Forced labour links alleged for car manufacturers

A recent report from Human Rights Watch accuses big carmaker brands of failing to minimise the risks of forced labour in aluminium supply chains originating in the Chinese region of Xinjiang. Among the brands named are General Motors, Tesla, BYD, Toyota and Volkswagen. The Chinese authorities have faced a number of accusations of forced labour in the region involving Uyghur and other Turkic Muslim peoples being coerced into work via government backed labour transfer programmes. 

HRW’s report finds that some carmakers have succumbed to Chinese government pressure to apply weaker human rights and responsible sourcing standards at their Chinese joint ventures than in their operations elsewhere, increasing the risk of exposure to forced labour in Xinjiang. Car companies are accused of not properly mapping aluminium supply chains and therefore not being fully aware of potential links to the region. Human Rights Watch reviewed online Chinese state media articles, company reports, and government statements and found credible evidence that aluminium producers in Xinjiang are participating in labour transfers. Human Rights Watch also uncovered evidence that fossil fuel companies that supply coal to aluminium producers in Xinjiang have received labour transfer workers at their coal mines.  

The European Commission has recommended a 90% cut in net greenhouse gas emissions across the EU by 2040, a target that is expected to test willingness across Europe to get to grips with the big challenges that must be overcome if climate change is to be tackled effectively. There are elections to the European parliament in June 2024 and the climate agenda is now entering a critical phase as emissions cuts to agriculture and other sensitive sectors begin to bite. The commission did weaken some proposed cuts that would impact agriculture following ongoing protests from farmers about emissions rules. 

The proposals will be voted on by the new European parliament following the elections, and current polling suggests that there may be a shift to the political right meaning stricter environmental policies would be less likely to pass. 

The Republic of Ireland is the latest country to introduce a national deposit return scheme for plastic bottles and drinks cans. Customers will pay a small premium when they purchase a drink in a bottle or can, which will be repaid in full when the container is returned to a participating retailer. Deposits will vary from 15 cents for smaller containers and 25 cents for those over 500ml. Almost 5m drinks contained in single use containers are consumed in the Irish Republic every day. The scheme will eventually have more than 2,000 return points, most of which will have reverse vending machines for deposit returns via vouchers that can be used to pay for goods or be exchanged for cash. Smaller retailers will be able to deal with returns over the counter.  

CDP, formerly the Carbon Disclosure Project, has released its annual corporate A-lists, disclosing the companies that are leaders on reporting on emissions, forest and water impacts. The latest climate change A-list contains 346 companies, and CDP reports a significant increase in both quality and quantity of climate disclosures year on year. CDP itself tightened requirements for A-list status, requiring full verification of scope 1 and 2 emissions, up from 70% last year. The numbers making the forests and water A-lists were more disappointed with 30 and 101 companies on each respectively. Only ten companies made all three lists.    

A new study published in journal Nature reveals that up to half of the Amazon rainforest could reach a tipping point by 2050 due to water stress, land clearance and climate disruptions. The region’s forests have already surpassed a safe boundary, with potential rapid decline projected earlier than expected. The study identifies critical thresholds for water stress and predicts significant forest decline, affecting regional climate. 

To mitigate this, limiting deforestation to 10% of the Amazon region and keeping global heating below 1.5C is essential. However, 15% of the Amazon is already cleared, and another 17% degraded, with prolonged droughts weakening an additional 38%, meaning overshoot has already occurred. Climate models project increased dry season temperatures and rainfall shifts, reshaping ecosystem resilience. The Amazon's unique offering of biodiversity, carbon storage and climate regulation underscore the urgency for net-zero emissions and deforestation to prevent catastrophic consequences.

In Indonesia, deforestation linked to palm oil plantations has increased for the second year in a row, according to an analysis by TheTreeMap. In 2023, palm oil companies cleared 30,000 hectares of Indonesian forest, up from 22,000 hectares in 2022. This comes after a decade-long decline in forest loss. 

Whilst, historically, deforestation in the country has been concentrated on the island of Sumatra, a palm oil plantation hub, the recent surge has taken place on the islands of Borneo and Papua. Indonesian palm oil is set to come under scope of the new EU deforestation regulation. If successfully implemented, the new rules could of course get these deforestation rates back down. 

Barclays bank has announced it will cease direct funding for new oil and gas projects and will restrict lending to energy businesses intending to expand existing fossil fuel production. The move follows mounting pressure from environmental activists. A major lender to the fossil fuel industry, Barclays provided around $16.5bn in 2022. The bank's Climate Change Statement outlines an end to funding for projects aimed at oil and gas expansion, particularly in environmentally sensitive areas like the Amazon and the Arctic.

 However, critics argue the plan doesn't go far enough, pointing out loopholes and insufficient restrictions, such as excluding companies focused solely on fossil fuel extraction. While welcomed by some advocacy groups, including ShareAction, others, such as Make My Money Matter, say the initiative is inadequate. Barclays asserts that oil and gas funding constitutes a small portion of its overall operations.