Only 100 companies are responsible for 71% of the global emissions

A new report has revealed that only 100 companies are responsible for more than 70% of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions since the year 1988. Normally greenhouse gas emissions reports and data is collected at the national level, but this report mainly focused on fossil fuel producer. The report is aimed at educating companies and investors about the roles they could play in tracking climate change.

According to the report more than half of the global industrial emissions from the year, 1988 to now can be traced to only 25 corporate and state-owned entities. The historical emissions which are mainly associated with fossil fuel producers are big enough to add to climate change currently being witnessed in the world.

The companies identify to be emitting the highest emissions are ExxonMobil, Shell, BP, and Chevron. The report further indicated that if fossil fuels continue to be extracted in the same way they have been extracted since 1988 then in the next 28 years world’s temperature will have risen by 4 degrees. The consequence of the rise will be species extinctions and also a scarcity of food.

Whereas firms have a big role to play in climate change they have been torn between profitability and the urgent need to reduce the emissions. This is because they would be forced to spend more than $2 trillion within a decade in the search for coal, gas, and oil which would not be worth the effort according to them.

Michael Brune of the US environmental Sierra Club stated that: “The current trends are not only morally risky, but they are also economically risky. The world should move faster from fossil fuels to green energy at a faster pace. The people who will still hold their investments in fossil fuels will be out of place very soon. It's our obligation to ensure that our environment is safe.