February, 29 2016, 03:45pm EDT
New York State Pension Fund Lost $5.3 Billion From Fossil Fuel Holdings
The New York State Common Retirement Fund (NYS-CRF) lost at least $5.3 billion 1 from their investments in the top 200 coal, oil, and gas companies, according to a new report from Corporate Knights. New York State's $189.4 billion pension fund is the third largest in the nation, just following California's CalPERS and CalSTRS, which are now required by law to divest from thermal coal.
ALBANY, NY
The New York State Common Retirement Fund (NYS-CRF) lost at least $5.3 billion 1 from their investments in the top 200 coal, oil, and gas companies, according to a new report from Corporate Knights. New York State's $189.4 billion pension fund is the third largest in the nation, just following California's CalPERS and CalSTRS, which are now required by law to divest from thermal coal.
This groundbreaking report comes as politicians, environmentalists and financial experts gather in Albany for a forum on the Fossil Fuel Divestment Act co-sponsored by New York State Senator Liz Krueger and Assembly Assistant Speaker Felix W. Ortiz. This is the first statewide climate legislation that calls for full divestment from coal, oil and gas.
"The era of fossil fuels is coming to an end, and this report demonstrates very clearly why divestment is not only environmentally sound, but financially responsible," said New York State Senator Liz Krueger, co-sponsor of the Fossil Fuel Divestment Act. "By staying invested in fossil fuels over the last three years our state pension fund missed out on over $5 billion in potential returns. Investment in fossil fuels is a sinking ship, and it's high time we headed for the lifeboats."
This report comes as New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman continues his investigation of Exxon to determine whether the company lied to the public about the risks of climate change or to investors about how such risks might hurt the oil business. Despite this ongoing investigation, the state's retirement system continues to invest directly around a billion dollars in Exxon Mobil.
"New York is a rich state, but perhaps not so rich it can afford to waste billions investing in failing business models -- especially when the warming caused by those companies will cost a fortune to deal with!," said Bill McKibben, Co-Founder of 350.org. "New York has made bold moves for climate such as banning fracking and phasing out coal-fired power plants, yet the pension fund continues to invest in both of these destructive and outdated extraction practices."
This massive loss of $5.3 billion is the equivalent to putting over $4500 back in the pockets of each of the 1.1 million members statewide, and could have covered nearly 12 percent of the state costs from devastating climate change-fueled Hurricane Sandy in 2012.
"Our analysis with the Decarbonizer suggests the New York State Common Retirement Fund's equity portfolio would have been at least $5.3 billion better off had it divested from the biggest oil, gas and coal companies three years ago in favour of companies providing climate solutions," said Toby Heaps, CEO of Corporate Knights, an investment research company. "This number is a conservative estimate based on the equities side of the fund. The energy transition away from old fossil fuel energy to new clean energy is underway and investors who cling to fossil fuel holdings risk substantial value destruction over the long-term."
350 is building a future that's just, prosperous, equitable and safe from the effects of the climate crisis. We're an international movement of ordinary people working to end the age of fossil fuels and build a world of community-led renewable energy for all.
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Video footage broadcast Wednesday by Al Jazeera shows Israeli soldiers gunning down two Palestinians on the coast of northern Gaza, even as one of them waves what appears to be a piece of white fabric.
The footage shows one of the men walking in the direction of an Israeli military vehicle with both hands raised. Despite the absence of any clear evidence that the man posed a threat, Israeli forces shot him from a short distance away. Another man is seen on the ground not far behind.
Al Jazeera's Tareq Abu Azzoum said the killings took place near where World Central Kitchen recently dropped off food aid.
The video then shows Israeli soldiers burying the bodies with a bulldozer.
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Watch:
مشاهد حصرية للجزيرة لإعدام جنود إسرائيليين مدنيين فلسطينيين أثناء محاولتهم العودة لشمال قطاع غزة#الأخبار #حرب_غزة pic.twitter.com/QER98mv2n6
— قناة الجزيرة (@AJArabic) March 27, 2024
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"The eyes and ears of the world have been assaulted in real-time by this form of genocidal behavior," said Falk. "It is a shocking reality that there has been no adverse reaction from the liberal democracies in the West. It is a shameful moment."
The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor, whose board Falk chairs, has documented numerous examples of Israeli soldiers conducting close-range field executions in Gaza since October 7, when Israel launched its latest assault following a Hamas-led attack.
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The video footage emerged just days after the United Nations Security Council approved a resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire in Gaza. The U.S., Israel's leading arms supplier, abstained from the vote and falsely claimed the measure was "nonbinding."
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And please don\u2019t give me this \u2018don\u2019t speak ill of the dead\u2019 stuff - 1) I\u2019m not speaking ill, I\u2019m stating facts, and 2) public figures are public figures, and their obits reflect their legacies and so we should be honest in our accounts of their legacies. Not offensive but honest— (@)
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Citing Israel's "blatant" human rights violations in Gaza, Ireland's second-highest-ranking official said Wednesday that the country will join the South Africa-led genocide case before the International Court of Justice in The Hague.
Irish Tánaiste Micheál Martin—the equivalent of a deputy prime minister in other parliamentary nations—said that Ireland decided to intervene in the case after analyzing the "legal and policy issues" pertaining to the case under review by the United Nations' top court.
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