What this really means is that fuels like brown coal, the dirtiest fuel, should be replaced with new capacity built in renewable energy such as wind and solar. They warn that if carbon emissions are not reduced radically by 2050 then it will be necessary to move into 'negative carbon emissions' after that.
They suggest that if action is taken now the cost will be small. They estimate about 0.1% of GDP per year. Whatever is done energy will cost more than it does today and, frankly, people will just have to suck it up.
Renewable energy is more expensive than energy from fossil fuel. However the external costs of using fossil fuel far outweigh the additional private costs of switching to renewable fuel. The problem is that the external costs fall on future generations and this allows climate criminals, such as the idiot Abbot, to use cheap debating tricks to convince people that there is no need to take urgent action on this matter for short-term political gain.
On the bright side the IPCC point out that there are more immediate external benefits of moving away from fossil fuels. These are all due to lower pollution levels and so better health.
Australia is so far behind the rest of the world on this matter it is difficult to imagine any leadership on this issue. Carbon pricing remains the most efficient way to tackle the problem and nuclear energy the most obvious short-term replacement for fossil fuels. The rest of the world will have to wait until after the next election for any help from Australia.
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