Climate change: Low-carbon revolution 'cheaper than thought'

A landmark report says the UK can make major cuts to carbon emissions more cheaply than previously thought.The Climate Change Committee says that, for less than 1% of national wealth, the UK can reduce 78% of emissions by 2035, based on 1990 levels.This brings forward the UK’s clean energy timetable by 15 years - a previously unimaginable leap.The report says the low costs for the transformation are due to new clean technologies also being more efficient.The authors say people can play their part by eating less red meat, curbing flying, driving less and installing low-carbon heating.They estimate the costs of the low-carbon revolution will scale up to an annual £50bn by 2030 from around $10bn today, with most being private investment.PM's climate vision: 10 steps forward, 10 steps back?UK climate plan: What do the terms mean?'Ditch high definition to fight climate change'By 2030, they estimate that some of these costs will be offset by fuel savings of £18bn.Prof Euan Nisbet from Royal Holloway, University of London, who was not involved with the report, said: "This is a massively important report that maps out a whole new economy for Britain to create a better country.“This shows it can be done. It can be afforded. This is world-leading, and it’ll persuade other countries also to follow the path.“But sceptics say that the committee, which advises the government on climate matters, has underestimated the eventual bill and overestimated the government’s ability to deliver change on the scale projected.IMAGE COPYRIGHTREUTERSimage captionSome experts believe that dangerous climate change may already have occurredDecisive decadeBut the committee, also known as the CCC, says: “The message to the government is clear: the 2020s must be the decisive decade of progress and action on climate change”.If its recommendations are carried out, the CCC says the UK will achieve its share of the UN target agreed under the Paris agreement drafted five years ago. This international deal aims to keep the global temperature rise well below 2C and “pursue efforts“ to keep it under 1.5C.So far, temperatures have increased around 1.1C and are contributing to devastating forest fires and ice loss at the poles. As a result, some scientists believe dangerous climate change may have already begun.