The 64-year-old heir to Britain's throne attacked businesses that failed to care for the environment and compared the current generation to a doctor taking care of a critically ill patient.
"If we see our forests and the planet as our patient, the risk of delay is so enormous that we cannot wait until we are absolutely sure the patient is dying. That is a monumental risk no doctor would ever take," he said, as the host of a two-day conference of scientists at St James' Palace in London starting today.
He praised countries such as Brazil, which has taken a lead on reducing deforestation, and Norway, which is offering billions of dollars to developing nations to protect their forests and criticised those who stand in the way of action against global warming.
Politicians must have "the courage to face down a storm of opposition from all sides", he said, describing those who questioned the need to act as "the incorporated society of syndicated sceptics and the International Association of Corporate lobbyists".
The Prince of Wales has been outspoken about environmental issues in the past, setting up the Countryside Fund.
He has previously warned about the importance of protecting rural areas from insensitive developments and the need to safeguard village life to ensure the rural landscape remains, as well as spoken out against genetically modified crops.