Cost of NOT zero in 2023 (2024)

FAQs

What are the 5 principles of net zero? ›

The International Energy Agency estimates that reaching the goal of “net zero” will cost $4 trillion a year over the next 30 years.

This grim milestone has led some critics to say that reaching net-zero carbon dioxide emissions by 2050 is impossible. Doomsayers are even claiming that it is too late to stop climate change. Fortunately, science and economics show that these narratives are completely wrong.

Estimates for just how much the green transition will cost vary greatly, ranging from a total of $100trn to $300trn between now and 2050.

Commenting on the estimate that warming will stop at net zero, Imperial College London's Professor Joeri Rogelj said: “These estimates come with substantial uncertainty, meaning there is a non-negligible chance that global warming will continue after net zero and intensify dangerous climate change.

Economic costs and benefits

In the UK, where the Climate Change Committee estimates that delivering net-zero will cost 1% of UK GDP, a 2020 Vivid Economics study calculates that the investment would deliver £90bn a year in economic co-benefits (equivalent to 4.5% of 2019 GDP).

Location dependent: Net-zero homes rely heavily on optimal solar orientation, limiting availability in some areas. Factors like shading and space constraints can make generating enough energy from solar panels more challenging.

The goal is to achieve what's known as net-zero emissions, where any greenhouse gases still entering the atmosphere are balanced by those being removed — and to do it as soon as we can. Scientists say it is possible to swiftly transform the ways we produce and consume energy.

First, there is a dramatic risk of underachieving necessary emissions cuts. The atomized, libertarian approach to net-zero only incentivizes companies to undertake emissions reductions activities that are cheaper than available offsets.

When carbon-neutral refers to balancing out the total amount of carbon emissions, net-zero carbon means no carbon was emitted from the get-go, so no carbon needs to be captured or offset. For example, a company's building running entirely on solar, and using zero fossil fuels can label its energy as “zero carbon.”

What happens if we don't reach net zero? ›

If we don't meet net-zero goals and temperatures rise by more than 2°C, the costs of climate change will accelerate.

“By putting a price—financial or implicit—on a free resource (the climate), the transition increases production costs, with no guarantee that the reduction in energy costs will eventually offset them, while the investments it calls for do not increase productive capacity but must nevertheless be financed.”

Governments are expected to play a key role in financing infrastructure that is crucial to the green transition, such as grids, as well as in adapting economies for climate change, for example by building sea walls or flood defences.

Share: Learn more about the cost to end global climate change, and get statistics about the effects of climate change on communities around the world. Estimates of how much money it would take to end global climate change range between $300 billion and $50 trillion over the next two decades. Why such a massive range?

Put simply, net zero means cutting carbon emissions to a small amount of residual emissions that can be absorbed and durably stored by nature and other carbon dioxide removal measures, leaving zero in the atmosphere.

A net-zero plan must be followed by concrete actions that reduce emissions in a city's buildings, transport, energy use, industries, and waste systems. More than seven hundred cities in fifty-three countries have committed to reaching net zero by 2050 (see a list below in Key Players: Cities Committed to Net Zero).