In 2019, Morgan Stanley made a bold pledge to tackle plastic waste, aiming to prevent, remove, or reduce 50 million metric tons of plastic from the environment by 2030. The bank prominently showcased this commitment with images of plastic bottles on its Times Square headquarters.
However, it has now quietly dropped its earlier goal to reduce 50 million metric tons of plastic waste by 2030. In its latest ESG report. there is no mention of the Plastic Waste Resolution, and a previously dedicated web page has been removed. This marks a significant shift from their earlier sustainability efforts and reporting.
Morgan Stanley cited data quality issues for the change but emphasized that plastic waste remains a sustainability focus. The firm will no longer track financing tied specifically to plastic pollution but will instead integrate plastic solutions into its broader $1 trillion sustainable finance goal by 2030.
The original plastics commitment, announced in 2019, marked a significant environmental step for the bank, including high-profile campaigns like ads at its Times Square headquarters. Since then, Wall Street has cooled on some environmental goals amid rising interest rates and political debates over ESG strategies.
Morgan Stanley helped arrange a US$705 million green bond in 2020 for Coca-Cola Femsa, with proceeds earmarked for helping meet its plastics commitments. A similar deal for a US$1.25 billion bond was struck for PepsiCo in 2022.
By the end of 2022, Morgan Stanley’s plastics policy had supported the prevention, removal or reduction of almost 14 million tonnes of plastic waste from entering the environment and landfills, according to a company statement issued last year.
Despite helping finance green bonds for companies like Coca-Cola and PepsiCo, which aimed to curb plastic use, Morgan Stanley’s shift comes as global plastic pollution continues to surge. Efforts are underway for a legally binding UN treaty to combat the issue by 2024.
Source: Bloomberg Article
