Assessment of the costs of global warming on a full fuel cycle basis

• Published in: Energy conversion and management 1996-06, Vol.37 (6), p.819-824
• Main Authors: Holland, M.R., Eyre, N.J., Downing, T.E.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Applied sciences; Energy; Energy economics; Exact sciences and technology; General, economic and professional studies; Methodology; Methodology. Modelling
• ISSN: 0196-8904; 1879-2227
• DOI: 10.1016/0196-8904(95)00262-6

This paper reports on external cost assessments of the coal and natural gas to electricity fuel cycles conducted within the ExternE Project of the European Commission. This project leads the development of the impact pathway, or damage function approach for analysis of the environmental and social impacts of energy use. The methodology allows highly detailed and spatially disaggregated analysis of pollutant damage, following a logical progression from characterisation of emissions, through modelling of pollutant dispersion and atmospheric lifetime, to determination of impacts using appropriate dose-response functions, and associated economic costs. The project team is multi-disciplinary and the various models used have been the subject of international review. Assessment of the effects of climate change is at a less advanced state than analysis of, for example, air pollution effects on health, materials and crops, or occupational health impacts. However, preliminary results are available based on a review of damage estimates from the available literature, and a more detailed methodology is being developed. Both are described in this paper, together with a review of the major uncertainties.