Renewable Revolution

August 2021 Digest

Dear Anthony,

The publication of Part One of the IPCC’s Sixth Assessment report
at the beginning of August sends yet another clear warning ahead
of the Glasgow climate summit: we don't have another decade to
waste, and only rapid and drastic reductions in greenhouse gases in
this decade can prevent climate breakdown. The IPCC warns that
temperatures are likely to rise by more than 1.5C, bringing
widespread extreme weather. As climate catastrophes continue to
be more and more frequent in every corner of the globe, banks are,
however, far from taking the action needed to avoid climate collapse.

This month we learned Deutsche Bank, JPMorgan Chase, and
Standard Chartered participated in a massive USD 1 billion loan to
Adani Enterprises, a subsidiary of the Adani Group, which is building
what would be the biggest coal mine in Australia, the Carmichael
thermal coal project.


This project would add billions of tonnes of CO2
into the atmosphere, destroying the land and culture
of the Wangan and Jagalingou people,
increasing shipping through the Great Barrier Reef, and
opening up the Galilee Basin.

Meanwhile, the world's biggest carbon sink is crossing the tipping
point: according to scientists, the Amazon rainforest now emits
more carbon dioxide than it absorbs. And the best guardians of the
forest, Indigenous Peoples, are under serious threat. This month,
the Forests & Finance coalition warned investors about the risk and
the irreversible consequences of the anti-environment and anti-social
 legislative agenda in the Brazilian Congress in a letter sent to 80
financial institutions.

Also in this month's newsletter, bank ties to companies supporting
the military junta in Myanmar are deeper than first thought. And a
new dodgy deal on Okavango oil & gas drilling in Namibia &
Botswana, affecting a biodiverse area that is home to Africa's
largest remaining population of savanna elephants and other
threatened megafauna species.

With best wishes,

The BankTrack Team.

Read more:
Banks break promise and loan US$1 billion to Adani coal miner

Forests & Finance Coalition warns foreign investors

East African Crude Oil Pipeline: new update on risks



Central banks    still fueling climate crisis

Oil Change International, Aug 24, 2021

Central banks could play a critical role in catalyzing the rapid shift of
financial flows away from oil, fossil gas, and coal. However, to date,
central banks have instead tinkered at the edges, a new report by Oil
Change International finds. Read more...