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This is an interesting little finding about industrial air pollution in the European Union. That pollution has costs, we all know, also we all know that those costs of pollution arent included in our GDP figures (its one of the complaints about that measure that trying to clean it up is counted, but the original damage isnt). However, the actual numbers we get here do throw some very interesting light on the question of what were supposed to be doing about it all.

The report is here and as they say:

Air pollution and greenhouse gases from industry cost Europe between 59 and 189 billion in 2012, the report shows. The upper estimate is approximately equivalent to the GDP of Finland or half the GDP of Poland. Over the period 2008 2012 the estimated cost was at least 329 billion and possibly up to 1 053 billion.

The thing that strikes me is actually how low that number is. EU GDP is some 15 trillion a year, so weve actually got there, at the top end of their estimates, only 1.25% of GDP as those industrial pollution related damages. And its very important to note that yes, that really does include CO2 emissions, all those greenhouse gases.

No ones going to be very surprised that the list is mainly coal fired power stations with the occasional steel mill and the like thrown in. These are the technologies that emit both CO2 and a lot of particularates after all.

However, as I say, the surprising thing is how low that number for the damages is: and Im quite happily using their top estimate of 189 billion when I say that too.

Im not saying that such damages are a good thing: but the next step is for us to consider what would be the cost of getting rid of them. For example, Germany alone has already spent 1 trillion and more on renewables: yet their coal fired power industry is still expanding as well (as they made the very odd decision to phase out nuclear). If one country alone has spent a trillion and not managed to reduce these damages then imagine what a whole continent would have to spend to get rid of this 189 billion a year?

The end result of thinking it though this way is to come to the conclusion that yes, we do of course face emissions problems. But it seems not to be heavy industry thats really the cause of them. Our own usage (transport, heating) and then other sectors like farming and so on all contribute and in total are larger than those iconic factories belching their smoke.

Another way to look at this is to point out that even closing down heavy industry isnt going to solve our emissions problems. We need rather more radical changes than that. Which makes it all the more difficult to either legislate or enact those changes of course, for we the citizenry are rather more resistive to having to change than this handful of factories.

My latest book is 23 Things We Are Telling You About Capitalism At Amazon or Amazon UK. A critical (highly critical) re-appraisal of Ha Joon Changs 23 Things They Dont Tell You About Capitalism.

Original post:
European Union Estimates That Industrial Air Pollution Costs As Much As 189 Billion A Year