New scenario could show impact of green shift

New climate scenarios could show clearly for the first time how a switch to clean energy could affect global warming - and how quickly Governments must act to keep warming within 2C.

A proposal for the next generation of climate scenarios - which translate different levels of projected greenhouse gas emissions into projected effects on the planet - has been published in the journal Nature after years of work by climatologists.

New Zealand scientist Martin Manning, who co-authored the paper, said scenarios used for the last 20 years did not cover what would happen if the world's development was strongly influenced by efforts to cut emissions.

The new set takes into account what people might do to change the path of emissions, including green technology and lifestyle changes.