Connect with us

Finance

Groups Call On Financial Institutions to Stop Financing Major Driver of Climate Change – Center for International Environmental Law

Published

on

Groups Call On Financial Institutions to Stop Financing Major Driver of Climate Change – Center for International Environmental Law

Amidst mounting risks, policy guide urges financial institutions to exit the petrochemical industry

WASHINGTON, Oct 15, 2024 — Petrochemicals pose significant and growing risks to human health and the climate, according to a new report urging financial institutions to stop financing the petrochemical sector.

Exiting Petrochemicals: A Policy Guide for Financial Institution warns that continuing to fund the production of petrochemicals, including plastics, will not only lock in decades of emissions but could result in hundreds of billions of stranded assets.

Written by the Center for International Environmental Law, Break Free from Plastics, Friends of the Earth, and the Texas Campaign for the Environment and endorsed by more than 70 organizations, the guide outlines the mounting physical, legal, market, and social risks of investing in the petrochemical sector and calls on financial institutions to stop funding petrochemical production and exit the supply chain responsibly.

The report findings reinforce the need for the plastics treaty negotiations to deliver legally binding measures by the end of negotiations to control the expansion of plastic production and substantially reduce it, including as an important regulatory measure to prevent investment losses and risks. 

“The petrochemical industry and its toxic products pose an urgent threat to human health and the global climate. Following unprecedented hurricanes and the hottest summer on record, the United States now faces the potential buildout of 120 new petrochemical facilities and expansions, which will only exacerbate these threats,” said Brandon Marks, Petrochemicals Finance Campaigner at the Center for International Environmental Law, “Regulatory, legal, reputational, and financial risks are rapidly mounting for the petrochemical sector, including oversupplied and unproven markets for plastics and ammonia. Choosing to finance and insure these projects is not just irresponsible; it’s a poor investment. Banks, insurers, and investors must stop financing petrochemicals now.”

Advertisement

“The communities most impacted by these developments, often low-income and communities of color, bear the brunt of pollution and health risks. We must hold financial institutions accountable for their role in financing these harmful projects,” said Sharon Lavigne, Founder and Executive Director at RISE St. James. “It’s time to stop funding environmental racism and start investing in a cleaner, safer future for everyone.”

“Given the terrible damage that I have seen corporations like Formosa Plastics do to communities, workers, fisheries, bays, and fishermen, the line has to be drawn: No more funding for plastics and petrochemicals!” said Diane Wilson, Executive Director of the San Antonio Bay Estuarine Waterkeeper and fourth-generation fisherwoman.

“Plastics have long been associated with ocean pollution, but it’s clear now they pollute absolutely everything,” said Paloma Henriques, Senior Petrochemicals Campaigner at Friends of the Earth, “Plastics and the 16,000 chemicals used to make them contaminate food, water, air, blood, and even breastmilk. The petrochemical industry poses an existential threat to public health, biodiversity, and climate stability. With a pending global plastics treaty and increasing national and local regulations, the financial sector has both a moral obligation and a fiduciary duty to responsibly exit the petrochemical industry.”

“Much of the infrastructure required for the expansion of the petrochemical industry is being proposed in working class and communities of color in the Gulf South and the Ohio River Valley, areas which are already overburdened with toxic industrial pollution,” said Matthew Kennedy, Petrochemical Campaign Coordinator at Texas Campaign for the Environment. “We are demanding that financial institutions stop perpetuating this environmental racism by phasing out financing of the petrochemical sector.”

Media Contact:

Lindsey Jurca at press@ciel.org or +1 (202) 489-4769 

Advertisement
Continue Reading
Advertisement
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Finance

NYCB to be renamed Flagstar Financial as turnaround gathers pace

Published

on

NYCB to be renamed Flagstar Financial as turnaround gathers pace

(Reuters) -New York Community Bancorp will rename itself as Flagstar Financial, the U.S. regional lender said on Tuesday, amid efforts to turn around its struggling business.

The bank came under pressure after it reported in January increased stress in its commercial real estate portfolio that also rekindled concerns over the health of the sector recovering from the failures of a slew of regional banks in 2023.

Under Joseph Otting, a former comptroller of the currency who was named CEO in March, NYCB has laid out a plan to return to profitability and vowed to shrink its balance sheet by reducing non-core assets.

The name change marks “another milestone in our ongoing transformation”, Otting said in a statement on Tuesday.

NYCB will also change its stock symbol to “FLG.” The name change will become effective on Oct. 25.

Advertisement

Flagstar Bank is a subsidiary of New York Community Bancorp. The lender announced its $2.6 billion acquisition of Flagstar in 2021.

(Reporting by Jaiveer Singh Shekhawat in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila and Alan Barona)

Continue Reading

Finance

Prabowo to Reappoint Sri Mulyani as Indonesia’s Finance Minister

Published

on

Prabowo to Reappoint Sri Mulyani as Indonesia’s Finance Minister
Continue Reading

Finance

Patricia Kummer: Women's financial security may be at risk – Douglas County News Press

Published

on

Patricia Kummer: Women's financial security may be at risk – Douglas County News Press

Looking back 39 years to October of 1985, I finally completed my studies for the certified financial planner certification and was itching to share my knowledge with others. Having just completed almost three years of coursework where I was often the only female in the room, I decided to learn more about why there were not more women in finance. This revealed a myriad of other issues that to this day continue to plague women preparing for retirement. I set off to teach classes at the local library and start writing a finance column for this newspaper to empower others to be financially prepared for an unknown future.

Fast forward to the present day, and I come across a recent UBS study that states 85% of high-net-worth women across every generation still tend to leave long-term financial decisions to their male counterparts.¹ This includes women running businesses, households and managing daily finances for themselves and their families, often spanning three generations.

Early in my career, I studied the different investment styles by gender, which helped me significantly when working with couples who were not always on the same page. I was able to give them permission to think about money differently, because it often means different things depending on if you are the rainmaker or the caretaker. Being on a career track myself, as well as a wife and mother and, yes, daughter, I too was juggling three generations along with both my and my husband’s businesses. I get it: There is not enough time in the day, and you must prioritize.

Gender differences proved fascinating in learning about the hunter-gatherer versus the nurturer. Even though we don’t live in caves anymore and women and men equally have successful careers, those nurturing or hunting instincts never go away. Therefore (and what I love about my husband), men always seem willing to run faster, work harder and do whatever it takes to succeed, in my opinion. This hunter mentality is often mirrored in the male’s investment style. This may include switching out of investments prematurely if they are not performing or always looking for another advantage. Women are more likely to want a plan and be loyal to it for long periods of time before making changes. Both types of investing have their pros and cons.

The female’s nurturing character and the juggling act often left her career or her self-needs last on the priority list. This can equate to lower Social Security due to an erratic work life or time off to stay at home with children or parents — or even following the hunter-gatherer around the globe for his career.

Advertisement

Women and their family members need to know that pensions and Social Security may be lower than those of their male counterparts, and investments may be more conservative. Women also tend to live longer, therefore needing more money. Married women with families may have had less of an opportunity to fund a 401(k) plan, especially if they worked part-time for a while or earned lower wages. It is important to plan well considering these circumstances.

It is crucial to meet with an adviser and start your retirement plan if any of this information sounds familiar for you or someone you know. Education is key, and taking action is now a priority to prepare for the future.

1 “Women Put Financial Security at Risk by Deferring Long-Term Financial Decisions to Spouses,” March 2019. UBS.

Patricia Kummer is a managing director for Mariner Wealth Advisors.

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Trending