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A year after releasing its biodiversity roadmap, BNP Paribas Asset Management (‘BNPP AM’) has published the first results of its research to determine the biodiversity footprint of its investments, following a collaboration with Iceberg Data Lab and I Care & Consult.
Iceberg Data Lab and I Care & Consult were selected in 2020 following a competitive tender process launched by BNPP AM and three other asset managers, with the collaboration enabling the development of a tool to identify and quantify the potential negative biodiversity impacts of portfolio companies. BNPP AM carried out this analysis based on the Corporate Biodiversity Footprint (‘CBF’)2 methodology, which covers more than 1,800 companies included in its equity and bond funds, equating to 70% of its ‘corporate’ assets under management.
Each environmental pressure (land use, air and water pollution, and climate change) is translated into a quantified biodiversity impact, then aggregated to calculate the biodiversity footprint of each company, expressed in km² MSA (Mean Species Abundance3). BNPP AM’s biodiversity footprint is estimated to be around -8,000 km² MSA, meaning that its investments potentially maintain a fully degraded area equivalent to five times the size of London each year.
The publication of this research also forms part of the implementation of Article 29 of the French Law on Energyand Climate on 30 June 2022, which extends the reporting requirements for climate risks to those related to biodiversity loss.
Robert-Alexandre Poujade, ESG Analyst, Biodiversity Lead at BNPP AM, comments: “These initial results allow us to continue to improve our knowledge and provide as much transparency as possible on our environmental impacts. We will continue to closely monitor updates to the methodologies of Iceberg Data Lab and I Care & Consult, and the Task Force on Nature-Related Financial Disclosures (‘TNFD’), of which BNP Paribas is a member, as well as other key initiatives, including the Science Based Targets for Nature coalition. Alongside the development of these analytical frameworks, we will continue to integrate relevant biodiversity data into our proprietary ESG rating system, as well as enriching our voting and shareholder engagement activities.”
Click here to learn more about the biodiversity footprint of BNPP AM’s investments.
