New nature-related disclosure regime to push banks on spatial finance

afr.com:

Banks and investors have a new set of guidelines to compare companies’ impact on the natural environment, with the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures releasing a final framework on Tuesday morning to ensure nature is considered alongside financial, operational and climate risks.

The taskforce will shift global financial flows away from companies damaging the environment towards those creating nature-positive outcomes, as international investors look to enforce the standards through engagement with boards of directors.

The new risk management and disclosure framework was unveiled at UN Climate Week in New York after 1200 institutions from 58 countries participated in its development.

The framework seeks to end corporate thinking that nature provides unlimited, free inputs into operations by creating metrics against which the impact on nature can be valued by investors. It is expected to be integrated into accounting standards via the International Sustainability Standards Board, creating a set of comparable information on the impact of corporate activity on the environment to inform investment decision-making.

The federal government has provided financial support to the TNFD taskforce and the Responsible Investment Association Australasia (RIAA) called on the TNFD to form part of the “sustainable finance” agenda soon to be released by the Albanese government.

World leaders welcomed the new standards. “Nature provides irreplaceable services to societies and businesses,” said French President Emmanuel Macron. “I applaud the TNFD’s efforts in publishing today a framework that can be utilised to identify, assess, manage and disclose dependencies and impacts on nature, as well as risks and opportunities for