By Paul Homewood
h/t Cheshire Red
Even by Guardian standards, this has to be one of the most mendacious, not to mention absurd, articles yet:
Three out of 10 of the UK’s biggest public companies emit carbon dioxide at a rate that would contribute significantly to the climate crisis, according to analysis that shows the scale of the challenge for corporate Britain to cut emissions to zero.
Thirty-one members of the FTSE 100, the index of Britain’s largest listed companies, are emitting carbon dioxide at a rate consistent with global temperature increases of 2.7C or more by 2050, according to analysis by Arabesque, a company that provides climate data to investors.
Highlighting the mounting risks to the planet, the rise would be above the target set under the 2015 Paris climate accords to limit global heating to below 2C and pursue efforts to limit it to 1.5C. A temperature rise of 2.7C is thought to be likely to lead to severe damage to the environment and to human life.
Oil companies including BP and Royal Dutch Shell are among those that produce carbon dioxide emissions consistent with temperature rises of more than 2.7C, even without taking into account the emissions related to the fossil fuels they dig up and sell, known as scope 3 emissions.
The mining sector also performed poorly, with Anglo American, Antofagasta, BHP, Evraz, Fresnillo and Polymetal all among the companies scored at above 2.7C.
Let’s leave aside the nonsense that oil companies “emit carbon dioxide”, rather than the drivers and homeowners who actually burn the stuff, and get straight to the nitty gritty.
The key lies in this phrase:
are emitting carbon dioxide at a rate consistent with global temperature increases of 2.7C
Most people (well at least Guardian readers!) reading this would naively assume that these wicked companies are emitting enough carbon dioxide between them to boil the planet. In fact what the Arabesque analysis does is to look at what plans companies have to reduce emissions, and then prorata this to what the rest of the world is doing.
So, for example, if a company has no plans to cut emissions, and every other country in the world carried on in the same way, temperature would rise by 2.7C or more.
In reality of course, far from cutting emissions, the rest of the world is planning to carry on increasing them. something confirmed in their Paris pledges:
Back here in the UK, industrial emissions are just 88 Mt, about 0.2% of the global total. Clearly whatever UK companies do will have no effect whatsoever on global temperatures, and it is fraudulent for the Guardian to claim otherwise.
But naturally the Guardian could not resist the temptation to attack capitalism once again.
via NOT A LOT OF PEOPLE KNOW THAT
March 1, 2021 at 06:00AM
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