As the world marks UN World Environment Day today, Christian Peoples Alliance (CPA) Executive member David Campanale says the City of London must admit to its role in financing the process and production of carbon fuels, which contribute to global warming.
The UN slogan for 2008 is 'Kick the Habit! Towards a Low Carbon Economy'. The founding chairman of the CPA is urging the estimated 10 per cent of Britons who are regular churchgoers to re-deploy their funds from asset managers overweight in fossil fuel investments. He is also campaigning for the City to disclose the potential climate impact of its assets if converted to CO2.
"We've just heard that the North Sea has almost as much oil left in it as we have already taken out, with oil experts claiming that up to thirty billion barrels could still be recovered," said Campanale. "Yet these are not just assets, they are liabilities. The perverse reality is that if these reserves are burnt - along with other remaining sources of carbon - the world will be tipped over threshold critical levels of atmospheric CO2."
A recent CPA London Assembly candidate, Campanale says that the London Stock Exchange could become a world leader in carbon accounting and reporting if missions are recognised as a material commodity with a financial value and significant associated risks. He supports a recent amendment made to the Climate Change Bill in the House of Lords that makes it mandatory for large companies to report on their carbon emissions.
Figures from City analysts point out that as a country, the United Kingdom is responsible for 2 per cent of all global emissions. But estimated emissions from the process and production of oil, gas and coal companies listed on the London Stock Exchange amount to a far greater proportion - at least 15 per cent of the global total.
Campanale continued: "I want to see full disclosure by the City of London of the impact on climate change of the companies and projects that they finance. At the
moment, the reality of climate change and the existence of Kyoto is mentioned but ignored in initial public offering (IPO) documents.
"Also, fossil fuel companies are not required to disclose the potential climate impact of converting their proven assets into CO2. This must change so that accounting rules factor in the full external costs of burning carbon reserves.
"By pricing the true cost of carbon on company balance sheets, perverse distortions to capital allocations will be tackled."
