It’s time for the world’s biggest fossil fuel companies to put action behind their stated interest in tougher carbon pollution controls, UN Climate Secretary Christiana Figueres said last week.
“The world wants to be proud of your actions at this time of crisis and I look forward to your giving us every reason to be,” Figueres wrote last week, in response to a May 29 letter from the CEOs of Shell, BP, Total, Statoil, Eni, and BG Group, asking for a predictable, stable price on carbon. The companies collectively generate $1.4 trillion in annual revenue.
- The climate news you need. Subscribe now to our engaging new weekly digest.
- You’ll receive exclusive, never-before-seen-content, distilled and delivered to your inbox every weekend.
- The Weekender: Succinct, solutions-focused, and designed with the discerning reader in mind.
In her letter, Figueres “notes that she has worked with the companies during her UN tenure and says she’s ‘confident’ that their effort is genuine,” the National Journal reports. But “I hope you can understand that governments and civil society also need to be reassured of your sincere commitment,” she writes.
“I would call on you to ensure that henceforth your government engagement is clearly focused on the outcome you have sought in your letter to me: an ambitious, long-term policy framework on climate change that will guide us promptly and resolutely toward a low-carbon economy.” (h/t to Clean Energy Canada for first pointing us to this story)