PLEA Network

3 February 2016, Renew Economy, Senate to inquire into carbon risk, despite Coalition objection. The Australian Senate is to begin an inquiry into carbon risk disclosure in Australia, following a proposal by the Greens after the ground-breaking Paris climate agreement reached late last year. The inquiry is due to report in June and will study carbon risk disclosure practices among Australian companies, regulatory oversight, international practice, and Australia’s involvement in the G20 Financial Stability Board discussions on carbon risk impacts. “The Paris Agreement finalised in December 2015 has fundamentally changed the investment landscape,” said Emma Herd, the head of The Investor Group on Climate Change (IGCC), which represents most major investment houses and superannuation funds. “When 195 nations agreed to a goal of limiting global warming to 2°C moving towards 1.5°C, it immediately became clear that all companies will need to stress test their commercial strategy for a two degree scenario and disclose to the market the risks and opportunities for their business.” The inquiry will focus on corporate disclosure, although given the decisions at state and federal level in recent weeks, it might also want to focus on the carbon risk for the Australian economy as a whole. New data this week revealed that Australia was increasing its emissions at a faster rate than any other developed economy, and was not likely to peak its emissions before 2030. The lack of new funding for Direct Action means that there is now no policy in place to reduce emissions. Investment in renewables remains at a standstill. Read More here