A
new report from Citibank indicates that acting against global warming could not only save the planet, it could also save global economies tens of trillions of dollars. However, as many commentators have pointed out, the bank’s report is not the first study to highlight this. So why is the world’s media taking note on this occasion?
Action or inaction?Having unpicked Citibank’s report, environmental scientist and blogger Dana Nuccitelli explains in
The Guardian why he finds it particularly engaging.
Nuccitelli notes that the report considers two ways in which governing bodies can respond to global warming. They can carry on in the same vein, or they can transition to a low-carbon energy mix and take action.
“One of the most interesting findings in the report is that the investment costs for the two scenarios are almost identical,” Nuccitelli writes. “In fact, because of savings due to reduced fuel costs and increased energy efficiency, the action scenario is actually a bit cheaper than the inaction scenario.”
In terms of avoided climate costs, he adds, the difference between taking action and doing nothing could be a saving as great as $50tn.
He points out, though, that these findings are neither radical nor groundbreaking: “Other reports have arrived at the same conclusion, and have found that a revenue-neutral carbon tax would be modestly beneficial for the economy.”
What separates this report from the rest, according to Nuccitelli, is its awareness of the economic challenges for policy makers. While it sets out the clear economic benefits of taking action, it acknowledges that this would mean keeping a large percentage of known fossil fuel reserves in the ground – something the fossil fuel industry clearly won’t support. Knowing the strong influence the sector has on many governments, this represents a major stumbling block to efforts to slow global warming.
Like Citibank, Nuccitelli believes the international climate conference in Paris at the end of this year will prove pivotal in convincing world leaders to effect change.
The Guardian blog
Aligned interests In his blog for
ZME Science, Tibi Puiu strikes a similar tone to Nuccitelli, and notes that investing in renewable energy could save the global economy up to $44tn by 2060.
“At first glance, you’d think the health benefits and avoiding collateral damage at the hand of cataclysmic events is what makes the bulk of the savings,” writes Puiu. In fact, if the world’s economies do not act to reduce global warming, they could fail to capitalise on a significant opportunity for growth, he emphasises.
Like Nuccitelli, Puiu states that Citibank’s report is not the first to highlight economic gains from slowing climate change. He points readers to a
study published by the Citizen’s Climate Lobby, which claims a revenue-neutral carbon tax could create 2.8 million jobs and increase GDP by $1.3tn.
The bottom line, according to Puiu, is that investing in decarbonising the planet makes sense for investors and scientists alike. “It’s hard to recall a time when corporate interests would be so aligned with the public’s,” he concludes.
ZME Science coverage
Not alone Writing for
DeSmogBlog, Farron Cousins considers other US-based financial services organisations that have warned about the economic risks of climate change.
“Earlier this summer, a group of current and former Wall Street executives and former US Treasury Secretaries warned that a two-degrees Celsius increase in global temperatures could
result in property losses in the state of Florida totaling $23bn by the middle of this century,” he writes. “Agricultural losses could be as high as 20% of current yield.”
Taking a somewhat stronger view than Puiu or Nuccitelli, Cousins believes big banks in the US have a key role to play in reducing losses by backing renewable energy sources. He says: “If Wall Street understands the threat of climate change, even if only in terms of dollars, then this begs the question as to why they continue to fund climate change-denying politicians.”
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