AI’s EUROPEAN ESTIMATE OF COST FROM CLIMATE CHANGE IN THE NEXT 5 YEARS.

Summary of Estimated Costs (Next 5 Years)

• Extreme Weather Damages: €100-200 billion (if insurance cover can be obtained !) This figure does not include major sea level rises. The current flooding in Europe is already being estimated to cost up to 50 billion with more damage expected.
• Health Costs: €20-40 billion without account of climate related deaths.
• Agriculture and Food: €10-20 billion plus ongoing permanent costs to devastated farmland, loss of future crops, animals etc.
• Tourism Losses: €10-15 billion also once lost difficult to re-establish.
• Insurance and Financial Sector: €25-50 billion.
• Adaptation Investments: €50-100 billion when governments are still investing heavily in fossil fuels.
• Green Transition (Mitigation): €50-100 billion with many governments still in climate denial.
• GDP Losses: €150-300 billion without taking into account knock-on effects to lost employment and company closures.

Total Estimate for Europe’s Climate Change Costs (2024-2029):€400 billion to €825 billion.

This range reflects the aggregate costs associated with climate-related damages, healthcare, economic disruption, and the required investments in adaptation and mitigation. The lower end represents a scenario with moderate climate impacts and significant adaptation efforts, while the higher end reflects more extreme weather events and slower adaptation. These figures highlight the urgent need for comprehensive climate action to avoid even greater costs in the future. As recent weather events highlight the effects of climate change are accelerating at a rate never dreamed of 5 years ago.