‘A simple conclusion: the benefits of strong and early action far outweigh the economic costs of not acting.’
This was the conclusion of the The Economics of Climate Change: The Stern Review by Nicholas Stern in 2006.
But some of our community seek to delay action on climate change by claiming that ‘climate change’ is some sort of left-wing conspiracy. Shame on them. The science clearly shows the economic costs of climate change are enormous, and growing the longer we wait to take serious action.
In 2006 The Stern Review estimated the cost of action on climate change would be the equivalent of investing one per cent of global annual GDP. In 2008 Stern warned that the cost had doubled to two per cent of global GDP. ‘Failure to do this would lead to damage costing much more, the report warned – at least five per cent and perhaps more than 20 per cent of global GDP,’ The Guardian reported at the time.
As we see fires rage around the world the European Space Agency (ESA) is clear that, ‘Extreme wildfires are no longer rare anomalies but recurring climate-driven disasters reshaping global carbon cycles.’
The science shows that climate change is reshaping our world and we have squandered much of the time we had to implement real and lasting change to mitigate the impacts of greenhouse gases on the world’s climate.
In the last week Reuters reported that, ‘The heatwaves that have hit France in recent months could result in €10 billion to €15 billion [$24AUS billion] in direct and indirect costs,’ according to the French environment minister Monique Barbut.
The drought is also impacting Germany’s economy as the waters of the Danube and Rhine rivers have lowered. This is significantly impacting the cost of movement of freight along the river.
‘A prolonged disruption of navigability on the Rhine could completely stifle the tiny seed of growth we have,’ warned economist Thilo Schäfer in an interview with Bild newspaper,’ reported www.dw.com.
The record-low waters in the Danube River have led to Romania closing its last working nuclear reactor that supplies 20 per cent of the country’s electricity.
‘Romania has declared a state of energy emergency throughout August and asked companies and households to reduce consumption during peak hours,’ reported The Guardian.
According to the MIT climate portal ‘Some estimate that 3°C of warming would bring GDP losses over 10, 20, or even 30%, with at least one model projecting that the world stands to lose over 50% of GDP. These numbers would make even the Great Depression of the 1920s and 30s seem mild.’
Action is needed on climate change and people need to look at ways they can instigate change. Denial will not serve anyone except those people and companies that seek short term benefit at the cost of all our futures. Make your voice heard, choose where your dollars go – from the supermarket to the stock market, make sure your votes count, go electric whenever you can. And don’t buy into the ‘there’s no climate change’ conspiracy.
For four decades The Echo has printed the stories some people loved, some people hated, and some pretended not to read. If you want us to keep telling the truth, the real truth, not the sugar-coated version. We’ll need your support to keep the presses rolling. 
