Plans touted by the CEOs of the world’s biggest companies would reduce average carbon emissions by only 40% by mid-century, far short of the net-zero target needed to avoid catastrophic warming, according to a recent analysis. according. New Climate Institute and Carbon Market Watch.
The nonprofit looked at 25 of the world’s largest companies that have promised “some form” of zero emissions targets, and found that only three are “obviously concerned with deep decarbonization of more than 90% of their full value chain”. Committed to”.
What’s more, the near-term targets for 2030 “fall far short of the ambition needed to align with the internationally agreed goals of the Paris Agreement and avoid the most damaging effects of climate change,” the organizations said. They are urging governments to crack down on companies making exaggerated net-zero claims and to ban the use of non-sustainable carbon sinks such as forests to offset emissions.
Stakeholders, driven by pressure from the pandemic and extreme floods and fires, are making new promises almost daily to address climate change. But the global regulatory framework for testing proposals and holding companies to account is underdeveloped.
The New Climate Institute and Carbon Market Watch said they are launching a Corporate Climate Responsibility Monitor to examine the soundness of climate pledges amid a “general lack of regulatory oversight at national and regional levels”.
What the study found…
- The three companies that have clear, “deep” decarbonization plans are AP Möller-Maersch A/S, Vodafone Group plc and Deutsche Telekom AG.
- At least five are committed to reducing emissions by less than 15%, and often exclude so-called upstream or downstream emissions
- 12 companies pledged with no specific emissions reduction commitments for their target year
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