In a blow to companies that deny the seriousness of climate change, Ford Motor Co. has ended its association with the Global Climate Coalition, an industry group that vigorously opposes measures to control greenhouse gas emissions. Ford is the first major car company and first U.S. multinational to break ranks; U.K.-based Shell and British Petroleum have already left the GCC. Ford’s move, hailed by enviros, is part of an effort by the company’s new chair, William Clay Ford Jr., to take environmental concerns more seriously. Meanwhile, the U.S. oil industry, which is firmly opposed to the Kyoto climate change treaty, is trying to convince the world that voluntary initiatives undertaken by companies will be enough to combat climate change.
