and remember … if you sleep with dogs, you’re going to get ticks … tcktcktck …

The business of climate change

The Business of Climate Change was up for debate at the UN climate talks in Copenhagen on Thursday with a question and answer discussion run by the Prince of Wales’ Corporate Leaders’ Group on Climate Change.

The Group – which includes big polluters like Shell and Cemex – has launched its own, surprisingly tough call for a Copenhagen deal (the Copenhagen Communique) – which is supported by some 900 companies from around the world.

Companies including BASF, Bayer, Dong Energy,  EON, British Airways and BP have backed the call for “immediate and deep emission reduction commitments”, tougher regulation (“because a strong carbon price alone will not be enough to deliver the level and nature of change required”) and “efficient and equitable emissions reductions”.

What is perhaps less surprising is that some of these very same companies are voicing far less constructive demands elsewhere.

Take for example Angry Mermaid nominee Shell – this oil and gas company which recently pulled out of renewables and is poised to develop tar sands projects in Canada, also belongs to the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, which is promoting voluntary solutions, not legally binding regulations.

German chemical giant BASF is a member of BusinessEurope – the EU lobby group which sent a letter to the EU Commission President Barroso at the start of the UN climate talks urging them not to adopt a 30% target. BASF is also a member of the European Chemical Industry lobby group (CEFIC) – another Angry Mermaid nominee – which is also lobbying against increased emission reduction commitments.

To be fair, some of the Climate Leaders appear to take a more progressive approach – but companies like Shell seem to be using them as a front group – or even as a platform from where they can push their ever-growing demands for more public subsidies for carbon capture and storage – allowing them to carry on polluting as usual til 2020 and beyond.

http://www.corporateeurope.org/climate-and-energy/blog/helen/2009/12/14/business-climate-change