LONDON, Nov. 17 (Xinhua) -- British Environment Minister Phil Woolas said Saturday that the world must face up to the challenge set by an international panel of scientists to act urgently to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, or deal with serious consequences.
Making comments on the Synthesis Report released Saturday by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the minister said in a statement that the report had produced the most comprehensive and authoritative work to date on the state of global climate change, and its message to governments around the world was stark.
Woolas said: "No government can ignore the IPCC's work on the of the risks of climate change. It's a clear call to action that when we meet in Bali next month, we must launch formal negotiations on an international climate agreement that will include every major country on earth."
"We must not squander the political will and momentum that the IPCC's work has generated this year. Instead, we must take this chance to start serious work on a new UN climate framework that can be agreed by the end of 2009, " the minister said.
The Synthesis Report, the final part of the IPCC Fourth Assessment Report Climate Change 2007, states that urgent action must be taken to reduce greenhouse gas emissions or climate change will intensify and have a dramatic effect on the natural world and human society.