The costs of large reductions in CO2 emissions have been overestimated, according to University of Queensland economist, Professor John Quiggin. In an address to the Queensland Academy of Arts and Sciences tonight, Professor Quiggin states that the cost of reducing emissions by 60 per cent, relative to 1990 levels would be less than one year's economic growth and that 90 per cent cuts, recently suggested in the Garnaut Review could easily be afforded by a growing economy. The costs of failing to stabilise the climate are hard to measure. However, economic costs would be large, and ecological impacts could well be catastrophic.
