An optimal transition path for controlling greenhouse gases

Science. 1992 Nov 20;258(5086):1315-9. doi: 10.1126/science.258.5086.1315.

Abstract

Designing efficient policies to slow global warming requires an approach that combines economic tools with relations from the natural sciences. The dynamic integrated climate-economy (DICE) model presented here, an intertemporal general-equilibrium model of economic growth and climate change, can be used to investigate alternative approaches to slowing climate change. Evaluation of five policies suggests that a modest carbon tax would be an efficient approach to slow global warming, whereas rigid emissions- or climate-stabilization approaches would impose significant net economic costs.