Shareholders fighting for environmental disclosures (Pittsburgh)

Environmentally minded shareholder proposals, many of which ask companies to disclose their greenhouse gas emissions and set a plan for reducing them, are at an all time-high this year. And, for the first time, they are joined by a new initiative — asking oil and natural gas companies to study the environmental, legal and financial repercussions of hydraulically fracturing shale.

EQT Corp., CONSOL Energy Inc., Norfolk Southern Corp., Chesapeake Energy Corp. and First Energy Corp. are among the companies targeted by shareholders who see environmental responsibility as a step to financial success. Fracing disclosure proposals have been filed with Range Resources, Cabot Oil & Gas, EOG Resources and others that operate in the Pittsburgh area.

RiskMetrics Group, the largest proxy advisory firm, supports “the vast majority of these resolutions on climate change,” said Doug Cogan, director of climate change research. “The bottom line is that the issue is a material one for most of the companies.”

But half, if not more, of the shareholder proposals introduced each year never make it to a vote, Cogan said. Many are withdrawn by the shareholders after a successful dialogue with the company.

Read the full story in the Pittsburgh Business Times.