In April, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) issued the third part of its Sixth Assessment Report, stating we must focus on carbon minimization and the transition from fossil fuels to renewables. The United Nations body warns that climate change is accelerating much faster, and climate impacts and their corresponding social, structural and economic implications are being realized earlier than scientists had expected.
However, the reality is that companies’ climate pledges are often ambiguous, and emission reduction commitments are limited. Carbon Market Watch’s new report analyzed 25 of the world’s largest companies, which accounted for 5 percent of global GHG emissions and revenues of $3.2 trillion in 2020. In their climate pledges, the companies’ net-zero targets commit to only a 40 percent reduction in aggregated emissions, not 100 percent, as suggested by the term “net zero.” Carbon Market Watch also cites a disappointing lack of urgency among companies that so far have failed to use available emission reduction measures.
Furthermore, a 2021 CDP report shows that significant gaps exist in the disclosures of companies’ climate strategies. Just over a third of the companies reviewed are considered to have credible emissions reduction targets. Of the more than 13,100 organizations that disclosed to CDP, fewer than one-third (4,002) reported developing a low-carbon transition plan. Read more…
