About our emissions reduction plan

Purpose

The ATO has an essential role in implementing emissions reduction initiatives in line with the Australian Government’s Net Zero in Government Operations Strategy (PDF 10MB)External Link (the Strategy), developed by Department of Finance. The Strategy is the first of many steps in the Australian Government’s approach to achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions in its operations and reinstates public emissions reporting.

This plan sets out the steps the ATO will take to support the Strategy and achieve APS Net Zero by 2030. It encompasses both new and existing initiatives to reduce emissions that provide a pathway for the ATO to meet net zero targets.

Net zero greenhouse gas emissions

APS Net Zero 2030 is the target set by the Australian Government to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions from government operations by the year 2030. Net zero is achieved when consumption of resources, such as electricity, are reduced as far as possible and energy is supplied from renewable sources. Where unavoidable greenhouse gas emissions remain, they are balanced through carbon offsetting.

From an organisational perspective, this means minimising the greenhouse gas emissions that are within our control. Under the Strategy, emissions are considered in 3 areas:

• Scope 1: Direct emissions from sources owned or controlled by an entity, including consumption of gas and fleet vehicles.
• Scope 2: Indirect emissions from purchased electricity, heating and cooling for the entities own use.
• Scope 3: All other indirect emissions produced through Government activities including business travel, waste disposal, purchased goods and services.

The Strategy requires entities to plan to reduce Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions. It is anticipated the requirement will expand to Scope 3 emissions in the future.

Governance and reporting

Progress against actions identified within this plan, and any additional measures adopted, will be included in the Commissioner of Taxation annual report. This, combined with annual emissions inventory reporting, will be used as a measure of the ATO’s progress towards reducing its emissions.

As part of the Net Zero in Government Operations Annual Progress Report, the Department of Finance will aggregate these measures to provide whole-of-Australian Government emissions reporting.

Operational context

The ATO is the Australian Government’s principal revenue collection agency, administering legislation governing the tax system, along with aspects of the superannuation, and business registry systems, and supporting the delivery of government benefits to the community.

The ATO is an agency with office buildings across all Australian states and territories, with the exception of the Northern Territory.  Its building facilities includes 22 commercially leased office spaces with a total net lettable area (NLA) of 269,944m² and 21,663 staff as of 30 June 2024.

The ATO has already commenced its net zero emissions pathway in line with the direction set in the Strategy and has:

• commenced planning to reduce surplus office space in line with changing work practices
• reduced vehicles by 50% since 2021 and transitioned to a fully hybrid fleet
• commenced deployment of technology that is more energy efficient, such as laptops, and reduced the number of peripherals, such as printers that are in use
• implemented NABERS energy rating assessments on all office spaces
• implemented initiatives to recycle, resell or exchange excess furniture with government agencies using Govtree
• updated workspace fit out guidelines to include sustainable practices and requirements aligned to the Strategy
• commenced exploring options to remove gas from the 2 remaining buildings that use it
• participated in initiatives like Earth Hour and the Government Energy Action Response (GEAR) protocol.

Baseline emissions

Baseline emissions are a record of greenhouse gas emissions that have been produced at a set point in time. For the purposes of this Plan, the financial year 2022–23 has been established as the ATO’s baseline and will be a reference point against which emissions reductions can be measured.

The baseline emissions for this Plan focus on Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions, consistent with the APS Net Zero 2030 target. Electricity related emissions were calculated using the location-based method. The complete 2022–23 greenhouse gas emissions inventory tables for the ATO are presented in our 2022–23 annual reportExternal Link.

Engagement

In the development of this Plan, the ATO has engaged with:

• the Department of Finance’s Climate Action in Government Operations team to ensure this Plan aligns with the Net Zero in Government Operations Strategy
• the ATO’s property service provider, who holds and reports on a range of property-related information
• various teams within the ATO to consult on current practices and identify climate related risks and opportunities.

Emissions reduction targets

The ATO is pursuing the APS Net Zero 2030 target in full, as per the Strategy. The target covers the entirety of the ATO’s operations within Australia for Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions, as described in the Strategy.

In order to achieve net zero by 2030, we project that greenhouse gas emissions will decrease over the next 6 years to 2,646t CO2-e by 2030. This is a reduction of 87% and is associated with participating in the WoAG electricity contracts. To achieve true net zero, offsetting will need to be considered.

These estimates are calculated and provided by our property service provider based on the 2022–23 emissions reporting data. The estimates will be reviewed annually.

As further data expansions are captured, this Plan will be updated to reflect and further support ongoing emissions reduction opportunities across the ATO’s portfolio and operations.

Priorities and actions

The ATO’s current sustainability measures are not sufficient to achieve net zero by 2030. To achieve net zero, targeted action on existing measures and the introduction of further or new measures is required.

To support a pathway to net zero, the Plan has divided emissions related activities into the following 3 categories. Net zero:

• buildings
• energy
• fleet.