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The carbon fighters
To meet its ambitious emissions targets, the UK's government and its companies need innovation and guidance. The Carbon Trust says it offers both. Derek Brower reports
WILL THE UK hit its climate-change targets? The government's most recent legislation to combat the country's greenhouse-gas (GHG) emissions calls for a 60% reduction by 2050 against a baseline of 1990 levels. By 2020, it wants to have reduced emissions by 26-32% through "domestic and international action". By any measure, especially international ones, those are ambitious targets. But they aren't impossible, says Michael Rea. He is the chief operating officer of the Carbon Trust, a commercial body that the UK government set up in 2001 to help persuade businesses to start minimising their carbon footprint. Its mission is to convince companies big and small that "decarbonisation" needn't hurt the bottom line, says Rea. That means the Trust can't just hand out subsidies willy nilly. Rea says one of the Trust's tasks is to ensure the steps a company takes to go carbon neutral are profitable. The best way to start cutting ...Click here to continue reading The carbon fighters
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