Too often the debate about climate breaks down over cost, with many Americans rightfully concerned about what limiting pollution would do to our economy. But what this series of reports shows is that there is a cost on the other side of the ledger, too. There will be costs to our economic security from climate change -- and significant ones at that-- if we do nothing but continue business as usual.”
-- Republican NJ Governor and former EPA head Christy Todd Whitman
http://www.youtube.com/...
Some examples of the findings include:
-- Losses to Kentucky’s $9.3 billion timber industry due to drier seasons and more frequent fires
-- Severe storms impacting the 10 million people in Florida’s coastal communities
-- A potential $4 billion in shipping losses to Michigan due to reduced water levels in the Great Lakes which are projected to fall by 25%.
-- Midwestern states are projected to lose billions in revenue each year in agricultural revenues, due to increased temperature and rainfall
-- Loss of snowpack in the Northwest will lead to seasonal droughts and
-- Energy costs in the Southeast are projected to rise by $60 billion due to rising temperatures by 2100
-- NY could lose $122.9 billion in GDP and over 560,000 jobs by 2050.
-- California could face costs of $6-30 billion per year in the San Francisco area alone due to sea level rise projected at 20-55 inches over the next century.
[...]
Compared to these potential costs, the costs of mitigation efforts such as the estimated $22 billion for a moderate cap and trade proposal, are meager indeed. They should be evaluated, not as burdens, but as investment opportunities with very large potential returns.
Doing Nothing has its Price Tag, too. Ignorance and Inaction, really aren't Solutions, GOP wantabees.
Read em, and weep.
Get your State's Climate Change Report:
A state-by-state assessment of the costs of climate change. Click on a state below to find out how much climate change is going to cost you.
Pay Now, Pay Later (PNPL)
SecureAmericanFuture.org
PNPL Video with Christy Todd Whitman for Huffington Post
Meanwhile, back on the ranch ...
Can the Insurance Industry Survive Climate Change?
by Francesca Rheannon, Reuters -- Jun 13, 2011
The weather just seems to be getting crazier and crazier. First, the Mississippi River caused record flooding in several communities.
[...]
Killer tornadoes in the Midwest of the U.S. caused major loss of life (the toll is currently 141 deaths) and record damage. But when I heard the news that my home territory of western Massachusetts got clobbered by tornadoes severe enough to cause fatalities, I was really shocked -- tornadoes in New England?
[...]
Meanwhile, forest fires are raging in Texas, New Mexico and Arizona. Over 3 million acres have burned in the tinder-box the southwestern U.S. has become, due to a monster drought-with no end in sight.
[...]
As catastrophic weather events continue to become more common and more severe due to climate change, the insurance industry will be sorely tested. 2010 insured losses were estimated at between $18 billion and $37 billion -- and indicated "a probable link" to climate change, according to insurance giant, Munich Re. In fact, the industry has named climate change its biggest challenge.
But how will the industry respond? The most immediate response we are already seeing are soaring premiums to homeowners and businesses. One 2009 study predicted a doubling of insurance rates due to climate change - and that was before severe weather events doubled in 2010 from 2009 totals.
In the case of Insurance Policies, it's Pay them Now, AND Pay them Later ...
What do they think, on the other side of the Pond?
Annual cost of climate change 'will be £190bn'
UN has underestimated financial burden of global warming, study finds
by Steve Connor, Science Editor, independent.co.uk -- 28 August 2009
[...]
Estimates of how much the world will have to spend annually on adapting to some of the worst impacts of climate change have varied widely, but the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) has suggested that typically it could be about $70bn or $100bn (£44bn and £63bn) by 2030, the cost of about three Beijing Olympics. But other scientists have now suggested that the true annual cost could easily reach $300bn or more.
$300 Billion a year to adapt to Climate Change by 2030 and climbing -- That's quite the Price Tab, for Bizness as Usual ...
But wait it gets {cough} "better" ...
The Cost of Climate Change
What We'll Pay if Global Warming Continues Unchecked
Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC)
[...]
Four global warming impacts alone -- hurricane damage, real estate losses, energy costs, and water costs -- will come with a price tag of 1.8 percent of U.S. GDP, or almost $1.9 trillion annually (in today's dollars) by 2100.
$2 Trillion a year, just to pick up after Hurricanes Super-canes, to re-process waste water, and piece together ever-scarcer Fossil Energy -- so what's the Problem? Just extend the Debt Limit, right?
Unfortunately, in the case of Climate Change,
Ignorance is NOT Bliss -- Ignorance about Climate Change Costs -- is going to end up being Unbelievably Expensive! Both for us, AND those fortunate enough {cough} to follow after us.
No wonder most GOP Rhodes Scholars, don't want to believe that Climate Change even exists.
No doubt, they would rather just claim, such Climate Disasters, are all just "Acts of God"
-- therefore, No Human Intervention is required! That's just how the Fortune Cookie crumbles ... people. Now quit your gabbin' and Get back to work! {cough}
Here's a little working music for ya-all:
La, la, la, la, ... la, la ... la.
They can't WON'T Hear you ...