A panel of some of the world’s most distinguished economists was asked the following question:
“If the global community wants to spend up to $250 billion per year over the next 10 years to diminish the adverse effects of climate change and to do the most good for the world, which solution would yield the greatest net benefits?”
The Expert Panel was asked to consider and rank proposals under the Copenhagen Consensus on Climate project, and identify where investments would be most effective under the following headings: Climate Engineering, Carbon Cuts, Forestry, Black Carbon Cuts, Methane Cuts, Adaptation, Energy Technology and Technology Transfers. The Panel’s rankings are below:
The Expert Panel found that increased research into energy technology is vital and that there is a compelling case to fund research into carbon storage and sequestration (CCS, carbon storage) as this technology has considerable potential as a “bridging technology” to a zero carbon future.
The Expert Panel also found that drastic carbon cuts would be the poorest way to respond to global warming and that high levels of carbon tax, in the short term, are a poor response to climate change.
In summary, the Expert Panel found that one of the central technologies we need to explore is CCS. This allows the continued use of fossil fuels while reducing the CO2 emissions produced – a huge help to countries like India and China that rely heavily on coal for electricity generation.
On www.fixtheclimate.com you can find the final result from the meeting and the research papers.
