Boeing and South African Airways to develop sustainable biofuel supply chain
Boeing and South African Airways (SAA) have announced that they are working together to develop and implement a sustainable aviation biofuel supply chain in South Africa. Boeing and SAA said that their collaboration comes as part of a wider effort to support environmental sustainability for the airlines’ operations and the commercial aviation industry overall, while also advancing South Africa's social and economic development. The World Wildlife Fund-South Africa will monitor compliance to sustainability principles to ensure that fuel is sustainable and will lead to genuine carbon reductions. The partnership builds on Boeing’s work with airlines, research institutions, governments and other stakeholders to develop road maps for biofuel supply chains in several countries and regions, including the US, China, Australia and Brazil. (Sustainable Brands)
Reporting
Study: auditors routinely making unethical decisions in favour of client interests
According to a study examining pollution across the state of Gujarat in India by Harvard University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, auditors routinely make unethical decisions that favour the interests of their clients. The report, Truth-telling by Third-Party Auditors and the Response of Polluting Firms: Experimental Evidence from India, states that there are “poor incentives to tell the truth” and as auditors are keen to retain companies as clients, they suppress information that might damage companies’ business concerns. The researchers found that the auditors responsible for examining conditions at 473 plants in two industrial regions of Gujarat routinely reported pollution readings that just met the regulatory standards required and that nearly 30 percent of audit reports were falsely reported as meeting regulatory standards. (Financial Times*)
Environment
European multinationals clash over EU 2030 energy efficiency target
A group of European multinational companies, including Siemens, Philips and Schneider Electric, has called on the European Commission to adopt a long-term and legally binding energy efficiency policy framework, stating that it offers companies an “excellent business opportunity.” In a signed letter to the Commission, members of the European Alliance to Save Energy (EU-ASE) stated that "only with a clear regulatory framework" can European businesses invest and offer appropriate, affordable and accessible technologies and solutions which are "essential for the development of the low carbon economy." This comes as the chief executives of ten of Europe’s largest utility companies, including the German firms E.ON, RWE SG and France’s GDF Suez have called on the European Union to overhaul its energy and climate policies and curb green subsidies that they claim are responsible for sapping the region’s competitiveness. The EU-ASE argue that it is a mistake to trade-off the need for a binding energy savings target for 2030 with the need to restore economic competitiveness with the US. (Edie; Bloomberg)
France cements fracking ban
France's constitutional court has upheld a ban on hydraulic fracturing, describing it as a valid means of protecting the environment. Fracking was banned in France in 2011, resulting in the cancellation of oil and gas exploration licences held by the US company Schuepbach Energy and France’s largest oil company, Total SA. Following the ban, Schuepbach Energy launched a legal complaint stating that there is no study that unequivocally establishes risks from fracking and that the ban was unfair because despite the ban, the drilling technique could still be used in French geothermal energy projects. France’s Environment Minister, Philippe Martin, said that the ruling was not only "a judicial victory but also an environmental and political victory" as "with this decision the ban on hydraulic fracturing is absolute." (The Guardian)
Responsible Investment
UKSIF: 63% of UK investors want sustainable investing options
According to a survey commissioned by the UK Sustainable Investment and Finance Association (UKSIF), 63 percent of participants want to be offered sustainable or ethical investment options by high street banks. 67 percent also said that they were concerned about losing money by investing in companies which they regarded as unsustainable, such as the oil and gas industry. The survey coincides with the release of figures by the responsible investment research firm EIRIS, which said that £12.2 billion was now invested in UK green and ethical retail funds, an increase of £8 billion since 2001. Simon Howard, the Chief Executive of UKSIF, said that the survey results proved that ethical investment was “no longer just a moral issue” but “a hard-headed decision about the best way to manage your savings and plan for the future in a changing world.” (Blue & Green Tomorrow)
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