Annual Carbon Disclosure Projects (DCP) report said that most European firms have no target to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions despite the survey's claim that 80percent see climate change as a business risk. The report showed that only one out of three firms has climate goals that stretch beyond 2025.
The report reflected that corporate action was focused in the boardroom instead of a CO2 reduction plan. The study showed that 47 percent of the firms reward their CEOs for climate performance, and a quarter tying incentives to environmental goals.
Half of the CDP's environmental "A-list" is composed of European firms. Steven Tebbe, the managing director for Europe, praised the entry of the project to the financial mainstream. He said that the next decade is vital is Europe's shift to a sustainable economy is to be successful, and companies lie at the heart of this transition. He also noted that A-list companies on the Stoxx global climate change leaders index outperformed their peers by 5.5 percent per annum this decade.
The report showed that companies reported 58 percent carbon cuts despite the survey that 53 percent have no climate goals. The carbon cuts amounted to a total reduction of the equivalent of 85m tonnes of CO2. The DCP also said that a third of companies reported increased emissions.
Landsec, an A-listed property management firm, reduced its greenhouse gases by 17 percent from 2014. It is on the way to its 40 percent projection by 2030. Landsec's head of sustainability said that Caroline Hill said that they set what was the first science-based carbon reduction target in real estate, based on what is needed in their sector to ensure the world keeps within 1.5 to 2C of global warming.
She said that Landsec dropped its energy consumption in its offices in London and in its suburban retail parks through their upgrades of their LED lighting and their systematic installation of rooftop solar panels. CDP gathered climate disclosures from 849 European companies in 23 countries. Campaigners, however, criticized the inclusion of fossil fuel firms on the A list such as Engie, Naturgy Energy Group SA, and Neste Oyj and some chemical firms including Bayer AG and BASF, and food companies including Nestle.
A spokesman for Corporate Europe Observatory, Pascoe Sabido, said that if these companies represent the crème de la crème of environmentally-friendly big businesses, then we really are in trouble.
