How Gabrielle will change the way companies account for climate ... - New Zealand Herald
How Cyclone Gabrielle will change the way companies account for climate change - NZ Herald
Cyclone Gabrielle and the Auckland anniversary floods will alter the way companies account for the likely impact that climate change will have on their businesses, PwC’s Karen Shires says.
“These events have probably made it [climate change] more real for people and companies,” said Shires, chief risk and reputation officer at the consultancy.
Related Knowledge Center: Climate economics
Climate change is now a driver of the world’s economy. The impact is profound:
- Catastrophic weather events — hurricanes, floods, droughts, high temperatures — are more frequent and more extreme. The cost can be measured in both the initial damage caused and the longer-term impact on the economy.
- Vulnerable communities are increasing climate-related investments, hardening infrastructure and taking other protective measures.
- Investment in carbon capture and storage technologies is increasingly rapidly.
- Governments are making investments and crafting regulations to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.
On top of all of this is the cost of uncertainty. As the Fourth National Climate Assessment, released in 2018 by the U.S. Global Change Research Program, says, “The assumption that current and future climate conditions will resemble the recent past is no longer valid.”