Friend,
Right now, public companies aren't required to tell investors about their climate risk—meaning that countless 401(k)s, pensions, and IRAs could be wiped out in a climate disaster.
The SEC just proposed a rule to require companies to disclose their climate vulnerability, greenhouse gas pollution, and their plan to protect investors. This is great progress—but there's a major problem.
The current draft of the rule only requires companies to disclose their Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions—giving them the chance to keep their Scope 3 emissions hidden. Here's what that means in plain English.
- Scope 1 emissions are the pollution a company creates in its own operations—the pollution billowing from a factory's smokestacks, for example.
- Scope 2 emissions are the pollution from the generation of purchased energy. If a factory buys power from a coal plant, the pollution from burning the coal will be accounted for.
- Scope 3 emissions are the pollution from the rest of the company's activities—including use of the product they create. For example, if the factory in question is producing gasoline, its products will obviously release pollution—but under the current draft rule, they wouldn't have to disclose this.
Scope 3 emissions are often the vast majority of a company's pollution. Leaving disclosure of a large share of companies' pollution up to their own discretion leaves investors in the dark—and all of us vulnerable to a climate-related financial crash.
Luckily, the SEC has opened a public comment period, and we need to show massive support for including Scope 3 emissions in this groundbreaking policy.
Will you join thousands of climate advocates from over a dozen climate groups across the country by signing an official public comment right now? We'll submit it directly to SEC decision-makers!
Together,
Lena Moffitt
Chief of Staff, Evergreen Action