With help from the Environmental Defence Fund, an American lobbying group, it has also launched an experiment in emissions trading within the firm to help it reach that target.

ECONOMIST: Environmental policy: Hot market | The

Chris Graff, of the Environmental Defence Fund in Oakland, notes that advocates of new water projects become much less enthusiastic if it is proposed that the users pay for it.

ECONOMIST: Water policy

Leaders of respected environmental outfits such as Environmental Defence and the World Resources Institute have recently made positive noises about nuclear power as part of a response to global warming.

ECONOMIST: Nuclear power

Across in Westminster Hall there are debates on two recent select committee reports - Environmental Audit Committee on Protecting the Arctic and the Defence Select Committee report on Future of Maritime Surveillance.

BBC: Week ahead