We know what's causing climate change, but what about the cost?

W

e know what’s driving climate change: the carbon pollution from burning fossil fuels and other sources.

But exactly how much damage does each ton of carbon pollution cause when you tally up the harm to crops from drought and heat, property damage from floods and storms, increased rates of asthma attacks and other risks to our environment and health?

The White House did the math this month, pegging the cost of this damage at $36 a ton.

Last year alone, the nation’s power plants pumped 2.1 billion tons of carbon pollution into our atmosphere, accounting for 38 percent of the U.S. carbon footprint. At $36 a ton, that comes to a staggering $73.8 billion in economic costs that rise each year that climate change worsens.

Read the Natural Resources Defense Council story - “The Social Cost of Carbon”.