VIENNA - Oil companies must join forces with governments to restore public trust in the energy industry's ability to combat climate change, BP (BP.L: Quote, Profile, Research) Chief Executive John Browne said.
"This is a long-term challenge - but the risk if we do nothing is that we'll come to a point where drastic and potentially damaging action will be required to avert the danger," Browne told an OPEC energy seminar in Vienna.
Oil companies have a direct interest in removing "the sense of fear" linked with environmental risks, he said.
"We have to demonstrate that we take the problem seriously and that we are using our skills and resources to do something about it. That will help to restore trust in oil and gas," he said.
"If we try to live in denial, we could do irreparable damage."
Oil and gas are likely to remain the primary sources of energy over the coming decades, meaning levels of the carbon emissions associated with global warming could rise, Browne said.
Governments must create a framework of regulation which will set incentives to improve environmental performance, ensure resources are used effectively, and minimise cost, he said.
"We need a framework of regulation, which sets incentives and shapes behaviour," he said.
There was a powerful precautionary argument for keeping concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere below the level at which sustainability is threatened, he said.
"The best estimate is that the safe level is around 500-550 parts per million. We are now at around 373 ppm and that figure is rising steadily," he said.
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