CO₂ Coalition Director Bruce Everett and Member Ed Hoskins offer their insight and expertise on the climate policy debate in A Primer on Climate Policy Math.

The climate policy debate has two components: scientific and economic. In terms of the science, people should ask the following questions:

• On what basis do climate activists refer to carbon dioxide (CO₂), a life-giving molecule essential for all life on Earth, as “pollution”?
• Are the computer models which generate catastrophic climate scenarios reliable?
• Is it true that adverse events such as hurricanes, tornadoes, wildfire, floods, ice melt, etc. are actually increasing or is our recent experience within the range of natural variation?

In terms of economics, people should ask:

• What is the role of energy in the economy?
• Who emits carbon dioxide in the world?
• What are the costs involved in actions to reduce CO₂ emissions?
• What are the actual trends in energy use?

Others have addressed the scientific controversies in detail. This monograph will offer a primer on the economic landscape of CO₂ and provide a basis for interested readers to “run the numbers” and make up their own minds about the costs and benefits of proposed climate policies.

Download A Primer on Climate Policy Math here.