ABSTRACT

The evidence is that warming will continue, at an accelerating pace, through the twenty-first century and beyond, unless urgent measures are taken to slow and eventually reverse the increase in greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. As recognised in the united nations framework convention on climate change, emissions reduction targets should be driven by estimates of the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere that would lead to dangerous impacts. Some issues are at stake regarding reducing greenhouse gas emissions to reduce the risk from climate change. Historically, developed countries have emitted the most greenhouse gases since the industrial revolution and become rich in the process. In the case of climate change this is further complicated by large time lags between actions regarding greenhouse gas emissions, and their eventual consequences, which may be large but delayed by decades to centuries. Business needs to act now to limit greenhouse gas emissions and prepare for changes already happening.