How much of the world’s fossil fuel reserves will eventually be burnt? This is not just a question for those concerned with climate policy. It is also a question for investors even if they believe (absurdly, in my view) that the science of climate change is a hoax. What, they must ask themselves, would it mean for my investments in fossil fuel exploration and production if policy makers acted on their expressed belief in the science of climate change? Where would that leave investments in companies that own reserves today and are investing in exploration and additional production for tomorrow? Might all this spending prove a disastrous waste of resources that would be better deployed elsewhere?
世界化石燃料儲量中，最終將有多少被燃燒？這不僅是那些關注氣候政策的人士面對的問題，也是投資者眼前的問題，即便他們認爲氣候變化科學是忽悠人的（在我看來，這種觀點有些荒謬）。他們必須問一下自己，如果政策制定者們按照他們對氣候變化科學的看法採取行動，那對我在化石燃料勘探和生產上的投資將意味著什麼？擁有化石燃料儲量、並準備面向未來投資於勘探和擴大生產的企業的投資會發生什麼？事實會否證明，所有這些支出都是對資源的巨大浪費，不如把這些資源投入其他領域？