Green company snubs oil giant in global row

A GREEN-minded firm has refused to work with oil giant ExxonMobil because it claims the company has a history of climate change denial. Ardeley-based corporate events company MotivAction was approached by ExxonMobil to run an event, but turned it down. Tim Waygood, managing director of MotivAction, said that he would not be able to work with a major company that had attempted to “undermine the scientific consensus on climate change”. In an email to ExxonMobil, Mr Waygood said: “We are very concerned about climate change, both taking action and the communication of the issue, and we are aware of many articles, information and evidence that ExxonMobil is funding climate change deniers. “Given that this is the case, it would not be appropriate for us to work with a company whose ethics are so opposed to ours.” And Mr Waygood called on other agencies to follow MotivAction’s drive to become carbon neutral. “Conference and events agencies can play a big part in creating awareness and engaging businesses in the environmental problem. “We can’t claim to be environmentally friendly and continue to take money from organisations that, according to information in the public domain, help to pervert the communication of climate science.” David Eglinton, a spokesman for ExxonMobil, said: “We reject their absurd accusations. ExxonMobil takes the issue of climate change very seriously. “We are taking action on many fronts to address the risks it poses. These include partnerships with vehicle manufacturers to reduce emissions; researching hydrogen-fuelled vehicles, vigorously pursuing energy efficiency in our own refineries and supporting groundbreaking research at Stanford University to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. (…) “We, and many other corporations, fund public policy organisations, but we do not control their views or actions. As for research into climate science, for many years the company has supported major projects at highly respected institutions such as the Hadley Centre for Climate Prediction and the International Energy Agency.” Image source: themotivactiongroup.co.uk

News selected by Covalence | Country: UK | Company: ExxonMobil | Source: Herts and Essex Newspapers