Nature and biodiversity: US$44 trillion at risk as new framework nudges global businesses on disclosures and action

Name: China, climate change and El Nino: an emerging food, water and power crisis
Uploaded: 2023-09-19T07:38:59.000Z
Duration: 28 min 58 s
Description: China, climate change and El Nino: an emerging food, water and power crisis

Task force on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) on Monday announced 14 recommended disclosures relating to nature loss

‘Nature risk is sitting in company cash flows and capital portfolios today,’ says TNFD co-chair, as ‘the costs of inaction are mounting quickly’

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An aerial photo taken on July 7, 2023, shows Gahai Lake in northwest China’s Gansu Province. The area has seen a rise in the animal population amid efforts to preserve its biodiversity. Photo: Xinhua

Eric Ng

Published: 3:38pm, 19 Sep 2023Updated: 6:03pm, 19 Sep 2023

A new global framework for companies to report their exposure to nature loss will provide much needed impetus for them to seriously assess and manage their risks, similar to the way they are required to manage climate-change risks.

The Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) on Monday announced its final recommendation of 14 disclosures aligned with the goals of a framework adopted by more than 190 nations last December.

“The recommendations aim to inform better decision-making by companies and capital providers, and ultimately contribute to a shift in global financial flows toward nature-positive outcomes and the goals of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework,” the TNFD said in a statement.

Some US$44 trillion of economic value, or more than half of the world’s total economic output, is moderately or highly dependent on nature, according to a 2020 report published by the World Economic Forum, a lobby group for multinational companies. The construction sector was ranked the most vulnerable with US$4 trillion of value at risk, followed by US$2.5 trillion in the agriculture sector and US$1.4 trillion in the food and beverages industry.

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China, climate change and El Nino: an emerging food, water and power crisis

By 2030, the Kunming-Montreal framework aims to achieve conservation of 30 per cent of all land, sea and inland waters; restoration of 30 per cent of degraded ecosystems; a halving of the introduction of invasive species; and a US$500 billion annual reduction in harmful subsidies.