Economic responses to global warming: A European perspective

Recent discussions at the political level show a difference of official attitude between the US and the European Community on the subject of climate change. The role of the hero on the international scene is being played by the EC, which has been issuing statements and documents about an active preventive policy to reduce adverse climate change impacts. The apparent villain is the US, which is advocating the gathering of more scientific evidence before taking action and has been trying to challenge the application of the principle of preventive action when climate change damage is uncertain. The purpose of this chapter is to illustrate and analyze these views