Climate Action is Expensive

Written by

Danny Chen

Expensive…

It is the word often heard by people who practice responsible consumption.

Climate action sometimes will save people’s money. In other situations, it will increase the costs.

It’s the strategy to decide how to achieve your goal with sustainability in mind.

Nevertheless, assuming other things stay still(no nature, plastic impacts),

The increased cost of greenhouse gas emissions alone may not be as high as people think.

The table below demonstrates that for individuals who earn a 60,000 USD salary per year after tax, a 50tCO2e carbon credit price will only account for 0.99% of their total income.

Most citizens in the developed region can offset their annual emissions without significantly affecting their living.

In fact, offsetting emissions with carbon credits is one of the most effortless climate actions an individual could take after measuring their greenhouse gas emissions.

We have not discussed shopping less, recycling materials, installing

expensive

solar panel roofs, caring about biodiversity, or even plastic pollution.

In a world of wealth inequality, if people who hold wealth cannot start the climate movement, then who else with less financial capability could?