Climate Change and Agriculture - The Oxford Topic of Food, Politics, and Society - page 466

to anticipate the impacts of climate change and prepare for them than to wait for the
problems to develop and respond after the fact. Incentives that now produce perverse
consequences will have to change if the multiple-wins that are theoretically available are
to be achieved. Changing incentive structures is, in turn, largely a matter of government
policy. We have demonstrated how a shift toward greater internalization of positive and
negative externalities would alter behavior on the part of the most important actors.
This change is called “full-costing.” Without shifts of the nature explored here, it is dif-
ficult to see how current obligations toward improving environmental standards can be
met. Nor is it clear that without these changes agriculture can sustainably meet the food
security needs of current and future generations.
Even though complete full costing at a global level may be out of reach for techni-
cal, practical, and political reasons, exploring the possibilities illustrates that numerous
options exist to bring current policies and market prices closer to socially optimal values.
Socially optimal values in turn are those that are consistent with reducing the impact of
agriculture on the environment and climate change's impact on agriculture and poverty.
To the extent that full-costing generates additional revenues, the repairing of environ-
mental damage and constructing of new productive possibilities becomes more feasible.
This is the meaning of sustainability: meeting the needs of today's generations in ways
that do not impair the ability of future generations to meet their needs. Full-costing is
one way toward incentivizing significant structural and behavioral change in dynamic
food systems, moving them closer to long-run sustainability.
Notes
1. This paper owes a great debt to Per Pinstrup-Andersen who worked with me in the devel-
opment of the sideways-S curve concept for Pinstrup-Andrsen and Watson (2011). I grate-
fully acknowledge comments from Charles Reith and Ron Herring that improved the
chapter, as well as the outstanding research assistance of Omorogbe Omorogiuwa.
2. Noteworthy criticisms of the Stern Report include: Nordhaus, William (2007). “A Review
of the Stern Review on the Economics of Climate Change. Journal of Economic Literature
XLV, 686-702; Lomborg, Bjørn (November 2, 2006). “Stern Review, The Dodgy Numbers
behind the Latest Warming Scare.” Wall Street Journal ; and Varian, Hal. (December 14,
2006). “Recalculating the Costs of Global Climate Change.” New York Times .
3. Push-pull systems mix the main crop with two other plants, one designed to push pests
away from the main crop and the other to pull the pests toward it instead of the main crop.
Additional Readings on Pigovian Taxes, Cap and Trade,
and the Coase Theorem
Ackerman, Frank, Stephen J. DeCanio, Richard B. Howarth, and Kristen Sheeran. 2009.
“Limitations of Integrated Assessment Models of Climate Change.” Climatic Change
95:297-315.