Pledges R Us
3 minute read
According to a study published by the Energy Climate Intelligence Unit think tank 49% of the world's GDP is now covered by net-zero targets. While Suriname and Bhutan are the only countries to have actually achieved this, you can keep an eye on the progress of countries and companies via this interactive map. A CDP study has found that European firms need to double spending (from 12% to 25% of capital expenditure to reach net zero.
Nevertheless, the relentless march of companies and countries making sustainability commitments continued this month; all of the following have made Net Zero(ish) commitments: Sainsbury's (£1bn pledge, by 2040), UK Aviation industry (by 2050), Delta Airlines ($1bn pledge by 2030), Sky (50% absolute reduction by 2030), London (by 2030 if Sadiq Khan re-elected as mayor), Sir Robert McAlpine (by just 2024), Heathrow airport (infrastructure by mid-2030s), Mitie (by 2025), RBS (want to be "climate positive" by 2030), the Teesside industrial cluster and, announced last year, but still relevant – Formula 1 (by 2030).
Starting from a very high carbon base arguably gives oil and mining giants the largest room for improvement and a huge amount of potential impact in the transition to a low carbon world… should they choose to. BP's net zero 2050 declaration has been widely ridiculed after failing to disclose how they plan to achieve this (without heavily relying on Carbon offsetting) and the exclusion of Scope 3 emissions (the emissions generated from the burning of its products – which clearly make up the majority of BPs footprint) from their reporting. Rio Tinto have also committed $1bn to reach net zero across their global operations by 2050, but again this excludes scope 3 emissions.
Glencore have wisely swerved this pothole by not making any concrete commitments, instead simply (and underwhelmingly) allowing "natural depletion" of the coal reserves in their mines and helping facilitate the transition to a low carbon world by focusing on the extraction of zinc, cobalt, copper and nickel – which are vital for manufacturing the batteries needed to power electric vehicles. Optimising resource efficiency and preventing human rights abuses in supply chains are key issues that require constant focus too.
Speaking of concrete commitments, Cemex have vowed by 2050 to make their operations net zero and only produce net zero concrete. The global cement industry is estimated to account for 6-7% of human-made GHG emissions.