64.8% of all anthropogenic CO2 between 1751 and 2013;37
•
Nearly one-third of all global industrial CO2 from 1751 to 2013 are
associated with the carbon fuels produced by the Top 20 fossil fuel
companies.38 The Top 20 fossil fuel investor-owned companies
contributed 294.6 GtCO2e, equivalent to 18.8% of the global
historic emissions through 2013;39 and
•
The 49 investor-owned Carbon Major companies contributed 337.7
Gt CO2e, equivalent to 21.6% of estimated global industrial
emissions through 2013.40
There has been one development with the Carbon Majors research, Richard Heede and
Naomi Oreskes released a new paper entitled “Potential emissions of CO2 and methane from
proved reserves of fossil fuels: An Alternative Analysis.” The analysis suggests that “(..) investor
concern should be focused on dissuading these corporations from further investment in fossil
fuel exploration and development.”41
This Petition focuses on the responsibility of the investor-owned Carbon Major
companies, the largest producers of crude oil, natural gas, coal, and cement. Acknowledging that
the list of investor-owned companies includes cement producers, we recommend that the
Commission prioritizes the fossil fuel producers (coal, oil, and gas) in its investigation of the
Carbon Majors’ responsibility for climate change because the greenhouse gas emissions from
fossil fuels is the main cause of climate change. Throughout the rest of this Petition, the term
‘Carbon Majors’ will refer solely to the existing investor-owned Carbon Majors producers listed
in Tables 1 and 2.
The Petitioners have chosen to focus on the carbon producers, the Carbon Majors, rather
than emitters, because there are just a few dozen producers, including companies putting fossil
fuels on the market, that are largely responsible for and profiting the most from climate change,
while taking very little, if any, action on climate change. As will be further explained in the
discussion section, these producers are largely unregulated in terms of carbon emissions from
their products. Also, there are examples of fossil fuel companies, either directly or through trade
associations, actively preventing action on climate change and renewable energy solutions by
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37
Heede, R. 2015. Carbon Major Entities Cumulative Emission to 2013 Ranked, Climate Accountability Institute.
February, 2015. Made available to Greenpeace Southeast Asia and Greenpeace International upon request in April
2016. Mr. Heede can also be asked to explain this update in the public hearing to be called by the Commission.
38
Id.
39
Id.
40
Id.
41
Heede, R. and Oreskes, N. 2015. Potential emissions of CO2 and methane from proved reserves of fossil fuels: An
alternative analysis, Global Environmental Change, Volume 36, January 2016, pp.12-20, 19,
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0959378015300637 (last accessed on Apr. 19, 2016).
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