Danger from global warming unproven
BERLIN, Tues. —
Business leaders, fearing costly proposals at the Berlin climate conference here, concede that emissions of greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide are warming up the earth but say it is not proven they will bring about significant climate changes.
Essentially, they say the problem requires more study, and that there will still be time to act should it prove urgent.
Industrial big business has a powerful lobby at the current Berlin climate conference, where its members point out that the scientists themselves admit they cannot predict with certainty the sweeping catastrophe that environmental activists fear from global warming.
The Global Climate Coalition (GCC) representing US oil, chemical, auto and energy utility companies, the International Chamber of Commerce whose delegation is led by a US oil company vice-president, and the American Council for Capital Formation were all at the Berlin conference today.
The GCC disagrees with the widely-held view at the conference that the present commitments by industrialised countries under the Rio de Janeiro convention to arrest carbon dioxide emissions are inadequate, saying that such a conclusion is "premature" .
It says that dire predictions of rising sea-levels and agricultural dislocation are based on computer models "not developed for policy-setting purposes".
The coalition also wants recognition that in the 21st century the developing countries — and no longer the industrialised countries presently responsible for most emissions, with the United States in the lead are expected to be the predominant source of such emissions.
The Council for Capital Formation says in a report: "Until a consensus is reached on both the benefits and costs of carbon dioxide abatement, It is difficult to argue the need for drastic immediate measures to achieve global emissions stabilisation.
"Since global temperatures are not likely to rise significantly, an aggressive carbon dioxide abatement policy is unwarranted in the near term." — AFP
Source : The New Straits Times 03 April 1995
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