Reducing Scope 3 Emissions: Moving goods with Renewable Natural Gas (RNG)
Companies aiming to minimize their environmental impact are prioritizing Scope 3 emissions—those generated across their entire value chain, including suppliers, contractors and transportation. Often the largest share of a business’s carbon footprint, these emissions present significant challenges, particularly for industries like manufacturing, food production, retail and shipping. Renewable Natural Gas (RNG) is one promising solution, offering an effective way to cut transportation-related emissions and support sustainability goals.
Why do companies have Scope 3 Emissions?
Scope 3 emissions stem from indirect activities linked to a company’s operations but beyond its direct control. These include emissions from purchased goods, waste and third-party transportation.
For many industries, transportation is a major contributor to Scope 3 emissions. Whether it’s food producers shipping goods to retailers, manufacturers distributing products to customers, or grocery chains replenishing stores, all these activities contribute to their company’s carbon footprint. Addressing these requires collaboration with suppliers, contractors and logistics partners committed to sustainability.
How RNG can support your customers sustainability goals
Renewable Natural Gas (RNG) offers a viable, scalable solution for reducing emissions in transportation. RNG is produced from methane emitted by decomposing organic waste, including food waste, animal manure, wastewater sludge, and agricultural by-products. Instead of allowing this methane to escape into the atmosphere as a potent greenhouse gas, RNG projects capture it, refine it and convert it into a renewable fuel.
Over the past five years, the use of RNG as a transportation fuel has grown by an impressive 92%. In fact, RNG has helped offset around 6.96 million tons of CO₂-equivalent emissions during the last five years – comparable to removing 784 million gallons of gasoline from use.
How shippers can lower Scope 3 Emissions with RNG
Shippers can lower Scope 3 emissions by transitioning fleets to natural gas vehicles that run on RNG or partnering with logistics providers that use it. Converting specific shipping lanes to RNG offers measurable emissions savings, with greater impact as more routes adopt the fuel. Each RNG-powered truck that replaces a diesel vehicle cuts emissions, delivering compounding benefits over time and supporting sustainability goals.
RNG can be applied across different sectors to reduce Scope 3 Emissions:
- Manufacturers: Transportation of raw materials and finished products is a major contributor to Scope 3 emissions. By partnering with logistics providers using RNG-powered trucks, manufacturers can lower emissions in their supply chains. This is especially beneficial for industries with high shipping volumes and long-distance logistics.
- Food Producers: Food producers often collaborate with suppliers and logistics providers that handle organic waste. By adopting RNG-powered vehicles, they can turn waste by-products into valuable resources while reducing emissions in transportation networks. For example, food companies can work with logistics partners to use RNG-powered trucks for moving goods from processing plants to distribution centers.
- Retailers and Grocery Chains: Retailers and grocery chains face significant transportation emissions from their fleets. Switching to RNG-powered trucks or partnering with RNG-using suppliers can help them reduce their Scope 3 emissions. Additionally, integrating RNG into operations through waste conversion (e.g., unsold goods) creates a closed-loop system that supports broader sustainability goals.
Route Examples
The emissions reduction potential of incorporating RNG is significant. Take a fleet making 250 trips per year: between Los Angeles and Oakland, using fossil CNG could cut emissions by 11 metric tons, while switching to RNG from landfill gas could save 181 metric tons, and using dairy RNG could slash emissions by 1,794 metric tons.
On a route between Syracuse and Memphis, landfill RNG by 207 metric tons, and dairy RNG by 2,051 metric tons.
Finally, for a route between Dallas and Atlanta, landfill RNG 230 metric tons, and dairy RNG an impressive 2,279 metric tons. On all three routes, the use of dairy gas RNG could reduce emissions by nearly 500%.
Taking the next step in transportation sustainability
Renewable Natural Gas (RNG) is a powerful, scalable way to cut transportation emissions and accelerate your path to sustainability. If you want to further reduce your Scope 3 emissions, contact your preferred carrier or third-party logistics partner and ask if they have trucks equipped with natural gas engines, such as the Cummins X15N. Or contact your local energy provider or fuel company and ask if they supply RNG.
Cummins Inc.
Cummins, a global power technology leader, is a corporation of complementary business segments that design, manufacture, distribute and service a broad portfolio of power solutions. The company’s products range from internal combustion, electric and hybrid integrated power solutions and components including filtration, aftertreatment, turbochargers, fuel systems, controls systems, air handling systems, automated transmissions, electric power generation systems, microgrid controls, batteries, electrolyzers and fuel cell products.
