Climate battlefront against Big Oil shifts to emissions data at COP28
Climate battlefront against Big Oil shifts to emissions data at COP28
Plus, Biden's $3 billion climate fund pledge dead on arrival in House
In today’s edition:
— Climate emissions data is becoming a more effective weapon against polluters
— Biden’s $3 billion Green Climate Fund pledge skewered by House Republicans
— Vineyard Offshore names veteran New England clean energy leader to be new CEO
— Climate heroes of the ‘twilight zone’
— Yes, there is still lead in some of our water pipes
— New U.S. Greenhouse Gas Center unveiled at COP28
Behind the latest furor at COP28 over Sultan Al-Jabar’s statements about climate science, a new front in the battle against polluters was opened over the weekend with dramatically improved emissions data designed to name and shame.
A group put together by Al Gore called Climate TRACE, which uses information from satellites combined with AI to identify more than 352 million emissions sources, such as power plants and manufacturing facilities, unveiled the open emissions database, with several high-profile companies such as Tesla TSL 0.00%↑ contributing.
A host of climate leaders, including John Kerry, took the opportunity on finance day in Dubai this week to put polluters on notice — especially Chevron CVX 0.00%↑ — that this new data, which will be offered free to anyone who wants to use it, will allow climate advocates to compare company’s and government’s actual pollution with their climate pledges. The unveiling of the new database came as more than 50 oil and gas companies signed a pledge to reduce carbon emissions to net zero by 2050 and methane emissions by 2030.
The battle against climate change has always had a villain problem. We know who the big polluting countries and industries are but have not been able to pinpoint where the crimes are taking place. This leap forward in data collection, which will also be great for investors, is a big deal because it will help put a spotlight on individual companies and even people behind the worst of our pollution in each country.
With accurate emissions reporting becoming more of a mandate globally, having checks and balances for investors and regulators like Climate TRACE will go a long way toward naming and shaming the biggest polluters. Whether that will lead to any real action is another story.
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