Climate Change Is Unavoidable

Jan-Erik Lane

Research in World Economy, 2012, vol. 3, issue 2, 1-6

Abstract: One may show that CO2 emissions per GDP unit of economic output have fallen over time as well as that this ratio is smaller in rich than in poor countries. However, one cannot conclude that a halt to the growth in total emissions is likely in the future. Similarly, one may show that the CO2 emissions per capita are much larger in rich and emerging economies than in poor countries. But one cannot conclude that total emissions can be reduced only by sharp reductions in rich countries. CO2 emissions are driven by economic production, using massive amounts of energy, and emerging economies with high rates of economic and huge populations pollute as much as rich countries, if not more like China.

Keywords: CO2 equivalent emissions; GDP; Global warming; Climate change; Jevon's paradox; Emissions per capita and per GDP unit; Environmental Kuznets curve; Kiribati and ecocide; Resiilience (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2012
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