Climate Change Report - Carbon Disclosure Project
2010 – Dover Corporation
WHEREAS in 2007, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s Fourth Assessment Report stated it is “very likely” that anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions have heavily contributed to climate change. Furthermore, “there is substantial economic potential for the mitigation of global greenhouse gas emissions over the coming decades, that could offset the projected growth of global emissions or reduce emissions below current levels.”
WHEREAS, the 2006 Stern Review on the Economics of Climate Change, led by the former chief economist at the World Bank, “… estimates that if we don’t act, the overall costs and risks of climate change will be equivalent to losing at least 5% of global GDP each year, now and forever.” Yet, investment of 1% global GDP each year is enough for appropriate mitigation.
WHEREAS, increasingly investors believe that there is an intersection between climate change and corporate financial performance. According to a February, 2007 report by Lehman Brothers, The Business of Climate Change, “companies which are aware of the impact their business practices have on the overall environment, including climate change, and proactively take actions to mitigate any unfavorable impact, may create a significant competitive advantage compared with companies which, through a lack of awareness, become blindsided by regulations.”
WHEREAS, information from corporations on their greenhouse gas emissions and climate change policy is essential to investors as they assess the strengths of corporate securities in the context of climate change and the need for greenhouse gas emissions reductions.
WHEREAS, the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), currently representing 475 institutional investors with trillions of dollars in assets under management, requested corporations to disclose their greenhouse gas emissions in 2007, 2008, and 2009.
WHEREAS, in 2007, 2008, and 2009 Dover Corporation did not respond to the CDP’s request to disclose investment-relevant information concerning its greenhouse gas emissions and climate change.
WHEREAS, more than 250 S&P 500 companies have responded to the CDP, including other manufacturers such as Illinois Tool Works, Ingersoll Rand, and Danaher.
WHEREAS, other leading companies such as Johnson Controls, DuPont, and UPS have recognized the advantages that a forward-looking approach to climate change may provide and have disclosed strategies such as carbon sequestration, alternative fuel use, efficient product distribution, and process efficiency improvements, to save energy and reduce emissions.
WHEREAS, companies such as General Electric and Baxter International have described the opportunity of addressing climate change in a responsible manner, as resulting in new product development, external recognition, rewards and energy savings.
RESOLVED: Shareholders request that within 6 months of the 2010 annual meeting, the Board of Directors provide a report to shareholders, prepared at reasonable cost and omitting proprietary information, describing how Dover is assessing the impact of climate change on the corporation, and the corporation’s plans to disclose this assessment to shareholders.