Although environment secretary Margaret Beckett claimed the overall outcome of the Earth Summit was "truly remarkable", environmental groups have criticised it as a missed opportunity.

Forum Response: The Swan Group

Keith Tozzi, chief executive of The Swan Group, told ePolitix: "We are calling on the government to organise a working party made up of its own officials, regulators, industry experts and charitable organisations, such as WaterAid, to pull together all the collective expertise available to formulate a UK strategy to contribute to the 2015 pledge.

"On water issues, the Johannesburg Summit would appear to have been broadly successful with a firm commitment from delegates to help the billions of people world-wide who still are without safe drinking water. Swan group and Mid Kent Water warmly welcome this commitment and will seek to assist the UK government in reaching the 2015 target."

Forum Response: Envirowise

Martin Gibson, director of Envirowise, told ePolitix.com: "From the Envirowise perspective, the fact that the Earth Summit took place at all is an encouraging sign. It shows that world leaders are beginning to recognise how vital safeguarding the environment is if we are to meet our other aspirations.

"The lack of challenging targets is very disappointing. Companies the world over have shown that setting challenging targets helps you make real achievements. We need something to ensure we reverse environmental degradation, so that our own and future generations can life better lives.

"The United States led the world in environmental regulation in the 1970's but don't seem to have moved on from there as fast as they might. Other countries are finding that good environmental performance and energy saving makes their companies more efficient and competitive."

Forum Response: Environmental Services Association

A spokeswoman for the ESA told ePolitix: "The South African authorities deserve to be congratulated on the conduct of the Summit: in very difficult circumstances, they both provided effective security and made it as easy as possible to get around.

"A number of British companies as well as the City of London Corporation, which launched the London Principles at the Summit, also made a very positive contribution and I believe the global case for the "triple bottom line" on a financially viable basis has been strengthened by the example of the UK corporate sector in Johannesburg.

"The rhetoric on water has barely changed in a generation. While one welcomes such progress as was made, obviously one would have wished the Summit to go further in terms of tangible achievement for water and in other areas.

"The UK government must realise that if others are to listen to lectures on the environment, its own house must first be in order. The current Cabinet Office review of waste policy must achieve an order of magnitude of positive change within the UK if the UK is to sustain overall environmental credibility in the global community.

"It would have been better if the UK government had included ESA's expertise in drafting the London Principles. However, these Principles and some other achievements at Johannesburg might help to make life better for some of the most vulnerable people on the planet.

"In a modest way, ESA has learned from the Summit: for example, our forthcoming annual conference will be carbon neutral and we will ensure that, on a basis fully compliant with the UN Global Compact, that at least some of the resulting benefit reaches the most vulnerable."