One of the country’s leading scientists has launched a University of Cambridge initiative which will be at the leading edge of international environmental research.

Sir David King, Chief Scientific Adviser to HM Government, was at the official opening of the ‘Cambridge Centre for Climate Change Mitigation Research’ in the University’s Department of Land Economy, or ‘4CMR’ as it will be known.

Climate change is occurring and the causal link to increased greenhouse gas emissions largely caused by the use of fossil fuels is now well established. Carbon dioxide levels are now about 40% higher than at any time in the past 740,000 years at least. Further warming will occur over the next few decades regardless of action on emissions reduction. As a result, millions of people around the world will increasingly be exposed to hunger, drought, flooding and other serious impacts.

Expert knowledge from a variety of disciplines will address the complex issues surrounding Greenhouse Gases. These range from economics, engineering and politics to applied mathematics and computing.

Researchers will study ways to reduce the rate of climate-change (mitigation) through technological change. This could be through the use of economic means, such as the EU’s emission trading scheme, applying a multi-disciplinary approach to bring together the work of several departments. The Centre is well connected to inform national and international policy-making.

The Centre will develop detailed models of energy use and emissions from UK households, working closely with the Policy Studies Institute in London.

Speaking at the launch Sir David King said: “Climate change is undoubtedly the biggest challenge facing us this century.

“The Government’s aim to reduce carbon emissions by 60 per cent by 2050 sets us an important goal which will require a committed effort and support for innovation and technological research.

“This new centre will make a very important contribution to that effort.”

Dr Terry Barker, Director of 4CMR, said: “This is very exciting cross-disciplinary research, building on the development of large-scale economic models in Cambridge over the last 40 years. Better understanding of how and why we are burning up fossil fuel reserves and polluting the atmosphere will help governments to frame policies that will promote economic growth and human welfare and avoid environmental destruction.

“The work in the Centre will bring together climate scientists and applied economists to use the latest techniques for managing and understanding uncertainty in modelling large non-linear systems explaining the past.”

Three long-term research contracts have been secured from UK Research Councils and the European Commission. The Centre will have at least seven researchers and will work closely with other researchers in the University’s Department of Land Economy, Faculty of Economics and Judge Business School, as well as the UK Energy Research Centre, the UK Tyndall Centre and Cambridge Econometrics.

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