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Countries That Spurn Climate Remedies Face Barriers, Stern Says
2010-09-01 06:36:43.677 GMT
By Robert Fenner
Sept. 1 (Bloomberg) -- Countries that fail to adapt their
economies to "cleaner" technologies are likely to lose export
markets to those that do, said Nicholas Stern, former chief
adviser on climate change to the U.K. government.
"Ten or 15 years from now, those that produce in dirty
ways are likely to face trade barriers," Stern told an audience
at Australia's National Press Club in Canberra today.
Stern, who favors a market mechanism for the price of
carbon, said innovations include addressing the issues of low-
emission technology, carbon capture and deforestation. He
estimates the world needs to target an emissions level of two
metric tons per capita compared with the current 20 ton average
in developed economies such as Australia, Canada and the U.S.
"It means that the change is big and we can't kid
ourselves that it is anything other than radical," he said
Stern met with Australian politicians during his visit,
including government, opposition and independent lawmakers.
He declined to comment further on the meetings as Prime
Minister Julia Gillard and opposition leader Tony Abbott seek
the support of unaligned parliamentarians to form government
following the Aug. 21 election.
In 2006 Stern published a widely cited study of climate-
change economics for the British government. His report said
global warming may cost the world as much as 20 percent of the
gross domestic product because of the effects of famine, rising
sea levels, storms and other environmental damage.
For Related News and Information:
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--Editors: Iain Wilson, John Viljoen.
To contact the editor responsible for this story:
Robert Fenner in Canberra at +61-2-9777-8679 or
rfenner@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story:
Iain Wilson at +61-2-9777-8645 or
iwilson2@bloomberg.net
