HomeEnvironmental groups such as the Green Citizens Action Alliance held a press conference, calling on companies to propose net-zero phased goals as soon as possible.
(Photo by reporter Chen Jiayi)
[Reporter Chen Jiayi/Report from Taipei] Faced with the threat of extreme climate, net zero emissions by 2050 have become an imperative carbon reduction goal.
The Green Citizens Action Alliance and other environmental groups held a press conference today (20th) to take stock of more than 1,700 listed counter companies in Taiwan. Only 2.64% of the companies clearly put forward net zero commitments. Net zero is a phased goal, and the government should also amend the law to require companies to disclose carbon emission information, so that Taiwan can gradually achieve net zero.
Ke Qianyong, a researcher at the Green Citizens Action Alliance, said that the Green Alliance has compiled the greenhouse gas inventory of the Environmental Protection Agency and the ESG data released by companies, and found that of the more than 1,700 listed counter companies in Taiwan, only 47 companies have clearly made net zero commitments, accounting for only 2.64% of the total. %, in contrast, nearly 40% of the top 2000 companies in the world have made net-zero commitments, and Taiwan’s listed counter companies are obviously insufficient in their ambition to declare net-zero.
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The ring group also named the petrochemical and steel industries with high carbon emissions, and believed that the industrial structure must be adjusted in order to move towards net zero.
Xu Mengping, a researcher at the Environmental Rights Protection Foundation, pointed out that among the top 20 carbon-emitting companies in Taiwan, 9 companies are in the petrochemical industry.
If Taiwan wants to move towards the goal of net zero, only the expansion of renewable energy and energy-saving measures will have limited effect. The transformation of industrial structure is imperative. However, the international community has begun to advocate reducing the use of petrochemical raw material "ethylene" and reducing the scale of the petrochemical industry. It is recommended that Taiwan also There should be discussion of including this topic in a net zero strategy.
Deng Yuyou, director of the Citizens of the Earth Foundation, said that Sinosteel and its subsidiary Zhonglong account for about one-tenth of Taiwan's carbon emissions. The reduction target is only set to reduce carbon emissions by 22% compared with 2018, which is far lower than the UN's goal of reducing carbon emissions by 43%.
In addition, Sinosteel should also take on the responsibility of the parent company, requiring Zhonglong to formulate specific carbon reduction commitments as soon as possible to enhance the carbon reduction momentum of Taiwan's steel industry chain.
Lin Yijun, a researcher at the Taiwan Climate Action Network, believes that it is also an international trend for companies to disclose carbon emission information. At present, the Netherlands has required buildings to disclose carbon emissions in building regulations, and the United States has also required tenderers to disclose carbon emissions in public procurement policies. However, Taiwan is currently The policy tools for carbon emission information disclosure are obviously insufficient, and it is recommended that the government refer to foreign cases.
Chen Zhenyuan, a researcher of the Green Citizens Action Alliance, called on listed companies to fulfill their corporate social responsibilities, take the initiative to conduct carbon inventory, and put forward net zero commitments and carbon reduction plans.
In addition, in order to encourage companies to propose a more aggressive schedule for greenhouse gas reduction, the government should revise the "National Greenhouse Gas Reduction Target" and increase the target of 20% reduction in 2030; the draft of the twelve key strategies for net zero that will be announced in the near future should also be included "Information disclosure" and regard climate information disclosure as an important project of green finance and energy conservation, and promote enterprises to move towards net zero.
NSFOCUS compiled the environmental protection agency's greenhouse gas inventory and ESG data released by companies, and found that out of more than 1,700 listed counter companies in Taiwan, only 47 companies clearly made net zero commitments, accounting for only 2.64% of the total.
(Photographed by reporter Chen Jiayi)