Environment Day appeal to kick carbon

The United Nations urged the world yesterday to kick an all-consuming addiction to carbon dioxide and said everyone must take steps to fight climate change.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon said global warming was becoming the defining issue of the era and will hurt rich and poor alike.

"Our world is in the grip of a dangerous carbon habit," Ban said in a statement to mark World Environment Day, which is being marked by events around the globe and hosted by the New Zealand city of Wellington.