Greentech Lead America: Stringent environmental regulations are on the cards during President Obama’s second term, says majority of utility and energy professionals who participated in a survey organized by Enviance at the EUEC 2013 conference.
More than 75 percent professionals from the energy and utility sector said they expect an increase in environmental regulations during Obama regime; however, many companies still lack reporting systems and plans to manage carbon-based financial risk.
This year’s survey tackled several critical topics, including carbon emissions management and water usage; the number of organizations with a system in place to track, report, and manage their carbon emissions; and the impact of certain political trends and events, such as AB 32, the presidential election and a carbon tax or price.
The survey showed that two-thirds of respondents do not have a plan in place to manage the financial risk associated with the imposition of a cost on carbon, either through cap and trade or a tax. In last year’s survey, more than three-fifths of respondents said they thought the imposition of a carbon tax would impact their organization.
For the question, “Is AB 32—under which California initiated its first carbon credit auction in November 2012—a paper tiger or is it simply too early in its implementation for companies to feel its impact? 72 percent of those surveyed said they thought AB 32 would not have any sort of impact on their organization.
Nearly half of respondents with emission reporting requirements indicated that they had no actual reporting system in place. Of the group without any reporting system, about one-third reported that they were not currently evaluating any systems to help them meet their reporting requirements.
Two-thirds of respondents said that water management is of equal or greater value to them as managing carbon emissions. This is a big increase from 2012 when more than half of respondents indicated that water management was either of no importance, or less important than carbon emission reporting.
Meanwhile 77 percent of attendees said they believe the results of the presidential election will mean an increase in environmental regulations over the next four years.
“The fact that nearly half of those with emission reporting requirements have no actual reporting system in place may be best explained by a combination of election-year wishful thinking and a sputtering economic recovery,” said Lawrence Goldenhersh, pesident and CEO of Enviance.
“The re-election of President Obama, followed by his highlighting of climate in his inauguration speech, and a resurgent economy, assure that the drum beat of federal regulatory pressure on greenhouse gas emitters will continue and probably intensify,”Goldenhersh, added. “In light of this momentum, companies without a compliance management system should consider implementing one to avoid an otherwise inevitable escalating spiral of risk and cost.”