There is widespread consensus that greenhouse gas emissions from human activity are contributing to rising world temperatures, increasing the frequency of devastating weather events such as hurricanes, fires, floods and droughts. In response, over 3,500 economists have signed a statement supporting the
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Economic and lifestyle changes related to the COVID-19 pandemic and the related containment policies that countries around the world implemented resulted in a large reduction of carbon dioxide emissions. This reduction so far is likely larger than what we have experienced in past recessions. But, can
...What would be the distributional effects of a carbon tax? Gilbert Metcalf (Tufts) and Michael Klein, Executive Editor of EconoFact discuss new research which shows that, faced with a carbon tax, companies are unlikely to pass the resulting cost increases entirely
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Climate change is no longer a future threat; some of its effects are already being felt. Rising temperatures are increasing the frequency of devastating weather events as hurricanes, fires, floods, droughts, extreme heat, and extreme cold. In addition to their direct impact on the population, these effects
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The United States has made a lot of headway in improving air quality since the initial Clean Air Act, the first drastic regulation of air pollution in the United States. While such a program has visible costs — such as decreased manufacturing employment, sectoral reallocation, and increased production
...Economists broadly agree that the best way to reduce fossil fuel emissions is by putting a price on them. Michael Klein, Executive Editor of EconoFact and Gilbert Metcalf (Tufts) discuss some of the challenges of implementing a carbon tax in the U.S. They highlight
...Economists have argued for almost one-hundred years that carbon taxes can address the problem of pollution. And the issue has gained increasing urgency with the threat of climate change. In the last 25 years there has been a move from theory to practice. As of early 2018, more than 25 national or subnational
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There is compelling evidence that the earth has gotten warmer. Analysis by scientists at NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) indicates an increase of average temperatures of 0.8 degree Celsius (1.4 degrees Fahrenheit) since 1880, with two-thirds of this warming occurring since 1975. Moreover,
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