ICF said companies in the United States are at a competitive disadvantage as companies in the rest of the world take action to become Kyoto compliant.

These changes in the business environment have been brought on by Russia’s ratification of the Kyoto Protocol, which the United States declined to sign.

The Protocol is expected to be the first of many steps that the international community takes to address the increasing challenge of global climate change.

"Investments by corporate America to improve operating efficiency will have no value in the emerging US$5-10 billion-a-year global carbon credit market,” ICF managing director Craig Ebert said.

“While U.S.-based companies with operations overseas could take advantage of these market opportunities, many do not understand the competitive implications of a carbon-constrained global business environment."

"International competitors are already moving aggressively to compete in a world that will see increasingly stringent carbon constraints. These companies realize that climate change will offer both risks and opportunities to their businesses. They are proactively working to reduce their own carbon exposure and to develop and aggressively market climate friendly products to give them a competitive advantage in the global marketplace," he said.

Ebert said European companies had already begun taking steps necessary for their businesses to prosper in a carbon-constrained world.

“As many companies are discovering, investments to reduce their GHG emissions can improve their bottom line, as evidenced by BP which has saved $650 million annually by aggressively reducing its emissions," ICF London director Abyd Karmali said.