Bold Climate Fixes Won't Affect Middle-Class Retirement Plans
Bold Climate Fixes Won't Affect Middle-Class Retirement Plans The oil and gas industries recently experienced a highly profitable year, resulting in record payouts to shareholders. In response, companies like Europe's Shell and BP have scaled back their ambitious low-carbon transition plans, while the sector as a whole has increased investments in new production. This shift in focus is concerning for climate change, given that the burning of fossil fuels is a major driver of global warming. There is growing worry that these investments may lead the industry and its political allies to resist efforts to avoid "stranded assets" losses, effectively locking in higher production of climate-altering fuels for many years. The potential impact extends beyond companies to their shareholders, who may form a broad coalition against green energy initiatives, particularly in the United States and the United Kingdom. In these countries, most pensions are invested in capital markets...