United Bulgarian Bank (UBB) has developed a digital tool for sustainability in the Agriculture sector – UBB Agro Carbon Emissions Calculator, which is available directly and completely free of charge on the Bank’s website. The innovative service allows all farmers, customers, and non-customers of the financial institution, in a few easy steps to calculate the carbon footprint of their holdings – the greenhouse gases of their activity, in carbon dioxide equivalent.
Based on the baseline indicators, completely online, the UBB Agro Carbon Emissions Calculator calculates the emission footprint of agricultural activities and generates an individual report. It indicates the areas of production that should be addressed and provides specific recommendations in which activities each farm will be able to improve its environmental impact.
Created as part of the UBB Sustainable Financing Program, the Calculator’s methodology was developed with the assistance and expertise of the Institute for Agrarian Economics. The overall solution is the Bank’s know-how to help all representatives of the agricultural sector. The scope of the digital tool covers 28 of the most frequently practiced agricultural activities in Bulgaria, with the focus being on the indicators of those that form the main part of the sector’s greenhouse emissions – methane (CH4), dinitrogen dioxide (N2O) and carbon dioxide (CO2).
The calculations for crop production are based on the amounts of fertilizers, chemicals, and fuels used on a given farm for one year and the average yields obtained. Animal husbandry takes into account the practices of raising and feeding animals, as well as the storage of manure. In parallel with the calculation of the result, the values are automatically compared with average indicators for Bulgaria, giving an estimate of the carbon footprint for each farm, covering all its activities with the possibility of receiving a report on the result of the assessment.
The topic of climate change, the consequences of Global Warming, and the frequent natural disasters increasingly require putting sustainable development at the center of public attention. The quick adaptation of business and specifically of the agricultural sector to the transformation, as a result of environmental changes and in response to policies in this direction, will be of crucial importance for the country, economic development, and competitiveness in the coming years.
“Our commitments to sustainable development, combined with UBB’s desire to meet the needs of its customers and be their partner in addressing the regulatory challenges on the subject, provoked the creation of an innovative product for the agricultural sector. UBB Agro Carbon Emissions Calculator is a working solution for farmers, which enables them to assess the impact on the environment and subsequently plan measures for the transition to sustainable agriculture. UBB will consistently provide expertise and assist companies in the sector with financing investments for their transformation in terms of sustainability and carbon footprint reduction,” – commented Desislava Simeonova, Executive Director of Small and Medium Enterprises at UBB and leader of the “Sustainable financing” program of KBC Group in Bulgaria.
To help farmers, UBB will continue to upgrade the project by developing a Partnership Program with companies to expertly support farms in the transition process with guidance and advice for precise and efficient farming.
Source: the Bank`s press release dated September 13, 2022
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