Report casts doubt on net-zero emissions pledges by big global companies

A waste collector looks for recyclable materials as smoke billows from burning garbage at the Bhalswa landfill site on World Environment Day in New Delhi, India, June 5, 2022. - Reuters

LONDON: Corporate plans to slash greenhouse gas emissions fall short of what is needed to combat climate change, with "major credibility gaps" found among the world's largest companies, according to a new stocktake of net-zero efforts in the public and private sector.

Roughly half of the Forbes 2000 largest companies have yet to announce plans to reach net-zero — the point at which greenhouse gas emissions are negated by deep cuts in output as well as methods to absorb atmospheric carbon dioxide. Of the 702 companies with a net-zero target, two-thirds haven't made it clear how they plan to achieve that goal, Net Zero Tracker found in their annual report.