Companies are increasingly trying to keep their climate pledges away from public scrutiny.

The phenomenon, known as green hushing, has become pervasive even as businesses set more ambitious internal targets, according to a survey by South Pole, a climate consultancy and carbon offsets developer.

South Pole surveyed 1,200 large companies from 12 different countries, all of which have set net-zero targets and more than two-thirds of which identify as "heavy emitters." It found that although a majority of companies have set science-based targets to help them deliver on their commitments, 23% "don't plan to publicize"  them.

The findings suggest that the stigma of so-called greenwashing, where a company exaggerates its green credentials, is so feared that executives will do anything to avoid being accused of it. Being labeled a greenwasher brings with it reputational harm, financial damage and, increasingly, the scrutiny of regulators. And once tainted by such allegations, companies can struggle to resurrect their reputations.

But green hushing also comes at a cost, South Pole said.

"More than ever we need the companies making progress on sustainability to inspire their peers to make a start," said Renat Heuberger, chief executive and co-founder of South Pole. "This is impossible if progress is happening in silence."

South Pole's survey, its third annual review of corporate attitudes to net zero, shows just how much has changed in 2022. Last year, in the run-up to the COP26 climate summit, hundreds of companies across the world "publicized" net-zero targets "with high-profile campaigns." But less than a month before this year's COP27, there's a "growing reluctance to publicize science-aligned climate targets," South Pole said.

The survey also showed that companies are "exploring all the tools in the climate toolbox" to achieve their net-zero goals with the preferred methods for reaching the target including switching to renewable energy sources, improving energy efficiency and "addressing Scope 3 emissions," which cover a company's carbon footprint across its value chain.

Companies also are banking on "technological innovation swooping in to save the day," South Pole said. Such technologies include green or low-carbon hydrogen and carbon removals, either via so-called nature-based solutions, or technological removals, such as carbon capture and utilization.

Alastair Marsh reports for Bloomberg News.

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