Climate Change Will Hit Southern Poor Hardest, Economic Analysis Shows

"Nationwide, rising temperatures could lower U.S. GDP by 6 percent this century while worsening economic inequality, the authors say. It’s 'the poor getting poorer.'"

"Without effective action to bend the upward curve of greenhouse gas emissions, parts of the American South could experience more than a 20 percent drop in economic activity due to global warming by the end of the century, according to a new analysis of the regional economic risks of climate change.

The county-by-county analysis shows that the poorer regions of the country would be hit hardest, and that the nation as a whole could see as much 6 percent shaved off of its GDP by the end of this century.

The analysis is based on a high-emissions trajectory that doesn't take into account future voluntary efforts to reduce emissions in line with the Paris climate agreement."

Phil McKenna reports for InsideClimate News June 29, 2017.

SEE ALSO:

"Climate Change In The U.S. Could Help The Rich And Hurt The Poor" (Washington Post)

"Estimating economic damage from climate change in the United States" (Science)

"As Climate Changes, Southern States Will Suffer More Than Others" (New York Times)