The new EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) will require companies to disclose their CO2 emissions from 2024. The United Kingdom has similar reporting obligations – and the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will also adopt a corresponding regulation on the disclosure of climate data this fall. How can such disclosure help to overcome current climate challenges? A new study quantifies the cost or damage to society of the emissions generated by companies in the course of production and discusses how disclosure could lead to a reduction in emissions. The study covers around 15,000 listed companies worldwide.
“Making the damage caused by corporate emissions transparent could increase stakeholder pressure and help inform policy and markets,” says Patricia Breuer from the Collaborative Research Center TRR 266 Accounting for Transparency, who recently completed her doctorate at the Graduate School of Economic and Social Sciences at the University of Mannheim and will take up a position as assistant professor at Erasmus University Rotterdam in September. “But it is also important that the companies themselves, as well as their shareholders and customers, can see how they compare to their competitors and can therefore think more strategically about their emissions and the associated costs.”
Read the full German article here.
Read the study here.