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We have a problem with dirty energy – so we’re going after the banks. Doesn’t make sense? WDM’s Carbon Capital campaign might seem counterintuitive, but it reflects the complex reality of dirty energy funding.

When we talk about “dirty energy”, we mean energy production that accelerates climate change and harms communities in the area of energy extraction. That’s mostly fossil fuel projects such as oil wells and coal mines, but it also covers other projects such as dams.

Lots of energy companies are investing in these projects right now: Shell’s oil operations in Nigeria, Anglo American’s investment in a Colombian coal mine and so on. Dirty energy projects that make life worse for local people are happening all over the world. If locals actually benefited from these hugely profitable projects, Nigerian people would have a great quality of life. But the reality is the opposite: people are frequently displaced, or have their livelihoods taken away, or have to live in a polluted environment.

So why are we going after the banks, rather than the energy companies? The answer is that all energy companies need funding for new projects, and they don’t get it from their own coffers. They raise money through borrowing (loans from banks) and equity (selling shares, which are often bought by pension funds). They can’t go ahead without the backing of the financial sector.

But right now, the banks don’t have to disclose the fact that they’re loaning money for dirty energy. The law has recently changed so that British businesses have to declare their carbon emissions, which is great news – but they only have to declare direct emissions for things like travel to meetings or office lighting, not the true impact of the projects they fund. Even though those projects would not happen without the bank’s help.

The Carbon Capital campaign isn’t asking banks to stop funding dirty energy (well, not yet). We’re simply asking for transparency. We’re petitioning Vince Cable as business secretary to toughen up the rules and make banks declare all the emissions they cause.

Tell Vince Cable to make the banks come clean

How can we expect banks to think carefully about the ethics of their own investments when they know they won’t be held to account for any of it? And if banks don’t have to declare their full emissions, how can we as consumers make an informed choice about which bank to choose?

That’s why Oxford WDM was at Elder Stubbs and Banbury Canal Day asking people to sign postcards to Vince Cable. We’ll also be at the One World Fair on 16th November. Please support us and sign.