Supplier Environmental and Sustainability Questionnaire Template
Customers and regulators increasingly ask manufacturers about their supply chain's environmental performance. This template gives purchasing and quality a clear, consistent questionnaire to send, so answers can be compared across suppliers.
Fill in
Supplier Environmental and Sustainability Questionnaire Template
Supplier Environmental and Sustainability Questionnaire
From: Northfield Components Inc. To: Apex Castings Ltd (Quality and EHS manager) Reporting period: Calendar year 2025 Return by: 2026-12-01 Detail level: Standard
Scope of supply: Aluminium die castings for housings, part families HC-100 to HC-240.
Instructions
Please answer for the sites that make our products. Mark Not applicable where a question does not apply and explain gaps in the comments column. Attach evidence where available. Information is used for supplier evaluation and our own sustainability reporting.
Section A: Management System
| Question | Yes | No | Comments or evidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Do you hold ISO 14001 or an equivalent environmental management certificate? | |||
| Do you have a written environmental policy? | |||
| Are legal requirements and permits tracked with owners? | |||
| Have you had a reportable environmental incident in the last 3 years? |
Section B: Energy and Emissions
| Data point | Value | Unit | Method or source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Electricity used at the site | kWh | ||
| Fuels burned on site | |||
| Scope 1 emissions | t CO2e | ||
| Scope 2 emissions (location based) | t CO2e | ||
| Share of renewable electricity | % | ||
| Product carbon footprint available for supplied parts |
Section C: Materials, Chemicals and Waste
| Question | Response | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Recycled content of main materials | ||
| Restricted substance controls (RoHS, REACH, conflict minerals) | ||
| Total waste generated | ||
| Share of waste recycled or recovered | ||
| Water withdrawn at the site |
Section D: Targets and Improvement
Do you have emission reduction targets? Describe the target, base year and progress:
________
Planned improvement projects in the next 12 months:
________
Declaration
A starting point to adapt, not a legal or audit instrument. Align terms with your supplier code of conduct and keep requests proportionate to the supplier's size and spend.
Supplier data into your ERP
Optional: ask how supplier sustainability answers can be stored and joined to purchasing data.
Optional. The tool and every export work without this. No spam.
How to use the template
Fill the header with the supplier, reporting period and scope of supply, then choose a detail level. Export to Word, PDF or Excel and send with a short covering email and a return date. Keep the questions you actually need: a small machine shop does not have to give a full carbon footprint, but a high-volume casting supplier might. Store returned forms against the supplier record in your ERP or supplier portal.
- Send the same form to suppliers in the same category
- Ask for evidence on certificates, not just ticks
- Allow a realistic response time
- Explain how the data will be used
Why these questions
Management system questions show whether controls exist. Energy and emissions data feeds scope 3 category 1 purchased goods in the GHG Protocol, where supplier specific data is better than spend based averages. Materials and chemical questions support customer product compliance, such as RoHS, REACH and conflict minerals declarations. Waste and water answers round out the site picture.
Using the answers
Score each section simply: complete and evidenced, partial, or missing. Combine with quality and delivery performance in your supplier scorecard rather than creating a separate ranking. Follow up with the weakest suppliers by spend and risk, and use the data to replace averages in your own emissions estimates.
Common mistakes
Sending a long generic form to every supplier, treating all answers as verified facts, and not feeding results back. Suppliers answer more thoroughly when they see the data is used.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which suppliers should receive the questionnaire?
Start with the top suppliers by spend and those with high environmental risk, such as castings, plating, chemicals and logistics. A top 50 or 80 percent of spend cut is a practical first wave. Add others as customers request.
Is a supplier's ISO 14001 certificate enough?
It shows a management system exists, not how well it performs or what the emissions are. Ask for the certificate scope to confirm it covers the relevant site, and use the other sections for data and results.
How do I use the data for scope 3?
Allocate the supplier's reported emissions to your purchased products by mass, revenue or physical unit, and document the method. Where data is missing, use spend or average data and mark the quality level.
What if a supplier will not respond?
Follow up once or twice, offer a shorter form, and record the non-response in the supplier record. Your supplier code of conduct and contracts should say what cooperation you expect.
If your purchasing history is in an ERP, we can help match supplier answers to spend and part data for scope 3 estimates.
Related Tools
Environmental Compliance Obligations Register Worksheet
Track every permit, regulation and customer requirement with owner, frequency and next due date, and see overdue items at a glance.
Safety & WorkforceEnvironmental Aspects and Impacts Register Worksheet
Score each activity's environmental aspect for severity, frequency and control, and see which ones rank as significant.
Safety & WorkforceRefrigerant Leak Rate and Repair Log Worksheet
Calculate each appliance's annual leak rate from charge and top-up amounts, and the CO2e of refrigerant lost for your emissions inventory.
Safety & WorkforceHazardous Waste Container Inspection Log Worksheet
Log each container's label, closure, condition and days accumulated, and flag anything nearing your storage time limit.
More Supply Chain & Inventory tools
See all- Oracle Fusion Inventory Turns and Carrying Cost Calculator
- Distribution ERP Fill Rate Calculator
- Distributor Rebate Tracking Worksheet
- Branch Transfer Planning Worksheet
- Distributor Slow-Moving Inventory Review Worksheet
- Distributor Vendor Performance Scorecard Worksheet
- Distributor GMROI Calculator
- Distributor Backorder Cost and Fill Rate Calculator
- EOQ with Vendor Minimum Order Calculator