Carbon data needs fixing or climate-aware investments may fall short - MarketWatch
Opinion: Carbon data needs fixing or climate-aware investments may fall short - MarketWatch
It’s no secret that the world’s business and policymaking establishment adopted carbon penalties and offsets as a climate-change mitigation approach because it’s a market-driven solution that doesn’t threaten to bring economic productivity to a standstill. In the U.S. — even amid rancorous partisan debate about climate change — a wide majority supports the country’s effort to adopt carbon-neutral policies.
As a result, carbon data today sits at the center of current and future policymaking for nations, corporations and NGOs...
Related Knowledge Center: Climate economics
Climate change is now a driver of the world’s economy. The impact is profound:
- Catastrophic weather events — hurricanes, floods, droughts, high temperatures — are more frequent and more extreme. The cost can be measured in both the initial damage caused and the longer-term impact on the economy.
- Vulnerable communities are increasing climate-related investments, hardening infrastructure and taking other protective measures.
- Investment in carbon capture and storage technologies is increasingly rapidly.
- Governments are making investments and crafting regulations to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.
On top of all of this is the cost of uncertainty. As the Fourth National Climate Assessment, released in 2018 by the U.S. Global Change Research Program, says, “The assumption that current and future climate conditions will resemble the recent past is no longer valid.”