Copenhagen: emissions standard mooted

While politicians met to discuss a reduction in worldwide greenhouse gas emissions, the event saw some of the auditing profession’s biggest hitters lobbying for an international standard on carbon emissions reporting to be drafted.

ICEAW president Michael Izza chaired a panel discussion involving representatives from the Big Four to discuss the opportunities and barriers to standardising global climate change reporting. He presented the audience and panel with a potential reporting framework for carbon emissions written by the Climate Disclosure Standards Board, which was open for consultation.

The idea of bolting such a standard onto existing international financial reporting standards was floated – but one attendant, PricewaterhouseCoopers sustainability and climate change division partner Alan McGill, believes carbon reporting needs its own framework, and quickly. “Until you get that consistency around measurements, organisations probably won’t move as quickly as they could or should do,” he said.

The International Accounting Standards Board did not attend at the summit because it believes it is an inappropriate place to discuss standards, owing to the political nature of the negotiations on carbon reduction.

Useful links
http://tinyurl.com/CDSBframework