The Cost of Climate Change

Gary Yohe, the Huffington Foundation Professor of Economics and Environmental Studies, was called on by The Associated Press to comment on a new analysis of the regional economic impacts of climate change. The report, commissioned by The Risk Business Project, made predictions including:

Between $66 billion and $106 billion in coastal property will likely be below sea level by 2050, labor productivity of outdoor workers could be reduced by 3 percent because extremely hot days will be far more frequent, and demand for electricity to power air conditioners will require the construction of more power plants that will cost electricity customers up to $12 billion per year.

 

While Yohe said the report’s general conclusions are “right on the money,” he noted that “There’s a whole litany of things not calculated in the assessment.”

Yohe added that this report is notable because of the business and financial experience of the people behind it, including former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, former Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, Jr., former hedge fund manager, Thomas Steyer, and former Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin, among others.

“These are people who have managed risk all their lives and have made an enormous amount of money doing so,” Yohe said.