Bill Becker, executive director of the Presidential Climate Action Project, brings the costs of clean energy and an energy-efficient economy versus the costs of doing nothing into clear focus in "The High Costs of Doing Nothing, Part 1."
Consider the numbers from a University of Maryland study he points to:
combined storm damages at more than $560 billion;
maintenance of Alaska's infrastructure will cost $10 billion;
property damage from rising sea levels will cost as much as $170 billion by 2100;
and upgrading drinking and water treatment facilities will cost up to $2 billion over the next 20 years.
For more info, check out ClimateProgress.org and the Center for American Progress Action Fund. You can also read an interview with the University of Maryland's lead researcher Matthias Ruth over at Science Daily.