Big business doing little to reduce emissions

Only a minority of Switzerland's biggest companies has a convincing carbon-reduction strategy or concrete plans to reduce emissions.

That was the main finding of a second climate change survey released on Monday by the private bank, Pictet, and the foundation, Ethos.

The Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) survey was distributed to Switzerland’s 100 biggest listed companies.

Of the 50 largest, 23 have a concrete plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but only four have set absolute targets.

The authors of the study added that not all companies were fully aware of all the risks and opportunities the issue entails.

Pictet and Ethos said “far too few have identified their exposure to climate-related risks in a systematic manner, taking into account the entire value chain”.

The Swiss report follows the sixth global CDP report, issued last month, and was based on the answers to a questionnaire sent to the world’s 500 largest publicly traded companies.

The report concluded that companies see climate change as a source of risks but also as an opportunity. Uncertainty surrounding climate legislation is holding back strategic investment decisions, it said.