Modeling Uncertainty in Climate Change: A Multi-Model Comparison

67 Pages Posted: 28 Oct 2015

See all articles by Kenneth Gillingham

Kenneth Gillingham

Yale University

William D. Nordhaus

Yale University - Department of Economics; Cowles Foundation, Yale University; National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)

David Anthoff

University of California, Berkeley - Energy and Resources Group

Geoffrey J. Blanford

Electric Power Research Institute

Valentina Bosetti

Bocconi University; CMCC - Euro Mediterranean Centre for Climate Change

Peter O. Christensen

Copenhagen Business School - Department of Finance

Haewon McJeon

University of Maryland - Joint Global Change Research Institute

John M. Reilly

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) - Joint Program on the Science and Policy of Global Change

Paul Sztorc

Yale University - Department of Economics

Multiple version iconThere are 4 versions of this paper

Date Written: September 30, 2015

Abstract

The economics of climate change involves a vast array of uncertainties, complicating both the analysis and development of climate policy. This study presents the results of the first comprehensive study of uncertainty in climate change using multiple integrated assessment models. The study looks at model and parametric uncertainties for population, total factor productivity, and climate sensitivity. It estimates the pdfs of key output variables, including CO2 concentrations, temperature, damages, and the social cost of carbon (SCC). One key finding is that parametric uncertainty is more important than uncertainty in model structure. Our resulting pdfs also provide insights on tail events.

Keywords: climate change, integrated assessment models

JEL Classification: Q540

Suggested Citation

Gillingham, Kenneth and Nordhaus, William D. and Anthoff, David and Blanford, Geoffrey J. and Bosetti, Valentina and Christensen, Peter Ove and McJeon, Haewon and Reilly, John M. and Sztorc, Paul, Modeling Uncertainty in Climate Change: A Multi-Model Comparison (September 30, 2015). CESifo Working Paper Series No. 5538, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2681056 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2681056

Kenneth Gillingham

Yale University ( email )

493 College St
New Haven, CT CT 06520
United States

William D. Nordhaus

Yale University - Department of Economics ( email )

28 Hillhouse Ave
New Haven, CT 06520-8268
United States
203-432-3598 (Phone)
203-432-5779 (Fax)

Cowles Foundation, Yale University ( email )

Box 208281
New Haven, CT 06520-8281
United States

National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)

1050 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge, MA 02138
United States

David Anthoff (Contact Author)

University of California, Berkeley - Energy and Resources Group ( email )

United States

Geoffrey J. Blanford

Electric Power Research Institute ( email )

3412 Hillview Avenue
P.O. Box 10412
Palo Alto, CA 94304-1395
United States

Valentina Bosetti

Bocconi University

Via Gobbi 5
Milan, 20136
Italy

CMCC - Euro Mediterranean Centre for Climate Change

via Augusto Imperatore, 16
Lecce, I-73100
Italy

Peter Ove Christensen

Copenhagen Business School - Department of Finance ( email )

Solbjerg Plads 3
Frederiksberg, DK-2000
Denmark
+45 6140 3237 (Phone)

Haewon McJeon

University of Maryland - Joint Global Change Research Institute ( email )

5825 University Research Court, Suite 3500
College Park, MD 20740
United States

John M. Reilly

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) - Joint Program on the Science and Policy of Global Change ( email )

E19-429
77 Massachusetts Ave
Cambridge, MA 02139
United States
617-253-8040 (Phone)

Paul Sztorc

Yale University - Department of Economics ( email )

28 Hillhouse Ave
New Haven, CT 06520-8268
United States

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