PM talks with business leaders: Prime Minister John Howard is in talks today with business leaders that are the first steps towards setting up a joint government-industry taskforce to tackle greenhouse gas emissions. The Age

Birds facing extinction: Many bird species are already suffering from the effects of climate change all over the planet, a WWF report has said. The researchers estimate that bird extinction levels could be up to 72% in northeastern Australia and 38% in Europe unless global warming is checked. Environment News Service

Climate change report will offer more proof: A long awaited report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, a group that contains some 2000 climate and other scientists, is expected to provide much stronger evidence of the effects of man’s actions on the climate. Forbes

Extreme weather losses to cost trillions: A UN climate conference was told today that losses from extreme weather could top $1US trillion in a single year by 2040. Although just one of many possible scenarios, the researchers felt comfortable it was a realistic one. Daily Telegraph