Canada wants lead in carbon market

In June, the Canadian government announced its plans to develop the first industry-wide standard for storing captured carbon emissions underground. The government has hired CSA Standards and the International Performance Assessment Centre for Geologic Storage of Carbon Dioxide to help them develop a carbon capture and storage (CCS) standard for industrial emissions.

The completed standard will be submitted to the Standards Council of Canada, in a move that should establish it as the world’s first formally recognized CCS standard for underground storage (businessgreen.com). CSA Standards hopes this will be used as the basis for an international standard endorsed by the International Organization of Standardization.

On the flip side, opponents of CCS projects have voiced their concerns over the safety of storing carbon underground. Industry insiders agree that robust safety standards will be absolutely necessary if the sector wants widespread support of the project.

What do you think of storing captured carbon emissions underground? Will the industry be able to gain widespread support of projects such as these? What will the Canadian government have to deliver in order to secure this support?  Tell us your thoughts!

Senate Defeats Resolution to Regulate Emissions

In 2007, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the EPA had the authority to regulate GHG emissions under the Clean Air Act. In December 2009, the EPA announced an endangerment finding that outlined the six primary GHGs that threaten public health and welfare. In January of this year, Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) introduced a resolution that tried to prevent the EPA from regulating GHG emissions under the Clean Air Act.

On February 12 the U.S. Chamber of Commerce filed a formal petition asking the court to review the EPA ruling, stating that it “will challenge EPA’s decision to trigger Clean Air Act regulation, based on lapses in EPA’s process in making that decision,” according to Steven Law, chief legal officer and general counsel at the Chamber (http://www.socialfunds.com/news/article.cgi/2969.html).

Murkowski’s resolution finally came to a vote last week, where it was defeated by a vote of 53-47. At least eight Senators made statements saying the U.S. needs to reduce GHG emissions, according to Eileen Claussen, President of the Pew Center on Global Climate Change. This defeats seems to pave the way for a vote on the American Power Act, which was introduced by Senators John Kerry and Joseph Lieberman last month. They set the reduction target at 17% below 2005 levels by 2020, and most emissions allowances mandated in the bill will be free until 2019.

What do you think this defeat says about the mindset of Congress, in regards to climate change? Do you think the American Power Act has a chance to pass after this defeat? Tell us your thoughts!

To read the full article by Social Funds, please click here.

Six Thousand US Companies Support Climate Change Legislation

Last week, SocialFunds.com ran an article stating that six thousand US companies are in support of climate change legislation. This number came from an analysis conducted by American Businesses for Clean Energy (ABCE) where they tallied up membership in seven coalitions and initiatives, including We Can Lead and the US Climate Action Partnership.

These companies employ an estimated 3.5 million people, represent more than $2.6 trillion in market cap and totaled $3.5 trillion in estimated revenue in 2009. Of these companies, 21 were Fortune 100 companies and 49 were Fortune 500 companies, including Target, Boeing, General Electric, Ford, IBM and United Technologies.

Christopher Van Atten of ABCE said “This unprecedented outpouring of business support for real leadership from the White House and US Senate on clean energy and climate should be a wake up call for elected officials in Washington” (SocialFunds.com).

To read the full article please click here.

What do you think? Is this analysis enough to make the government stand up and take notice? What does it really say about the corporate world’s stance on energy and climate change? Let’s hear your thoughts!

BrownFlynn participates in closing bell ceremony today at Nasdaq!

Click here to view a video of the NASDAQ closing bell ceremony and see BrownFlynn Principal & Co-owner Barb Brown and Director of Learning Beth Meany!

BrownFlynn to participate in Environmental Benchmarking Forum

Barb Brown, Principal & Co-owner, and Beth Meany, Director of Learning, will participate in a Utility Environmental Benchmarking Forum May 12-13, 2010 in Chattanooga, TN. The forum is sponsored by Utility Environmental Footprint, a voluntary partnership of utility and other environmentally-focused entities who will share lessons learned and best practices in sustainability.

The focus of the forum will be to provide the participants with benchmarks to stimulate industry environmental improvement. Participants include American Electric Power (AEP), Duke Energy, Exelon, Oncor, and Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA).

Barb and Beth will be featured speakers along with representatives from Shaw Industries, Navigant Consulting and Symbiotic Engineering. Other topics to be covered include environmental footprint assessment and explanation, best-in-class performance and sustainability planning.

For more information please visit www.utilityenvironmentalfootprint.com.

Sustainability is more than ‘going green’

Adam Werbach wrote an article in the McKinsey Quarterly last year entitled “When Sustainability Means More Than Green”. It’s common for people to immediately think of “going green”: recycling, conserving energy and anything that has to do with the environment, when hearing the word ‘sustainability’.  What many don’t know is that sustainability is more than just ‘going green’. Werbach states that “companies must consider their social, economic and cultural impact as well” as protecting the environment (McKinsey 74).

Werbach tells us that society has great expecations of successful corporations, and holds them accountable for overcoming the challenges facing our planet today, and in the future. Overcoming these challenges is more than just corporate responsibility, it’s survival. Short-term thinking is the reason why many corporations have not been able to meet the challenges, and sustain themselves. The auto industry is a good example of this.

SEC to bring ESG into Regulation?

Last week Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) announced it is acquiring RiskMetrics (who themselves acquired KLD, Innovest and Institutional Shareholder Services in the past three years). Is this a sign that ESG  is going mainstream? Another clue might be the agenda of last week’s SEC Investor Advisory Committee (IAC) meeting, which included such items as an “ESG Disclosure Work Plan” and “Proxy Voting Transparency”. Author Bill Baue asks: what does it mean?

The existence of the IAC is a good indication that ESG regulation may be under way. It attests to the ‘G’ aspect of ESG. The IAC acts as a sounding board, giving guidance to the SEC on their regulatory agenda. Though the SEC doesn’t have to act on anything the IAC recommends, its existence is still a vehicle of expression for the public voice – meaning the SEC would need a good reason to ignore the recommendations of the IAC, according to Baue.

Walmart announces GHG reduction goal

Last week Walmart announced it will eliminate 20 million metric tons of GHG emissions from its global supply chain by the end of 2015. This goal represents one and a half times the company’s estimated global carbon footprint growth over the next five years and is the equivalent of taking more than 3.8 million cars off the road for a year, according to a press release issued by Walmart and the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF).

Walmart worked with EDF to develop an approach that looks at their supply chain on a global scale. Other advisors have signed on to identify projects, track and measure reductions, engage suppliers and ensure proper procedures are followed for each GHG claim. The program has three main components: Selection, Action and Assessment. For the Selection component, Walmart will focus on product categories with the highest embedded carbon. For the Action component, products must reduce GHGs in either the sourcing or end-of-life disposal, Walmart must demonstrate it had direct influence on the reduction, and show how the reduction wouldn’t have occurred without Walmart’s participation. For the Assessment component, suppliers and Walmart will jointly account for the reductions, and ClearCarbon will perform a quality assurance review of those claims to ensure the process is correct. PricewaterhouseCoopers will then assess under consulting standards to make sure the process is correct.

This announcement by Walmart is a clear indication that suppliers need to act fast in order to compete in their supply chain.

BrownFlynn in The Plain Dealer

Barb, Beth, Margie

BrownFlynn was featured in an article in the Business Section of The Plain Dealer (Ohio’s largest newspaper) yesterday, highlighting our ability to adapt to the changing economic climate and capture new business opportunities amidst a serious recession. A reporter spoke with Principals and Co-owners Barb Brown and Margie Flynn, as well as Director of Learning Beth Meany (who was particularly highlighted for her work in establishing/running our new division, BrownFlynn Learning). 

Check out the article here.

The BrownFlynn team volunteers at the Cleveland Foodbank

Hallie, Emily and Melissa

Marianne, Beth and Barb

Barb, Marianne and Beth

Anita, Emily, Melissa, Margie and Hallie

Emily, Marianne, Barb, Marissa and Melissa

This past Monday our team spent a couple of hours at the Cleveland Foodbank volunteering in the warehouse packing ‘boxed lunches’ to deliver to different neighborhoods in need around Cleveland. One of our goals in our recently released first sustainability report was to develop a formal community investment policy for things like pro bono work and employee volunteer time. What better way to fulfill this goal, as well as give back around the holidays, than to volunteer?

Not only was it gratifying to know we supported a wonderful organization that helps thousands of people each year, but it was nice to spend time with each other outside of the office. Volunteering is a great team-building activity with several benefits, and it’s especially satisfying around the holidays when there are so many in need. Above are some pictures of our trip.