Health savings outweigh costs of limiting global warming: study

Tuesday, March 6, 2018

The estimated cost of measures to limit Earth-warming greenhouse gas emissions can be more than offset by reductions in deaths and disease from air pollution, researchers said on Saturday.

It would cost US$22.1 trillion to US$41.6 trillion between 2020 and 2050 for the world to hold average global warming under two degrees Celsius, a team projected in The Lancet Planetary Health journal.

For the lower, aspirational limit of 1.5 C, the cost would be between $39.7 trillion and $56.1 trillion, they estimated.

But air pollution deaths could be reduced by 21-27 percent to about 100 million between 2020 and 2050 under the 2 C scenario, the team estimated, and by 28-32 percent to about 90 million at 1.5 C.

Photo courtesy of Señor Codo.

Source: CTV News (link opens in a new window)

Categories
Environment, Health Care
Tags
climate change