USA: California to Vote on Climate-Resilience Funding
On July 3, 2024, California’s acting governor signed SB 867, the Safe Drinking Water, Wildfire Prevention, Drought Preparedness, and Clean Air Bond Act of 2024, clearing the way for the bill to be put before voters on the November ballot. The bill envisages investments totaling US$10 billion in a wide range of climate-resilience initiatives, including projects for drought, flood and water resilience; biodiversity and nature-based climate solutions; wildfire and forest resilience; and sustainable, resilient and climate-smart farms. In particular, the bond would allocate US$386 million for projects related to groundwater storage, groundwater banking and groundwater recharge, as well as instream flow projects supporting the conjunctive use of groundwater and surface water supplies. If approved by voters, the bond would be the single largest investment in public funding for climate resilience in California’s history.
Canada: Federal Plastics Registry
Canada’s new Federal Plastics Registry will require businesses to report on the quantity and types of plastic they place on the market each year. Reporting requirements will be introduced in phases. As of 2026, reporting will be required in the agriculture and horticulture category regarding the quantity of plastic in packaging and products. A guidance document is currently being drafted to aid businesses required to the report to the Registry.
EU: Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive Published in Official Journal
The Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) was published in the Official Journal of the European Union on June 13, 2024 and entered into force 20 days later.
The CSDDD aims to ensure that EU and non-EU companies active in the EU market:
“contribute to sustainable development and the sustainability transition of economies and societies through the identification, and where necessary, prioritisation, prevention and mitigation, bringing to an end, minimisation and remediation of actual or potential adverse human rights and environmental impacts connected with companies’ own operations, operations of their subsidiaries and of their business partners in the chains of activities of the companies, and ensuring that those affected by a failure to respect this duty have access to justice and legal remedies.”
The CSDDD applies to:
- EU companies with more than 1,000 employees on average and a net worldwide turnover exceeding €450 million in the last financial year.
- Non-EU companies that generated a net turnover of at least €450 million in the EU in the financial year preceding the last financial year.