This week’s insights: winds of change, climate controversies and carbon reporting gaps.
The key takeaways:
- Labour lifts onshore windfarm ban – The UK’s new National Planning Policy Framework, coming into force immediately, removes the de facto ban on new onshore wind projects.
- SBTi CEO resigns amid carbon-offsets scandal – the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) faces heavy criticism as its CEO steps down after allowing companies to use controversial carbon-credits to reduce reported supply chain emissions.
- Google drops climate-neutral claims – as emissions soar due to AI expansion, tech giant Google halts its purchase of carbon credits, abandoning its climate neutral stance.
- Only 9% of oil and gas firms report Scope 3 emissions – a ClarityAI study reveals that over 90% of oil and gas companies in the MSCI All Country World Index don’t report such emissions, meaning published carbon footprint data often underestimates their environmental impact.
Featured chart
Source: Copernicus, June 2024
Our featured chart shows monthly global surface air temperature anomalies(°C) relative to 1850-1900 ‘pre-industrial’ levels. With the bold red line showing record high temperatures rises over the last 12-months.
Why’s this worth sharing?
The 2015 Paris Agreement aimed to keep global temperature “to well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels” and strive to limit the increase to 1.5°C. Unfortunately, the chart shows that since July 2023, we’ve consistently breached the 1.5°C mark, with global temperatures steadily increasing each decade.
While this is terrible news for the planet, the fight isn’t over. As the world heats up, investing in climate solutions and companies ready for the net zero transition becomes increasingly vital. Ignoring these issues poses significant economic risks. Now more than ever, it’s crucial to help limit further temperature rises and prevent reaching a +2°C world.
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