7 Reasons America Should Succeed on Climate Change - by Joe Romm

The science makes clear inaction is not a rational option, and technology/economics makes clear that action is super cheap.

1. What America and the world needs to do is really, really cheap economically, as key clean technologies plummet in cost.
   In April, after an extensive review of the literature, the world’s scientists and governments concluded that stabilizing at 2°C would have a net effect on growth of 0.06% per year — essentially no effect at all compared to the staggering amount of climate damages avoided.
2. All of the people who get a vote are severely affected by climate change.
   We have trillions of dollars of wealth near sea level — some of it in areas like Southeast Florida where there are no obvious ways to protect cities like Miami.
   We are vulnerable to a wider diversity of harsh impacts than almost anyone else — not just sea level rise and worsening storm surge, but also to stronger hurricanes and bark beetle infestation and wildfires and Dust-Bowlification. The U.S. National Climate Assessment (NCA) and recent studies makes clear that large parts of the Southwest and Great Plains face near permanent drought conditions on our current do-nothing path.
3. We’re sometimes very good at sacrificing now to benefit later (and to benefit others).
   The “sacrifice” needed to avoid catastrophic warming is considerably smaller that what was needed to win WWII. Indeed, America could achieve 80% to 90% reduction in emissions by 2050 in a manner that resulted in a much higher income and quality of life.
4. There NEVER will be a time when aggressive climate action is not the best strategy for everyone.
   The choice is not between inaction now and inaction forever. Aggressive action will always be the best action. If we did it starting now, we could avoid the worst consequences. If we start 10 years from now, we’d be stuck with many serious consequences — but we could prevent even worse ones happening. And so on.
5. The Republican Party has gone so far off the rails on climate change that it is triggering a backlash.
   It is probably true that if Tea-Party driven conservatives continue to hold decisive power and oppose all sensible action on climate for the next, say, quarter century or more, then, Klein may be right. But who can predict politics that far out? I’d argue that if they remain intransigent in the face of a climate reality that grows ever more painfully obvious to the public each year, conservatives will consign themselves to political oblivion long before then.
6. The international cooperation required is unprecedented, but the key country for a treaty, China, is on a path toward capping its carbon emissions.
   There is no international climate treaty possible without the genuine participation of China, the biggest polluter and the biggest obstacle to a global treaty besides us.
   We reported earlier this week that a key academic advisor on climate to the Chinese government said that he and other experts were recommending a cap on carbon emissions. Even more important, a key leader on climate issues in the government has acknowledged the country is committed toward developing one.
   
7. Geoengineering is nuts.
But I don’t agree this is a reason for pessimism.  If people thought geoengineering could plausibly replace CO2 reduction, then it would kill the chances for action here. For better or worse, though, geoengineering can’t.

BOTTOM LINE:  I think it is important for climate and policy experts to be realistic.  But as politically difficult as serious climate action may be, there’s no doubt it’s something we could do, and I don’t see how anyone can know we won’t.

7 Reasons America Should Succeed on Climate Change - by Joe Romm