Activists from Greenpeace USA unfurled a massive 160-foot-long visual representation of a climate damage invoice in midtown Manhattan during Climate Week NYC, just before the UN General Assembly and the Climate Ambition Summit. The display, resembling a colossal bill, symbolizes the estimated economic toll caused by carbon emissions from five leading fossil fuel corporations between 2016 and 2025. According to expert analysis using the social cost of carbon (SCC) framework, the cumulative damages are projected to exceed US$5 trillion—specifically calculated at US$5.36 trillion—impacting global communities through health crises, sea level rise, agricultural disruption, and energy instability.
The assessment, conducted by researchers from the University of Delaware and Stanford University, attributes these damages to emissions data sourced from the Carbon Majors Database. The breakdown by company shows ExxonMobil responsible for US$1.38 trillion in damages, Chevron for US$1.16 trillion, Shell for US$1.03 trillion, BP for US$960 billion, and TotalEnergies for US$830 billion. These figures reflect long-term economic consequences extending into the 23rd century.
Mads Christensen, Executive Director of Greenpeace International, emphasized that while vulnerable populations face intensifying heatwaves, floods, and wildfires, the wealthiest individuals and fossil fuel firms continue to profit. He called on governments to enforce accountability through a global polluter tax, urging action at COP30 and within ongoing negotiations for a UN Global Tax Convention. Such measures, he argued, could close the climate finance gap and generate funds for climate resilience and green transitions.
Sushma Raman, Interim Executive Director of Greenpeace USA, highlighted that nearly US$800 billion in combined profits have been reported by these five companies since the Paris Agreement took effect. Meanwhile, the UN’s Loss and Damage Fund has received only US$768.4 million in pledges—making the climate-related damages over 6,975 times greater, a figure rounded up to 7,000 in advocacy messaging. Raman stressed that working-class communities are bearing costs they did not create, and it is time for corporate accountability.
The protest banner also featured notable extreme weather events from the past decade, drawn from the International Disaster Database (EM-DAT), serving as a visual reminder of escalating climate impacts. Greenpeace organizations worldwide plan to unveil similar displays in the coming weeks, each tailored to reflect national or regional economic costs tied to oil and gas emissions.
The campaign aligns with the Polluters Pay Pact, supported by over 60 organizations and 250,000 individuals, which calls for legally binding mechanisms to make fossil fuel companies compensate for climate harm through taxes or penalties.
— news from greenpeace.org
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Greenpeace USA unveils giant “bill” with the economic damages brought on by five major oil and gas companies at NYC Climate Week
New York, United States, Greenpeace USA activists deployed a giant “Climate Polluters Bill” nearly 160 feet long — the length of an Olympic swimming pool — through midtown Manhattan today, while marching in a mass demonstration during Climate Week NYC and on the eve of the UN General Assembly and the UN Secretary General’s Climate Ambition Summit.[1] n nPhotos of the giant bill and the march will be available later this afternoon in the Greenpeace Media Library. n nMads Christensen, Executive Director, Greenpeace International said: “No one is safe from deadly heatwaves, wildfires, toxic air, and rising seas. Yet those most sheltered from the crisis – the super-rich and oil and gas giants – keep profiting while the rest of us pay the price. It’s time to flip the script: governments must make polluters pay and use that money to fund a secure, green future. World leaders have a historic chance at COP30 and in negotiations for a UN Global Tax Convention to close the climate finance gap and to raise billions to protect people and the planet. We demand a new polluter tax on the global profits of oil and gas corporations, alongside taxing wealthy elites and addressing illicit financial flows.” n nThe bill reveals that economic damages from carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions of five major oil and gas corporations throughout 2016-25 are projected to amount to over US$ five trillion, according to leading experts on the social cost of carbon (SCC). This is nearly 7000 times greater than the amount countries have currently pledged to the UN’s fund for loss and damage, set up to support communities in Global South countries facing the impacts of climate change.[2][3] n nEmissions from a handful of investor-owned oil companies are driving the climate crisis, making wildfires, floods, typhoons, heatwaves and droughts more frequent and severe. The costs, projected to amount to US$ 5.36 trillion in damages, are impacting people today and expected to continue well into the year 2300. These result in huge costs to society in categories including human health, rising sea levels, disruption to energy supplies, agriculture, and labour productivity. n nApplying the SCC methodology to project total damages by company (2020 US$): n nExxonMobil: 1.38 trillion US$ in damages. n nChevron: 1.16 trillion US$ in damages. n nShell: 1.03 trillion US$ in damages. n nBP: 0.96 trillion US$ in damages. n nTotalEnergies: 0.83 trillion US$ in damages. n nSushma Raman, Interim Executive Director, Greenpeace USA said: “Communities and families are losing their homes, schools, and livelihoods, while Big Oil billionaires are raking in astronomical profits. They want to cast off any liability for their actions, and push the rising costs of the damage they’ve inflicted onto working class families. A small handful of oil and gas companies are impacting people now and in the future to the score of more than $5 trillion. Their climate bill is long overdue, and it is time they pay up.” n nThe giant bill carried by dozens of activists in the NYC protest also included written examples of some of the most extreme weather events to hit the world over the past decade.[4] In the years since the Paris Agreement was adopted the reported profits of ExxonMobil, Chevron, Shell, BP and TotalEnergies alone amounted to almost US$ 800 billion.[5][6] n nGovernments around the world must present bold climate action plans (NDCs) during the UN Secretary-General’s Climate Summit next week to close the ambition gap and limit global warming to 1.5°C. n nIn the coming weeks, Greenpeace organisations worldwide will deliver more giant polluter bills that reflect the economic cost of emissions from oil and gas corporations. n nENDS n nPhotos and videos from the mass ‘Draw the Line’ demonstration in NYC available on the Greenpeace Media library. n nNotes: n n[1] 3] Draw the Line is a global week of events starting on 15 September, leading up to a weekend of actions on 19-21 September. n nGreenpeace, along with 250,000 individuals and over 60 other organisations around the world, supports the Polluters Pay Pact, which demands that world leaders make oil, coal and gas corporations pay their fair share for the damages they cause through introducing new taxes or fines on them to help communities at home and around the world rebuild from climate disasters and invest in climate solutions. n n[2] The quantification of economic damages since 2015 was provided to Greenpeace International by Prof. James Rising of the University of Delaware and Dr. Lisa Rennels of Stanford University. The analysis uses data from the Carbon Majors Database and the SCC methodology. The SCC was used by former US administrations and policy analysts to assign a dollar value to future damages from an additional ton of CO₂ between the year of its emissions through to the year 2300. n nEmissions data for the oil and gas companies was provided by the Carbon Majors Database, which in turn sources emissions data from publicly available company reports. n n[2] Governments have so far pledged USD $768.40 million to the UN’s Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage Fund. USD $5,360,000,000,000 / USD $768.40 million = 6975.53 times, rounded up to 7000 times n n[4] The giant bill is populated with a selection of some of the most expensive and notable extreme weather events since the Paris Agreement was adopted. These are sourced from the International Disaster Database EM-DAT. In this case they are noted for representative purposes only and not as part of the social cost of carbon calculation. n n[5] WMO confirms 2024 as warmest year on record at about 1.55°C above pre-industrial level n n[6] Calculations for reported profits between 2016 and first half of 2025, for ExxonMobil, Chevron, BP, Shell, TotalEnergies. Data originally sourced from company reporting. n nContacts: n nKatie Nelson, Greenpeace USA, Senior Communications Specialist, [email@greenpeace.org], +1 (678) 644-1681 n nTal Harris, Greenpeace International, Global Media Lead – Stop Drilling Start Paying campaign, [email@greenpeace.org], +41-782530550