ISSB Launches Nature Disclosure Consultation at COP17 as EU's Revised ESRS Nears Force

ISSB Publishes Nature Exposure Draft Live from COP17

In one of the most consequential sustainability-reporting developments of the year, the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) launched a formal public consultation on nature-related disclosures on October 22, 2026, timed to coincide with the UN Convention on Biological Diversity COP17 conference in Yerevan, Armenia. The IFRS Foundation hosted a live webinar — billed as "Live from COP17" — to introduce the Exposure Draft, which proposes a new IFRS Practice Statement designed to sit alongside, rather than amend, the existing IFRS S1 and IFRS S2 frameworks. The consultation period runs for 120 days, closing on February 19, 2027, according to the IFRS Foundation's published materials.

The ISSB opted for a Practice Statement rather than a standalone new standard — a deliberate choice intended to guide companies in meeting nature-related disclosure obligations that, as ISSB Chair Emmanuel Faber has stressed, already exist under IFRS S1. The proposals draw heavily on the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) framework, covering biodiversity, water, land use, and supply-chain exposure. Key investor pain points being addressed include location-specific data, nature transition plans, and the interplay between climate and nature risk, according to reporting by IPE and BDO. The TNFD, which wound down its own standard-setting work through mid-2026, is now formally supporting the ISSB's effort.

EU's Revised ESRS Set to Enter Into Force November 10

On the EU front, the revised European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS) — the technical rulebook underpinning the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) — were published in the Official Journal of the European Union on September 22, 2026, following adoption by the European Commission in July. According to ESG Today, the regulation formally enters into force on November 10, 2026, applying to financial years beginning January 1, 2027. The Omnibus I simplification package cut roughly 60% of mandatory data points and narrowed the CSRD's scope to companies with over 1,000 employees and €450 million in net turnover, per reporting from Linklaters and climate-x.com.

EFRAG is simultaneously running a public consultation — open until November 11, 2026 — on a draft XBRL Taxonomy that will allow ESRS disclosures to be produced in machine-readable form, with a final version intended for handover to ESMA and the European Commission by end of year, the Linklaters ESG Newsletter reported. Adding a national dimension, Spain's securities regulator CNMV on October 20 urged listed companies with more than 1,000 employees to prepare their 2026 sustainability reports using the ESRS even though Spain has yet to transpose the CSRD into domestic law, noting that ESRS compliance also satisfies existing national non-financial reporting rules.

SEC Rule Rescission Still Pending; California Deadline Looms

In the United States, the SEC's 2024 climate disclosure rule remains stayed and unenforceable. The public comment period on the agency's formal rescission proposal closed on August 3, 2026, and a final Commission vote is now expected in late 2026 or early 2027, according to Modus Alliance and OneStopESG. Importantly, the rescission eliminates the prescriptive format but does not extinguish materiality-based climate disclosure duties under existing securities law. Meanwhile, California's SB 253 first-year Scope 1 and 2 reporting deadline has been deferred to November 10, 2026 — the same day the revised ESRS takes force in Europe — making the next three weeks a pivotal window for multinational compliance teams on both sides of the Atlantic.