(16 April 2025 ā Australia) The use of sustainability linked loans (SLL) by Tasmanian salmon farmer Tassal has been classified as āwrong and damagingā by leading environmentalists.
Richard Flanagan and Geoff Cousins believe the description of the A$500 million SLL extended by Westpac, CBA and Rabobank to Tassal was misleading. The SLL was announced in August 2022, the day before the group was taken over by Canadaās Cooke Aquaculture James Eyers reports for the AFR.
The SLL facility requires the company to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, use more efficient feed and commit to ācontinuous improvement initiativesā to maintain certification from the Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC). It stated that the company was āthe only Atlantic salmon farmer in Australia to have maintained ASC certification to dateā.
āThis is misleading, to say the least, in such an important document. The inference a reasonable person would derive from that is the ASC has certified Tassal. That was never the case. The ASC only certifies individual farms, not companiesā Flanagan commented.
āIf the banks are lending money to Tassal, or any of the other companies down there, then they are simply putting to one side any concerns regarding what has happened in Macquarie Harbourā Cousins said.
āWestpac and the leading banks in this country say high-sounding things in their annual reports about commitments to sustainability. But the idea that you continue to support any activity you know to be wrong, simply because you say it gives you influence over it, and you might improve it, is completely unethical and immoral.ā
CBA, Westpac and Rabobank declined to comment, citing restrictions on individual customer matters. Before extending the SLL, the banks relied on a review by environmental research firm Sustainalytics that concluded the key performance indicators would drive positive outcomes.