Sustainability update February 2026

IPBES report identifies biodiversity decline as a key systemic risk to financial stability and human wellbeing

A landmark Business and Biodiversity Assessment report by the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) has determined that every sector of the global economy depends directly or indirectly on natural services and contributes materially to biodiversity loss through operational activities and supply chains. Prepared over three years and approved by over 150 member governments, the report is the first of its kind to focus specifically on business impacts, setting out concrete actions for businesses, governments, financial actors and civil society. 

Companies are a material driver of biodiversity loss but are also central to halting and reversing it. A critical first step in this change is improving the measurement and disclosure of risks and impacts: fewer than 1% of publicly reporting companies currently reference biodiversity impacts in their corporate disclosures. Nature risks are material investment risks and nature-related impacts and dependencies should be assessed regardless of the sector, industry or level of exposure.

The imbalance between subsidies and financial flows that are harmful to nature and investment in nature restoration is also stark. In 2023, it was estimated that global public and private financial flows with a directly negative impact on nature totalled $7.3 trillion, of which public spending on environmentally harmful subsidies comprised $2.4 trillion. In the same period, just $220 billion of public and private finance was directed towards global biodiversity conservation and restoration programmes. 

The report emphasised that existing tools are sufficient for companies to begin to act now and to draw on a range of recognised and credible frameworks to bridge implementation gaps. Natural capital assessment and accounting methodologies have been developed for companies to understand and manage the value of natural resources. Science-based targets for nature (SBTN) provide companies with a scientifically grounded framework for establishing rigorous biodiversity management and restoration targets. The Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) offers a standardised framework for businesses to effectively communicate nature-related risks and opportunities to investors. 

The report’s recommendations for policymakers to influence corporate activities included planning for new national parks and nature-protected zones, permitting for business operations impacting nature, and nature-positive revisions to public procurement policies. Additionally, governments were encouraged to promote action through payments for ecosystem services, the development of environmental markets rewarding the delivery of nature-positive benefits, and the establishment of multilateral benefit-sharing mechanisms. You can read more about how Rathbones Greenbank has been engaging with policymakers on nature here.

Also published in February, the EU’s 7th National Report on Biodiversity found the bloc was progressing towards its biodiversity goals under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. Measurable advances were recorded in many of the EU’s 45 targets with two classified as ‘achieved’, though the report emphasised the importance of scaling up implementation across member states to ensure full target delivery by 2030. The EU has developed a comprehensive legislative framework for conservation, ecosystem restoration, and the sustainable use of natural resources. This includes the region’s Nature Restoration Regulation which came into force in August 2024, requiring member states to file detailed national restoration plans by September 2026.

Projected global waste volumes highlight the need to progress circular economy strategies

A report published by environmental NGO WRAP projected a significant rise in waste in the coming decades if economies delay transitioning away from linear “take-make-dispose” models of production and consumption. Since 2000, waste volumes generated by countries in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) grew by over 100 million tonnes. Global waste generation could increase by more than 80% between 2020 and 2050 and management of this waste currently accounts for around 5% of global greenhouse gas emissions.

To limit the growth of waste, economies must accelerate their adoption of circular production and consumption strategies. However, the report acknowledges that due to technical, economic or environmental constraints, even the most effective circular systems leave residual materials that cannot easily be recycled or repurposed – even in best-case recycling scenarios, the government estimates that unrecyclable waste volumes in the UK alone could exceed 17 million tonnes by 2042. The challenge, therefore, is to maximise the remaining value of residual waste while ensuring minimal social and environmental harm. A key strategy for value capture highlighted in the report is the increased use of energy-from-waste facilities (EfW) which use non-recyclable waste streams as a fuel source for heat and electricity generation. 

WRAP recognises that systemic change cannot be driven by innovation alone. Their report emphasised the importance of “strong, coherent, and enabling” policy frameworks to support innovation, investment, behavioural change, and effective residual waste management. It concluded that the UK’s current waste management policy ranks highly against other advanced economies, though some key policy updates first announced in 2018 are yet to be implemented. The report advocated upscaling EfW capacity, expanding restricted residual waste collections, and increasing the diversion of all waste streams from landfill to energy generators and other value capture systems.

Elsewhere, the EU Circular Economy Act (due for adoption in Q3 2026) is a flagship legislative initiative designed to accelerate the bloc’s transition to a circular economy. The Act’s principal objectives include doubling the region’s circularity rate from 12% to 24% by 2030, creating a single market for high-quality and economically competitive recycled materials, and improving waste management and recycling systems by updating and streamlining legislative frameworks such as the Waste Framework Directive (WFD) and the Waste from Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive (WEEE). 

The wider availability and affordability of virgin materials perpetuates a competitive disadvantage for recycled inputs, restricting the growth potential for recycled material markets. Policy options to address this imbalance include changing public procurement criteria for authorities to prioritise products containing recycled materials, and financial incentives such as reduced VAT on qualifying products. The Act also aims to launch funding schemes for member states to invest in recycling infrastructure and technologies.

Government plan aims to tackle the environmental and health costs of ‘forever chemicals’

Per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), often called ‘forever chemicals’, are used in a wide range of products offering unique properties such as resistance to water, heat and oil. PFAS are used in many applications, ranging from medical devices, non-stick kitchenware, clean energy technologies, and firefighting systems. 

Awareness has been growing of the potential harms to biodiversity and public health from widespread PFAS contamination in natural environments and waterways. The International Agency for Research on Cancer recently classified two PFAS chemicals – perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) – as likely contributors to increased cancer risks: both chemicals are banned in the UK.

In early February, the UK government published its ‘PFAS Plan’, which aims to build knowledge of where PFAS originate and how they proliferate through, and impact, social and environmental systems. By strengthening environmental monitoring and evidence collection, the government hopes to develop actions and risk profiles that support smarter interventions. In identifying and addressing ongoing and legacy sources of PFAS contamination, the plan aims to use legislative frameworks to control or restrict harmful PFAS use and collaborate with industries and other stakeholders on the responsible management of PFAS through production to use. On the public health side, the plan targets improved outcomes through the reduction of PFAS exposure in drinking water, food, air and products. It also plans consultation on introducing statutory PFAS limits into regulations governing public water supply.

The government’s plan broadly aligns with new EU legislation looking to prohibit all non-essential PFAS use. Building on cross-sector risk assessments published by the European Chemicals Agency in 2025, the European Commission estimated in January that the proposed prohibition on PFAS use could reduce environmental and public health costs by €110 billion between now and 2050. While the EU continues to develop its broader mandate, some member states have already implemented domestic PFAS restrictions. By comparison, the UK’s plan drew criticism from environmental campaigners and water industry participants for stopping short of binding bans, omissions such as PFAS in pesticides, and the lack of a “polluter pays” approach to restrict the further accumulation of PFAS contaminants and hold companies accountable for clean-up operations.