During the Obama years,
the Securities and Exchange
Commission issued guidance
to companies for making
climate-related disclosures
in their financial documents.
The guidance focused mainly
on disclosing risks to business
operations from extreme weather
or climate regulation.
Corporate SEC filings now
routinely make reference
to future risks from
climate change.
But in recent years
companies have turned
climate change from
a disclosed risk into
a marketing opportunity.
Companies often tout
what they are doing to
“save the planet”
or
“combat climate change.”
Apple claims it is
“significantly reducing
emissions to address
climate change.”
But Apple’s claimed CO2
emissions amount to a mere
0.04% of the global total
of 53.5 billion tons.
Exxon Mobil claims it plays an
“essential role in addressing
the risks of climate change”
by cutting its operational
emissions by 20 million tons
last year.
Not mentioned:
Exxon Mobil sold
products that released
close to 600 million tons
of CO2 emissions
when burned !
Nuclear utility Exelon
says on it's website:
“We need the Earth.
Today, it needs us.”
... boasting of closing
the few coal plants it had.
Meanwhile, China built
more coal power capacity
in 2019 (45 gigawatts)
than all U.S. utilities plan
to close through 2025
(17 gigawatts).
Amazon boasts about its
“commitment to meet
the Paris Agreement
the Paris Agreement
10 years early.”
But only nations can meet
the Paris climate accord goals,
not a single company, especially
one providing no specific details
on exactly how much THEY
plan to achieve.
Companies that brag
about their climate change
efforts should do so honestly.
They often do not.
Touting emissions cuts
out of context is almost
meaningless for the
shareholders.
The company
should mention that
man-made emissions
of greenhouse gases are
55.3 billion tons a year
and are going up,
according to the U.N.
A utility closing
a few coal plants
should describe
the hundreds
of new coal plants
being built around
the world.
With a global context,
corporate actions on climate
are closer to zero than they
would ever admit -- mainly
'green' virtue signaling .
The Security and Exchange
Commission has not
demanded honesty about
corporate 'green' claims.
This corporate
"greenwashing"
misleads investors
and the general public.
Misleading anyone
is inconsistent with
current securities laws.