Burn on, Big Planet, Burn On

The Cuyahoga River caught fire in Cleveland OH on June 22, 1969. It wasn’t the first (or last) fire on the river, and it wasn’t the biggest. It did catch the public imagination and, along with a major oil spill off Santa Barbara CA, helped focus public attention on the broad movement that led to the passage of the Clean Water Act in 1972. Randy Newman immortalized the fire in his song “Burn On”:

Now the Lord can make you tumble
The Lord can make you turn
The Lord can make you overflow
But the Lord can't make you burn
Burn on, big river, burn on
Burn on, big river, burn on

More than 50 years later, we’re watching our whole planet burn. It’s happening metaphorically, as we emerge from the first full year in which the planet was 1.5 degrees (Celsius) higher than in preindustrial times. It’s happening literally, as record wildfire seasons devastated regions from Canada to Hawaii, from Greece to Indonesia. As people around the world suffer from higher temperatures, cities have had to create new positions for Chief Heat Officers, who can now be found in Athens, Greece, Miami, Florida; Freetown, Sierra Leone; and Dhaka, Bangladesh, just to name a few.

The Cuyahoga River is substantially cleaned up now. It didn’t happen because the industrial companies lining its shores set voluntary targets. It didn’t happen because companies set up employee Blue Teams to promote clean water. It didn’t happen because companies published glossy reports about their concern for the river.

It happened because public policy demanded it. The Clean Water Act was enacted into law. It included penalties (in some cases $25,000 per day per infraction). It was enforced, including criminal investigations and prosecutions if circumstances warranted. I know, because when I became my company’s first Assistant VP Environmental in 1992 – 20 years after the passage of the Clean Water Act – I inherited a portfolio that included 33 permits under the Clean Water Act. My company hadn’t paid adequate attention to those permits, and I quickly found myself the subject of a Federal criminal investigation (which is no fun, believe me). Sure enough, that got the company’s attention and we cleaned up our act – and our water.

Yet how are we addressing a burning climate? Through voluntary targets, employee engagement and lots of reporting. If we had addressed clean water that way, the Cuyahoga River would probably still be burning. But with climate change confronting us with a much bigger scale of disaster, public policy is demanding… nothing.

That’s why I was proud to be one of the initial signatories of the LEAD statement this week. The statement notes that:

As sustainability professionals dedicating our careers to combating climate change, we believe that all companies must leverage their power and influence to accelerate climate policy progress. We believe that it is time for companies to back policy action at the speed and scale required to meet our global goals and avert the worst outcomes.

Specifically, the LEAD statement calls on companies to:

• Leave obstructing trade associations;
• Elevate climate policy as a company priority;
• Advocate publicly for effective binding climate policies; and
• Demonstrate real commitment to the collective action needed to achieve the just and equitable transition from fossil fuels agreed on at COP28.

Corporate energy can implement public policy. Corporate energy can complement public policy, doing things government can’t. Corporate energy can supplement public policy, innovating to go beyond requirements. Corporate energy can even inform public policy, providing useful insight into practical options and challenges. What we can’t do is let corporate energy obstruct public policy.

[Quick note: the LEAD statement doesn’t call for leaving all trade associations. Associations can play an important role in helping companies work together to develop and share best practices, lifting up lower-performing companies to a higher standard. But some trade associations are convenient mechanisms for companies to lobby against effective public policy while seemingly keeping their own hands clean. That’s what has to stop.]

The LEAD statement calls for speed and scale, both of which are desperately needed. The third missing ingredient is will. We need the will to act. Signing on to the LEAD statement is one way to demonstrate our will.

If you are a sustainability professional, past or present, I urge you to go to https://climatevoice.org/we-lead-on-climate-policy/#sign, read the full statement, and sign it. Then go share it with others. Because in the meantime, our planet burns on.

[Opinions are solely those of Scott Nadler. They do not necessarily represent views of Nadler Strategy’s clients or partners, or those cited in the post.]