Climate change damage could cost $38 billion annually until 2050: study

The damage caused by climate change to agriculture, infrastructure, productivity and health will cost about $38 billion a year. from now until 2050According to a study funded by the German government, this figure will almost certainly increase as human activity increases greenhouse gas emissions.

The economic consequences of climate change are not fully known, and economists generally disagree on their magnitude.

A study carried out on Wednesday by the Potsdam Institute Climate Impact Research (PIK), supported by the German government, stands out for the seriousness of its findings. Calculate that Climate change will reduce global GDP by 17% by mid-century.

“The world’s population is poorer than it would be without climate change”said Leonie Wentz, a climate data scientist from Potsdam and co-author of the study, adding.

Climate protection costs us much less than not doing so.

According to the report, the cost of measures to limit global warming to 2 degrees Celsius pre-industrial temperatures by 2050, estimated at $6 billion, would be less than one-sixth the cost of the estimated damage caused by warming exceeding that level.

Although previous studies have concluded that climate change may benefit some economies, The PIK study concluded that almost everyone would be affected, with poor and developing countries hit hardest..

The damage assessment is based on Projected trends in temperature and precipitationbut it does not take into account extreme weather or other climate-related disasters such as wildfires or rising sea levels.

Also based solely on emissions already releasedalthough global emissions continue to rise to record levels.

In addition to spending too little to stop emissions that are warming the climateGovernments are also not spending enough money on adaptation to the impacts of climate change.

The researchers analyzed Temperature and precipitation data from more than 1,600 regions over the past 40 years., and looked at which of these phenomena were costly. They then used this damage estimate along with climate model projections to estimate future damage.

If emissions continue at the same rate and global average temperatures rise above 4°C, The estimated economic cost of 2050 would mean a 60% loss of income in 2100., according to the results. Limiting the temperature increase to 2°C will reduce these losses by an average of 20%.

Reuters

Source: Aristegui Noticias

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