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Jan 23 2025 #assurance, #climate, #compliance, #environment, #esg, #human-rights, #investors, #social, #supply-chain
Latest on CSRD and the Omnibus
A couple weeks ago, we wrote that the movement in the EU to soften CSRD reporting obligations through the Omnibus simplification package was gathering steam. Two days ago, according to the official summary of the Economic and Financial Affairs Council...
Jan 23 2025 #climate, #compliance, #environment, #esg, #investors, #social, #supply-chain
Sustainability Isn’t Dead
I chose to wait a couple days after the new administration’s Day One actions to write this. The dust needed to settle a bit, along with initial reactions of panic and fear by ESG/sustainability professionals. Although I tend not to...
Jan 23 2025 #climate, #environment, #esg, #human-rights, #investors, #social, #supply-chain
New This Week on PracticalESG.com
This week’s notable additions to PracticalESG.com are below. Blog of the Week: Another ESG Materiality Risk: Keeping Two Sets of Books New Member Resource: Coming soon – Guidebook: Practical Methodology for Sustainability ROI Using Company-Specific Business Fundamentals Hot Topics for...
Jan 22 2025 #assurance, #climate, #compliance, #environment, #esg, #investors
EFRAG Report: EMAS Is Still Relevant, Helpful for ESRS Reporting
If you’ve only been in the environmental/sustainability space a few years, the abbreviation EMAS might be new to you. But EMAS, the EU’s Eco-Management and Audit Scheme was promulgated in 2009. It is an environmental management system framework that includes...
Jan 22 2025 #climate, #compliance, #diversity, #environment, #equity, #esg, #human-rights, #investors, #social
Another ESG Materiality Risk: Keeping Two Sets of Books
I write frequently about risks of calling out ESG/sustainability matters as financially material. Such a decision really needs to be thoughtful with consideration of unintended consequences. The risks escalate when a company reports ESG/sustainability as material in its financial disclosures...
Jan 22 2025 #climate, #environment, #esg
Is JBS Backtracking on Climate Commitments? Not Really.
Reuters reported last week that meatpacker JBS said their net-zero emissions pledge was “never a promise” – and the company took heat for it. Is the company backtracking on promises? Let’s take a look beyond media reports and headlines, starting...
Jan 21 2025 #assurance, #compliance, #esg, #human-rights, #social, #supply-chain
BBC Investigation: Shein Suppliers Exceed Legal Working Hours
It was inevitable after Shein’s performance before the UK Parliament’s Business and Trade Committee earlier this month. The BBC conducted an investigation into working conditions at some of Shein’s suppliers: “The BBC spent several days here: we visited 10 factories,...
Jan 21 2025 #climate, #compliance, #environment, #esg, #supply-chain
US Government Suppliers Won’t Have to Disclose Climate Risks Under FAR
If you are a supplier to the US Department of Defense (DoD), General Services Administration (GSA) or NASA, you just got a break: “DoD, GSA, and NASA are withdrawing the proposed rule to amend the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) titled:...
Jan 21 2025 #climate, #compliance, #diversity, #environment, #equity, #esg, #investors
ESG Investing: A Divide Between Courts, State Laws and Reality?
Last week’s ruling by US District Court Judge Reed O’Connor sure stirred things up in the ESG world. Not only because of the court’s ruling, but also because of the logic and (mis)interpretation of the facts by the Judge. Matt...
Jan 16 2025 #climate, #environment, #esg
Supreme Court: Climate Damage Suit Against Oil Companies May Proceed
The Hill reported on a major legal development related to climate risk: “The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday rejected a request by oil companies to dismiss a lawsuit by the city of Honolulu seeking to hold them responsible for the...
Jan 16 2025 #compliance, #esg, #human-rights, #supply-chain
Record Number of Entities Added to UFLPA Entity List in New Update
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced it has added “37 entities to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) Entity List, marking the largest single expansion of the list to date. Among entities added are a large supplier of...
Jan 16 2025 #climate, #environment, #esg, #investors, #social, #supply-chain
New This Week on PracticalESG.com
This week’s notable additions to PracticalESG.com are below. New Q&A: Withdrawal of Shareholder Proposals on Human Rights Blog of the Week: Federal Court Rules ESG Conflicts With Fiduciary Duties New Member Resources: Podcast: Updates from APSCA – the Association of...
Jan 15 2025 #climate, #compliance, #diversity, #environment, #equity, #esg, #human-rights, #investors, #social
Waves of Copycat Anti-ESG Litigation Could Follow American Airlines Ruling
Just days after U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor issued a decision against American Airlines for violating federal law by basing investment decisions for its employee retirement plan on ESG factors (see our blog here about that), legal analysts are warning...
Jan 15 2025 #climate, #compliance, #environment, #esg
Key Lesson from UK Decision on Virgin Atlantic Sustainability Advertising
Here is an article from Norton Rose Fulbright about a recent decision from the UK’s Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) against Virgin Atlantic concerning greenwashing. In 2022, Virgin Atlantic aired radio advertising about their transatlantic “Flight 100”: “On the 28th of...
Jan 15 2025 #climate, #compliance, #diversity, #environment, #equity, #esg
Matt Sekol on ESG Professionals: “It’s Understandable to Feel the Way You Do”
If you are reading this, you probably already know and follow Matt Sekol. I’ve had the privilege of meeting Matt in person and hosted him as a webcast panelist before. Aside from our mutual obsession with Star Wars, we also...
Jan 14 2025 #compliance, #environment, #esg, #investors
Federal Court Rules ESG Conflicts With Fiduciary Duties
[Ed. note: Due to a minor oversight, a blog email was sent out this past Sunday. This was inadvertent and doesn’t indicate a change in our normal blog schedule. If you missed, it, you can see it here.] Last week,...
Jan 14 2025 #climate, #compliance, #environment, #esg, #investors
Banks Quit the Climate Club, Win a Prize
Last week, I wrote about a rapid-fire set of US bank defections from UN’s Net-Zero Banking Alliance (NZBA). Immediately after the banks (Bank of America, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo) made their announcements, Bloomberg reported “Texas Attorney...
Jan 14 2025 #climate, #environment, #esg, #investors, #supply-chain
Is NZAM Shutting Down? Possibly.
Just yesterday – and in the wake of BlackRock’s defection – the Net Zero Asset Managers (NZAM) initiative announced it is suspending its activities: “Recent developments in the U.S. and different regulatory and client expectations in investors’ respective jurisdictions have...
Jan 12 2025 #compliance, #esg, #human-rights, #social, #supply-chain
Are Audits & Documentation Obsolete for UFLPA “Clear and Convincing Evidence”?
Things have been a bit quiet on the US Uyghur Forced Labor Prevent Action (UFLPA) front recently, but that may change soon enough. The Wall Street Journal wrote that “CBP is upgrading several of its labs, adding equipment and know-how...
Jan 9 2025 #climate, #environment, #esg, #human-rights, #investors, #supply-chain
Investor Engagement Targets Human Rights in Electrification Minerals Supply Chain
ESG Today reported that asset manager Robeco is getting more hands-on with responsible mineral supply chains as the transition/electrification economy moves forward. “Robeco said that its new engagement theme targeting the transition metals supply chain comes as the focus of...
Jan 9 2025 #climate, #environment, #esg, #supply-chain
Sustainability Standards Getting Updates This Year
Lots of things in the ESG/sustainability space changed in 2024 and more changes are in store for 2025. Among them, as Trellis reported, updates to a few of the major sustainability-related standards. Certified B Corporation/B Lab Global. “There are more...
Jan 9 2025 #assurance, #climate, #compliance, #environment, #esg, #investors, #social, #supply-chain
New This Week on PracticalESG.com
This week’s notable additions to PracticalESG.com are below. New Q&A: New answers posted – Are Carbon Emissions Reductions “Additional” If They Are Subject To Existing Regulations? Blog of the Week: Can Your GC Answer ESG Questions? Shein’s Sure Can’t New...
Jan 8 2025 #climate, #environment, #esg, #investors
NZBA’s New Climate Anti-Quorum
Unless you went completely off-grid for the month of December, you already know that the UN’s Net-Zero Banking Alliance (NZBA) saw Bank of America, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, and Wells Fargo withdraw from the organization. Right after the first of the...
Jan 8 2025 #compliance, #esg, #human-rights, #social, #supply-chain
Can Your GC Answer ESG Questions? Shein’s Sure Can’t
On January 7, 2025, online retailer Shein’s General Counsel for EMEA went before the UK Parliament’s Business and Trade Committee to answer questions about the possibility of forced labor in the company’s supply chain and compliance with the UK Modern...
Jan 8 2025 #climate, #environment, #esg, #supply-chain
The Climate Conundrum of Salesforce’s New Agentforce
You may have seen the recent TV ad with Matthew McConaughey sitting at an outdoors restaurant table in the rain. The ad is for Salesforce’s new offering Agentforce, which according to their word salad of marketing jargon press release –...
Jan 7 2025 #climate, #compliance, #environment, #esg, #investors
FASB Seeks Input on Accounting Standards Relating to Sustainability
Last week, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) published an Agenda Consultation/Invitation to Comment (ITC) on a number of topics, some of which could impact environmental matters including aspects of climate risk/offsets. One has potential relevance to asset retirement obligations...
Jan 7 2025 #climate, #compliance, #diversity, #environment, #equity, #esg, #human-rights, #investors, #social, #supply-chain
What Will You Do With Your CSRD Data?
Of course, the emphasis on CSRD disclosures has been data gathering and reporting – but have you thought about what you can do with that data? Advisory Board Member Donato Calace of Datamaran is gathering information on just that through...
Jan 7 2025 #climate, #diversity, #environment, #equity, #esg, #human-rights, #investors, #social, #supply-chain
A New Take on the Sustainability Business Case for the New Year
Last week, Trellis published an article that offers good, updated advice on the business case for sustainability. The article takes on four myths or critiques of how the sustainability business case is typically presented, which closely mirror shortcomings we frequently...
Jan 2 2025 #climate, #compliance, #environment, #esg, #investors, #social, #supply-chain
The Ominous Setting Behind The EU Omnibus Package
Welcome back to work and to 2025. We hope you had a nice holiday. Before the break, Financial Times took a deep dive into the current economic and political scenery behind the Omnibus package that is front and center in...
Jan 2 2025 #climate, #compliance, #environment, #esg, #supply-chain
New York Passes Superfund-Style Climate Liability Law
Right as the year ended, Brad Molotsky of Duane Morris wrote that “New York passes second in the nation ‘Polluter Pays’ Superfund type law – $75B fund to be created for infrastructure projects by attempting to hold fossil fuel companies...
Jan 2 2025 #assurance, #climate, #compliance, #diversity, #environment, #equity, #esg, #human-rights, #investors, #social, #supply-chain
Two Things Sustainability Professionals Should Keep In Mind for 2025
Welcome back to work. We hope you had a great holiday and New Years. If 2024 was challenging for our profession, 2025 won’t be easier. The complexity in which we are mired will only grow. I have two suggestions for...
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Featured Q&A Members Only
Withdrawal of Shareholder Proposals on Human Rights
Ia anyone aware of a market survey or other practical guidance on what would be appropriate to offer when trying to negotiate shareholder to withdraw a proposal? Specifically for human rights or ESG related reporting matters. The only somewhat helpful information I could find was ICCRs summary for their Corporate Change – proxy season recap summary each proxy season, but wondering if there are other similar or more comprehensive indications somewhere online.
01/13/2025, Question #26148
Are Carbon Emissions Reductions “Additional” If They Are Subject To Existing Regulations?
Here is a question I posed in a blog.
The situation – Emissions offsets are created and sold by plugging abandoned natural gas wells. In at least some states, existing regulations require well owners to plug wells once they are no longer in use. However, it is not uncommon for well owners to ignore the mandate, and sometimes regulators can’t enforce the regulations because surface or mineral rights owners can’t be located. There are state and federally-funded programs to plug these “orphan wells” and bring them into compliance.
The question – Are emissions reductions “additional” if there is an existing legal obligation to eliminate them and the owner simply has chosen not to comply? Do applicable state laws and regulations mean that emissions reductions should have occurred anyway because they are legally mandated regardless of financial incentives provided by the carbon offset market?
Food for thought – Preventing deforestation to create additionality in nature-based offsets relies on legal mechanisms – regulations, contracts, etc. If legal mechanisms are a basis for establishing additionality, do they also prevent additionality if mandates to prevent emissions are on the books but not acted on?
12/18/2024, Question #25934
Hyperlinking website ESG materials in Form 10-K
Wanted to get your view on cross-references in a Form 10-K to a company’s website ESG materials. While we have advised clients of the importance of consistency between the 10-K and website ESG materials and inclusion of material ESG information appearing on their websites in the 10-K, specifically referring to the website ESG materials and providing a hyperlink doesn’t seem to be a good idea. At least some of the website information was not produced or vetted with the idea that it would be part of the company’s SEC filings disclosure (given that, whether it’s even appropriate to include on the website may also be an issue).
12/17/2024, Question #25869