Paul Krugman’s long NYT article ‘Building a green economy’ has aroused tons of debate. If like me you’re a layperson, it’s well worth reading carefully as a wonderfully clear overview of environmental economics (let along climate change itself). What impressed me most is his claim that there is a ‘rough consensus’ among economists on the broad economics of vigorous governmental actions. I’m not as sanguine as he is about the modest societal impact of major changes like cap and trade, but my intuition is not based on analysis like his, but rather on human observation (if change were easy, why are the opponents fighting so hard?), nonetheless it’s comforting to see the weight of his opinions on the matter.
As usual with Krugman, his article is also a call to act. He concludes:
. . . there has to be a real chance that political support for action on climate change will revive. If it does, the economic analysis will be ready. We know how to limit greenhouse-gas emissions. We have a good sense of the costs — and they’re manageable. All we need now is the political will.