UPSC Previous Year Question | Prelims GS | 2020

Which one of the following statements best describes the term 'Social Cost of Carbon'? It is a measure, in monetary value, of the

  1. long-term damage done by a tonne of CO2 emissions in a given year.
  2. requirement of fossil fuels for a country to provide goods and services to its citizens, based on the burning of those fuels.
  3. efforts put in by a climate refugee to adapt to live in a new place.
  4. contribution of an individual person to the carbon footprint on the planet Earth.

Answer

Correct Answer

long-term damage done by a tonne of CO2 emissions in a given year.

Explanation

The Social Cost of Carbon is the estimated monetary value of the long-term economic damage caused by emitting one additional tonne of CO2 in a given year.

Topics: climate change & sustainable development, climate economics, environment & ecology, social cost of carbon