Controlling the level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is a rapidly growing new commercial activity that did not exist a decade ago. It is predicted by Stern (2007) to rise in value to US$500 000 000 000 per year by 2050. This new activity is founded on the recognition that the threat of rapid climate change is a concern for future generations. Engineers are needed to exercise their skills to deliver economic solutions to this pressing problem. Greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide trap heat in the atmosphere and their increasing levels threaten to bring about climate change. This is a global issue and its consequences are long term. At the same time, there is much uncertainty associated with a phenomenon that is not yet understood well enough to be reliably modelled.

Last century there was much political discussion on this topic, which culminated in the agreed text of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). With the UNFCCC entering into force in 1994, the control of greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere became an engineering problem. While debate continues both about the impact of greenhouse gas on climate and the role humans play in influencing its concentration, the engineer is faced with the less controversial questions of how to manage the uncertainty and how to control greenhouse gases at the least cost to society. The modern engineer must address the concerns of the populace and will need to engage with the economist and the social scientist.