Costs of Climate Change

"One of the greatest impediments to tackling far-reaching issues such as global climate change is our tendency to focus on the near-term costs of corrective action rather than the long-term costs of doing nothing," Ecology Global Network

When considering measures to prevent climate change, discussions are often framed in terms of what the costs of enacting provisions will be. It is also important to consider the costs of doing nothing at all, and allowing climate change to go unchecked.

While many of climate change's impacts are not quantifiable and are hard to estimate, organizations continue to attempt to pin down its harmful effects. These include health hazards and genetic mutations caused by pollution, military unrest that can follow floods and droughts, and extreme weather events.

Here are some estimates that several scientific studies have found:

NATURAL RESOURCES DEFENSE COUNCIL - Global warming will cost the U.S. over $3.8 trillion every year by 2100. -These costs include $422 billion in hurricane damages, $360 billion in real estate losses, $141 billion in increased energy costs, and $950 billion in water costs.   GLOBAL HUMANITARIAN FORUM - The delay between emissions reductions and the stopping of their warming effect is about 20 years. - Every year, climate change is responsible for over 300,000 deaths, with 325 million people seriously affected. - Over the past 5 years, weather-related disasters have caused $230 billion in economic losses. Such disasters have increased in frequency and severity over the past 30 years. - Over 9 in 10 deaths are related to gradual environmental degredation due to climate climate change, including malnutrition, diarrhoea, malaria (climate change causes more favorable conditions for disease-bearing insects to breed in some regions) and weather disasters.

INTERGOVERNMENTAL PANEL ON CLIMATE CHANGE - Heat waves, floods, storms, fires and droughts caused by climate change will increase with time. - Millions will be at risk from coastal flooding due to sea level rise. - About 25% of species assessed so far will be at higher risk of extinction if the global average temperature rises by 1.5-2.5 degrees Celsius.The global average temperature has already increased by about 0.74 degrees Celsius over pre-industrial levels. - During the 21st century, water supplies stored in glaciers and snow cover will decline, reducing the avalability of water in regions where over 1/6th of the global population lives. Rain-dependant agricultural yields could reduce by half in some regions.   ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENSE FUND - North-Eastern states in the U.S. could face about $5 billion in costs from each weather event. -New York State's agricultural sector could lose up to $1.2 billion each year. -In the U.S., preparing for warmer weather is estimated to cost $300 billion by 2050.

THE STERN REPORT - Unchecked emissions could shrink the world economy by 5% every year, accounting for human displacement, coastal flooding, water shortages, and species depletion. - For instance, in 2005 Hurricane Katrina lowered U.S. GDP by nearly 1%.   PROGRESSIVE BUSINESS PUBLICATIONS -Increase in water temperature causes coral bleaching, because of which 16% of the world's coral has died since 1998. This adversely affects marine ecosystems, our food supply, and tourism. - In 2007, the Middle East's first ever recorded hurricane occured, compromising oil exports in Iran and Oman and spiking oil prices.

UNION OF CONCERNED SCIENTISTS -Extreme heat waves that are considered rare will occur more frequently in the future. Events that now occur once in 20 years will occur about once ever 2 years in much of the country by the end of this century. - Heavy downpour, which occurs once in 20 years, will occur about once every 4-15 years and will be 10%-25% heavier by the end of this century. - In about 50 years, Red Ozone Alert Days (when the air is unhealthy for everyone) in the 50 largest cities in the eastern United States will increase by 68% percent due to warming alone.   UNITED NATIONS OFFICE FOR THE COORDINATION OF HUMANITARIAN AFFAIRS - About 70% of disasters are now climate related -up from about 50% from two decades ago. -From 1998 to 2007, 2.2 billion people were affected by climate disasters compared to 1.8 billion in the ten years before. - From 1999 to 2008, economic damage from weather related disasters increased by about $160 billion compared to the previous ten years.   Resources: Natural Resources Defense Council Global Humanitarian Forum Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Environmental Defense Fund The Stern Report Progressive Business Publications Union of Concerned Scientists United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs