Tackling global warming won't hurt economy

Abstract

More than 2,000 economists have signed a statement declaring that the U.S. can pursue some policies to curtail greenhouse gas emissions without harming the economy. The economists want to influence the policies the U.S. will pursue this December during international negotiations in Kyoto, Japan, says Stephen DeCanio, professor of economics at the University of California, Santa Barbara, who organized the effort. In Kyoto, representatives of the world's nations will hammer out an agreement to address the threat of global warming. At first glance, it appears that the economists' statement favors bold action to avert climate change. But, in reality, it is carefully crafted to encompass views ranging from those advocating drastic steps to reduce emissions levels in the near term to those advocating only those steps that would be economically justifiable even if there were no threat of climate change. The economists' statement is disappointingly lacking in specific information, and, consequently, is subject...