from the Guardian:
Prof P Stott is a GEOGRAPHER at SOAS !!!!!!!! (
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ExxonMobil fights back
The world's biggest oil firm is unleasing a PR offensive to win the
environmental war of words
Special report: global warming <http://www.guardian.co.uk/globalwarming>
Terry Macalister
Monday June 18, 2001
The Guardian
ExxonMobil, the world's largest oil group, is planning a public relations
offensive to win back consumers and investors, confidential documents
suggest - amid fears the company is losing the war of words over climate
change which has triggered a petrol boycott.
The public relations drive comes as the Stop Esso Campaign has widened its
action against the oil major, drawing in Germany, Norway, and New Zealand as
well as Britain, where it started.
A briefing paper drawn up for Exxon in Britain by Insight Research and
passed on to the Guardian calls for an opinion survey to try to gauge the
depth of anger against the company.
The oil group hopes to win back public support by asking survey respondents
to be aware "the slight warming that has occurred in the last 50 years is
likely the result of natural climate variations rather than energy use."
It also hopes to convince them "the (Kyoto) treaty would have little effect
on global warming because it excludes many countries which are among the
biggest emitters of greenhouse gases."
Arguments against those of the environmentalists have been posted on Esso
UK's and ExxonMobil's corporate website. Similar information in hard copy
has been mailed to financiers in investment areas, such as Frankfurt.
Stop Esso campaign managers say the Insight survey suggests the company is
panicking about the effect of the boycott which has seen support from
celebrities such as Bianca Jagger and 350,000 hits on its website.
Cindy Baxter, a spokeswoman for the campaign, said: "The questions in the
survey are loaded to give Exxon the replies they want. I think its a poll
designed to be published and they will then claim the public is unaware of
the campaign against it or that there is little support for Kyoto."
Last night the company admitted it was worried about the forecourt action
but would not comment on whether it was having any marked effect on petrol
sales. A spokesman for Esso UK said: "We are concerned about the boycott and
are trying to make our position clearer. The main thing for us is to put
over the facts."
He would not comment on whether the arguments over global warming and fossil
fuels were being won or lost, but confirmed that public opinion surveys were
being used. "We undertake market surveys from time to time and always
include topical issues," he said.
Exxon, which trades in Britain as Esso, has been targeted by green activists
because it is seen as the biggest corporate opponent of the Kyoto treaty on
climate change.
Anger has intensified over the last few days a US president George Bush
reiterated his determination not to support Kyoto.
Exxon is considered a big influence on Mr Bush because, environmentalists
say, it bankrolled the Bush presidential race to the White House, though
Exxon denies this.
Other oil majors, such as BP and Shell, have tried to avoid confrontation
over their continued commitment to fossil fuels by also investing in
renewable energy sources. The European companies support Kyoto and have made
public commitments to reduce greenhouse emissions.
Exxon's position on global warming will gain some support today when
Professor Philip Stott of London University argues at a meeting organised by
the Institute of Economic Affairs that Kyoto is scientifically unjustified
and politically unfeasible.
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