Speak up to make sure the government counts climate costs

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http://grist.org/climate-energy/speak-up-to-make-sure-the-government-counts-climate-costs/

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As carbon pollution levels keep rising, we’re getting used to hearing about the human consequences of climate change: homes destroyed, families uprooted, entire communities washed away.

But increasingly, leaders across sectors are also talking about the financial consequences of climate change, both now and for our future — like less productive farms, skyrocketing insurance bills for coastal communities, and the need to rebuild highways, bridges, and other infrastructure destroyed by super storms, to name only a few.

That’s why business moguls Tom Steyer, Michael Bloomberg, and Hank Paulson recently came together to launch Risky Business, an initiative to model climate change’s long-term fiscal threat to the U.S. Meanwhile, the U.N. is conducting its own study on climate and economic impacts. These efforts are happening because more and more leaders are recognizing the real — and unacceptable — costs that we are already paying for carbon pollution and the danger they pose to the long-term health of our economy.

So what can we do? The answer starts with using market forces to cut carbon pollution by pricing it. And right now, it’s time for we the people to make our voices heard on an important step in that direction.