Why focus on PolicyCatherine Thomasson, MD 9/20/15

Germany-Energiewende• 25% energy from

renewables 2013• >50% renewable last

summer• High demand for

solar-reduced production costs

• 3% reduction in CO2 despite since 2011 despite closing 8 nuclear reactors

Feed In Tariff

• Payment for energy production at a fixed rate

• 50% of Germany’s renewables are owned by farmers, citizen groups and 900 energy cooperatives

• 400,000 new jobs

• Accompanied by a tax on electricity

CO2 Trends since 1990

Carbon Brief

• The effects of climate change are being felt today, and future projections represent a potentially catastrophic risk to human health• Action on climate change could be the greatest global

health opportunity• Achieving a decarbonized global economy and security

with the public health benefits it offers is no longer a technical or economic question—it is now a political one.• Health community has a vital role to play in accelerating

progress to tackle climate change (as it did with sanitation and smoking)

2015 Lancet Commission Report

• “Everyone’s talents and involvement are needed to redress the damage caused by human abuse of God’s creation”. [22] All of us can cooperate as instruments of God for the care of creation, each according to his or her own culture, experience, involvements and talents.

LEFT ON ITS OWN, THE MARKET WILL NOT SOLVE GLOBAL WARMING

• Climate change is an externality—the emitter does not bear the direct costs of their action.

• As with any externality without policy interventions, the emitter has little motivation to consider the costs in their decision-making.

Theory Of Externalities Suggests Some Basic Policy Approaches For Reducing

GHG

• Tax the emitter equivalent to the marginal external social costs Ultimately borne by households, raises revenues that can be used to achieve other goals, provides incentives to economize on the damaging activity

• The allocation of property rights linked with emissions trading Provides large emitters the flexibility to trade emission rights across sectors.

• Direct regulation Tends to place burden on industry (which generally passes on the costs to consumers—if they can/will pay)

• Provide financial incentives Usually popular, sends clear signals, but often suffers from free rider problem.

Each option has different distributional & public finance implications.

Causes of Climate Change in U.S.

• Total Emissions in 2013 = 6,673 Million Metric Tons of CO2 equivalent• 13% offset in carbon

sinks in U.S. land and forests

Electricity• Efficiency-cheapest,

produces jobs • Needs incentives,

carbon pricing or regulation• Barriers are

transmission, infrastructure and demand supply fluctuations

Renewable Energy Act 2008-MI

Solar

• 4,316 MW in CA• Powers 1,049,000

homes which is 63% of homes in OR.• Solar leasing in OR is

cheaper than current bills. • Need for net

metering/subsidies

Haywood Co. solar farm: 5MW. Memphis Daily News : Lance Murphey

Transportation• Carbon pricing• Planning for mass

transit, walk and bikability.• Incentives• CAFÉ standards• Transform highway

fund to transit

Agriculture-• Loss of carbon from

soil• High tillage• Use of marginal lands

• Animal Agriculture• Methane –belched• Concentrated manure

• Low till and natural fertilizer

• Cut the beef, then the goats, sheep, milk, then the pork, then the chickens

Best transportation efficiency is the energy you don’t use

• Average food miles 1,386/item in Iowa

• Interconnected issue with outsources carbon emissions

International Treaties• COP-21• Lima Conference required all countries to set targets.• US. 32% below 2005 by 2030• EU 40% below 1990 levels by 2030

• Action on climate change could be the greatest global health opportunity• Achieving a decarbonized global economy

and security with the public health benefits it offers is no longer a technical or economic question—it is now a political one.

2015 Lancet Commission Report

Solutions—What will you do?

• PERSONAL CHOICE• ORGANIZATIONAL• POLICY

• Clean Power Plan• Carbon pricing• Ozone Standards

Advocacy

Health Professionals as Natural Advocates• Objective and Credible• Advocates for patients – an

ethical obligation to “do no harm”• Healthcare professionals are

educators. Lawmakers and the public need “translators” of complicated, scientific issues

Join Together for Change

www.PSR.org 202-667-4260