Canadians Securities Administrators Release Environmental Reporting Guidance: Says Public Companies Must Disclose Climate Risks
October 27, 2010
The Canadian Securities Administrators’ Environmental Reporting Guidance was released today through CSA Staff Notice 51-333.
Companies subject to the Canadian Securities Regulators, including the Ontario Security Commission’s (OSC) disclosure rules now have definitive guidance on, and must disclose material climate risks, including those related to potential carbon regulation and pricing and physical effects of climate change, such as changing weather patterns and water availability.
51-333 will assist companies in interpreting material environmental matters, which must be disclosed under a reporting issuer’s Continuous Disclosure (CD) Requirements, set out under National Instrument 51-102 Continuous Disclosure Obligations.
Commentary for Environmental Risks 51-333 concludes:
All relevant environmental risks should be considered in deciding what to disclose. Generally, risks that may impact an issuer’s business and operations can be divided into five categories: litigation, physical, regulatory, reputation and business model. As with any other type of disclosure, material risks should be disclosed in a meaningful way, avoiding boilerplate disclosure. An issuer needs to disclose both the risk and the factual basis for it.
Some examples of disclosure issues:
Physical Risks:
How is the issuer likely to be affected by physical risks of environmental matters, such as the impacts of industrial contamination, changing weather patterns and water availability?
Regulatory risks:
What are the actual and expected impacts of current and likely environmental regulation on the issuer’s business and strategy? Regulations may include environmental permits, reporting requirements, carbon pricing systems, carbon limits and trading systems, energy efficiency standards and building codes. They can include both applicable domestic and foreign requirements. The issuer should consider specific risks it faces as a result of environmental legislation or regulation, and avoid generic risk factor disclosure. Where the exact limits or targets are uncertain, an assumption of ranges may be used to determine how certain requirements might reasonably be expected to affect an issuer.
The Staff Notice concludes:
Issuers should consider the guidance in this notice when preparing their CD documents to ensure that their disclosure of environmental matters complies with securities legislation and provides investors with meaningful information for making investment decisions. We will continue to monitor disclosure of environmental matters as part of our ongoing CD review program. (see p. 26)
More information to follow…
California Prop 23– Results from Ballot Initiative to Defeat GHG Targets Due Nov. 2
October 26, 2010
California’s Clean Air legislation, AB 32, requires the state to cut Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to 1990 levels by 2020. It’s an ambitious piece of legislation, providing the lynchpin for California’s GHG action plan, which in turn serves as one of the main bases for the Western Climate Initiative, of which BC, Ontario, Manitoba and Quebec are partners. See a summary of its contents here.
If passed, a California ballot initiative, Proposition 23, which will go to the ballot on Nov. 2, 2010, would suspend the implementation of AB 32 until the state’s current unemployment rate (currently over 12%) drops to 5.5% for four consecutive quarters. The practical effect of this would be to derail climate legislation in California for the foreseeable future.
Recent polls suggest that
“Prop 23, meanwhile, is losing steam. A Los Angeles Times/University of Southern California poll released Monday showed 48 percent of likely voters opposing the ballot initiative. Ballot initiatives — particularly in California — usually need to have majority support well before a week left before voters go to the polls.”
Quote from thehill.com
This isn’t the only concern, however. Robert Wakulat discusses prop 26, which has been called “the most dangerous prop you’ve never heard of,” by Heidi Pickman, spokeswoman for the “No On Prop 26” campaign. In essence, prop 26 would raise the threshold for approving certain fees to the level required for approving taxes (a 2/3rd vote in the legislature), which could seriously undermine the ability of regulators to levy fines on actions that harm the environment. See Robert’s take here.
New Article: BC Regulatory Requirements to Measure and Report Greenhouse Gases in 2010
October 14, 2010
Read Travis’ new article for “Innovation” the Journal of the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of BC here. Travis discusses BC’s Greenhouse Gas Reporting Regulations, which begin with the 2010 reporting year. He also discusses verification/conflict of interest issues.
CNBC Energy Opportunities Debate
October 7, 2010
Laura Zizzo was honoured to be part of the CNBC Energy Opportunities Debate help in Montreal last month. The debate brought together leaders in the field to discuss carbon reducing policies. The panelists debated the way forward and discussed risks and opportunities associated with climate and carbon policy.
The debate has been posted online. Laura’s comments on Copenhagen begin at the 6:30 mark in the recording and her comments on Ontario’s Green Energy Act begin at 10:50.
Ontario Closes Four Coal Power Units
October 1, 2010
Today’s permanent closure of four coal-fired electricity generation units marks a milestone in Ontario’s move towards a cleaner and greener electricity system. Coal is the single largest source of greenhouse gas emissions. The Ontario government has pledged to phase out all coal fire generation in the province by 2014. Today two of eight units at Nanticoke and two of four units at Lambton power plants were permanently closed!
This move is further supported by the Green Energy and Green Economy Act, which promotes conservation and renewable energy generation in the province.
This move has been applauded by the Green Energy Act Alliance. In today’s news release the Executive Director of Environmental Defence is quoted as saying “Coal is history in Ontario”.
We also congratulate and thank the Ontario government for this important action.
More information can be found on the Government’s news release.
