Move over net zero: The growing push for big businesses to manage nature risks
Trillions of dollars of economic output - and equity market value - could be vulnerable to nature risks. There are now calls for companies to disclose and manage it.
The impact of salmon farming on the endangered Maugean skate in Tasmania’s Macquarie Harbour illustrates the need for big companies to focus on managing their nature-related risks.
Reduced levels of dissolved oxygen from aquaculture in the harbour is threatening the skate’s survival, and conservation groups are now pressuring supermarket chains Woolworths, Coles and Aldi to stop stocking farmed salmon.
Consumer group Eko has set up an online petition against the sale of salmon from fish farms in Macquarie Harbour that has attracted 40,000 signatures.
It's no longer enough for companies to set credible climate targets and net zero commitments. Big businesses are now under pressure from stakeholders to report on their impact on nature, ecosystems and biodiversity and any risks from these dependencies. Research from PwC has found that more than half of global economic output — or USD58 trillion — is dependant on nature and therefore exposed to nature risks.
