourage media buyers and consumers of print media products to make informed media investment,
purchase and usage decisions, using information validated with calculation, communication and
reporting tools that are consistent with this International Standard;
— facilitate the continuous monitoring of the carbon footprint of print as part of its overall
environmental impact, and
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