Don't forget business needs, climate negotiators told
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| Building a better world is everybody's business |
B
onn, 25 July 2001 - As negotiators debate the legal intricacies of the climate change agreement hammered out in Bonn this week, ICC has called on governments to remember the needs of business when finalizing the deal.
In an interview with Conference News Daily, ICC's Senior Policy Manager for the Environment, Jack Whelan said it would ultimately be up to business to create the technologies and implement the strategies needed to combat climate change and therefore their needs had to be addressed.
"There are issues that remain of concern to the business community," he told the newspaper. "One of the main concerns is the lack of clear language in the Kyoto Protocol and the recent agreement.
"Companies are good at working toward agreed timetables and targets, but they require clarity and precise detail on what is expected of them. At the moment there isn't the degree of detail that would allow companies to make the sort of investment decisions that they need to make."
Companies have significant interests in conferences such as COP6 because they have both implications and opportunities for global industries, he added.
"Businesses are all taking the issue of climate change very seriously," Whelan continued. "They know that the various systems being discussed to address this challenge are actually built around industries acting in a way that results in a reduction of greenhouse gasses; they are a central part of the solution."
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