Envido - Stern Review

The Stern Review Report:
The Economics of Climate Change
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Envido works with organisations across all sectors to help them save money and reduce their carbon footprint through better energy management.
We offer a fully integrated solution to successfully manage your carbon journey.
Our solution covers:

carbon consultancy and programme management
energy-saving technology installation, and;
employee behavioural change delivery

We have enabled clients both large and small across the public and private sectors to save millions of £'s through improved energy and carbon management.
Visit our website at www.envido.co.uk or contact us directly on +44 (0)207 1990 090 o find out how we can help you reduce your energy costs and carbon footprint.
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Contents

What is the Stern Report?
Report Conclusions
Positive Responses to Stern
Critical Responses
Response to Criticism
Consequences for Businesses

What is the Stern Report?
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Major review of the economics of climate change
Gain understanding of economic challenges and how they can be met UK and Globally
Lead by Sir Nicholas Stern with a team of economists and independent academics

Report Conclusions (1)
Climate change threatens the basic elements of life for people around the world:

Access to water
Food production
Health
Use of land and environment

Impacts not evenly distributed. Poorest countries and people impacted largest and earliest.
Initially, small beneficial effects for some developed nations.

However, eventually large temperature rises expected by mid-late century to have very damaging impacts

5. Benefits of strong early action outweigh the costs
6. It is feasible to stabilise emissions and have sustained economic growth
7. Costs of 2% global GDP to stabilise emissions before irreversible impacts
8. Low carbon economy brings challenges for competitiveness but also opportunities for growth

Policies to support low-carbon technologies urgently required

9. Establishing a global carbon price through taxation, trading or regulation is essential and urgent globally
10. Adaptationpolicy crucial for unavoidable impacts
11. Effective international collective action required
12. We can still avoid the worst impacts if we react now (written in 2006)

Positive Responses to Stern

The Stern Review offers a huge business opportunity for those willing to invest in green technology and change to low emitting practices.
The Review removes the last refuge of the ‘do-nothing’ approach on climate change
Several government around the world have already begun to act upon the recommendations detailed in the report
E.g. Carbon Reduction Commitment in the UK

Critical responses (1)

Some economist have argued that Stern overestimates the present value of the costs of climate change and underestimates the costs of emission reduction
Some say the scientific consequences view on global warming, on which Stern relied, is incorrect.
The long term economic projections have also been questioned. Due to the fact that economic forecasts for just two or three years ahead are often wrong. Some have concluded that the real motive behind the review is simply to justify increased tax on fuels

Critical responses (2))

The Review differs strongly from most other estimates of climate change in the literature
There is a vast quantity good references in the 700 page report. However, it is felt by many that the conclusions it comes to are selective and flawed. Its fear-mongering arguments have been sensationalised, which is ultimately only likely to make the world worse off.

Response to Criticism

Stern has responded to the criticism by publishing number of papers.
Reiterating the need for strong early action on climate change
Stern stated that the severity of his findings were vindicated with the publication of the 2007 IPCC report which stated:

“We underestimated the risks...we underestimated the damage associated with temperature increases...and we underestimated the probabilities of temperature increases”

Consequences for business (1)
Taxation
Increased taxation of highly emitting activities and products. ‘Green’ taxes on fuel have already been brought into the UK
Carbon Trading
Allocation of the amount of carbon emissions that a business can make, with the creation of a real global market.
This would allow any business that wants to emit more than its entitlement to buy that right, and any business that emits less than its entitlement to sell the unused portion of its entitlement. The Carbon Reduction Commitment is an example of this.

Consequences for business (2)
Government Incentives and Initiatives
Encourage research and development and incentives on low-carbon technologiesand practices. An example of this is the UK Low Carbon Transition Plan.
Regulation
Governments are also promoting "behavioural change” through regulation . An example of this are the stricter standards on the energy efficiency of buildings and products.

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Envido
Envido works with organisations across all sectors to help them save money and reduce their carbon footprint through better energy management.
We offer a fully integrated solution to successfully manage your carbon journey.
Our solution covers:

carbon consultancy and programme management
energy-saving technology installation, and;
employee behavioural change delivery

We have enabled clients both large and small across the public and private sectors to save millions of £'s through improved energy and carbon management.
Visit our website at www.envido.co.uk or contact us directly on +44 (0)207 1990 090 o find out how we can help you reduce your energy costs and carbon footprint.
Follow us on Twitter! /Envido