The environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) is a hypothesized relationship between environmental quality and economic development[17]: various indicators of environmental degradation tend to get worse as modern economic growth occurs until average income reaches a certain point over the course of development.[18][19] The EKC suggests, in sum, that “the solution to pollution is economic growth.”
There is both evidence for and against the EKC. I’m guessing the evidence varies for different aspects of environmental quality and between regions. I’m not an expert on this, but that Wikipedia section would probably be a good place for someone interested in the topic to start.
I already think technology is at a point where welfare does not have to depend on fossil fuel consumption.
I think I broadly agree, but that it’s also true that present-day welfare is cheaper if we use fossil fuels than low/no carbon fuels (if we’re ignoring things like carbon taxes or renewables subsidies that were put in place specifically to address the externalities). I think carbon mitigation is well worth the price (including the price of enacting e.g. carbon taxes) when we consider future generations, and perhaps even when we consider present generations’ entire lifespans (though I haven’t looked into that). But there are some real tensions there, for people who are in practice focused on near-term effects.
A useful concept here might be that of an “environmental Kuznets curve”:
There is both evidence for and against the EKC. I’m guessing the evidence varies for different aspects of environmental quality and between regions. I’m not an expert on this, but that Wikipedia section would probably be a good place for someone interested in the topic to start.
I think I broadly agree, but that it’s also true that present-day welfare is cheaper if we use fossil fuels than low/no carbon fuels (if we’re ignoring things like carbon taxes or renewables subsidies that were put in place specifically to address the externalities). I think carbon mitigation is well worth the price (including the price of enacting e.g. carbon taxes) when we consider future generations, and perhaps even when we consider present generations’ entire lifespans (though I haven’t looked into that). But there are some real tensions there, for people who are in practice focused on near-term effects.