Critics of the Stern Review don’t think serious action to limit CO2 emissions is justified, because there remains substantial uncertainty about the extent of the costs of global climate change, and because these costs will be incurred far in the future. However, I believe that Stern’s fundamental conclusion is justified: we are much better off reducing CO2 emissions substantially than risking the consequences of failing to act, even if, unlike Stern, one heavily discounts uncertainty and the future.
对《斯特恩报告》持批评态度的人并不认为采取认真的行动以限制二氧化碳的排放是合理的，因为对于全球气候变化到底将带来怎样的代价还存在相当大的不确定性，何况这些代价还是将在遥远的将来才会发生的。不过，我认为斯特恩的基本结论是正确的：即我们实质性地减少二氧化碳的排放肯定比因为没有采取行动而冒由此带来的后果的风险要好得多，即便对于一个与斯特恩意见相左、大大低估不确定性和未来影响的人也是如此。