Pirate's Cove

Haven’t the climate cultists heard that the COVID19 issue is dead after all the protests?

Economic recovery efforts must consider climate change

In response to the massive economic contraction stemming from the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, some central banks — including those of the United States, European Union, Japan and other major economies — are engaging in “quantitative easing” (QE) programs on an unprecedented scale. These programs involve large-scale asset purchases, namely central banks buying financial instruments such as government and corporate bonds. The goal is to inject liquidity into financial markets and stimulate economic activity. (snip)

After the Great Recession of 2008, as central banks tried to stabilize the global economy, advocates for climate action called for “green” QE. They argued that central banks should buy only or primarily the bonds (or stocks, in some cases) of companies with low carbon footprints or with clear commitments to reducing their greenhouse gas emissions. That way, the world could confront two challenges at the same time — global recession and climate change. In the end, QE in the 2010s did not consider climate change, and in fact some central banks disproportionately purchased assets from carbon-intensive companies.

This time, large-scale asset purchases are taking place in a very different world from the one of 2008.

In the intervening decade, we have learned much about the risks of ignoring climate change when making financial decisions. Central banks can make a much stronger argument today for why taking climate change seriously is consistent with their mandates. They have more tools to incorporate climate considerations into their asset purchases. And, even if QE does not move the needle on climate change by itself, there are good reasons to pursue this approach anyway.

You know what we have learned? That so many of these “green” projects cannot survive without massive government (taxpayer) subsidies. And we’ve learned that Doing Something about climate change is popular in theory, but not practice, where most people, including Warmists do not want to pay much out of their own pockets. That people want to tackle real issues, not ‘climate change.’

Instead, responsible QE should support companies that will thrive in a low-carbon, resilient future. QE programs should more selectively purchase corporate debt from companies whose emissions are already aligned with Paris Agreement goals or that have set (or commit to setting) targets for reducing their greenhouse gas emissions in line with climate science — as 841 companies have done with the Science Based Targets initiative.

Interestingly, almost no one follows up to see if these companies making pledges actually follow through on those pledges. I suspect they are mostly lip service, just like with all the pledges made by the Paris agreement signatory countries.

Taking climate change-related risks and opportunities into account for QE corporate debt purchases not only would be financially prudent, but it also could help unlock growth and deliver a strong, sustainable, inclusive economy — for example, by supporting economic diversification and the delivery of quality jobs. The case for climate action by governments is strong. A report by the Global Commission on the Economy and Climate found that bold climate action could deliver economic benefits of $26 trillion between 2018 and 2030.

They keep saying this, but, there really hasn’t been much economic growth from this “green” stuff, rather the reverse. But, climate cultists are doing what they do best, hijacking a real issue to inject their cult.