Thematic Guide to Integrated Assessment Modeling

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MERGE

MERGE is a regionally disaggregated integrated-assessment model, whose development was supported by the Electric Power Research Institute. MERGE is based on Global 2200, a dynamic general equilibrium model with five world regions and a single consumer in each region who makes both savings and consumption decisions. A simple climate model represents atmospheric lifetimes of CO2, CH4, and N2O, which yield global change in radiative forcing, and equilibrium and realized global-average temperature change. Illustrative impact functions are defined separately for market and non-market components. Market impacts are modeled as a quadratic function of realized temperature change, calibrated to pass through a judgmental point estimate that is consistent with the estimate of Nordhaus. Non-market impacts are modeled as a worldwide public good, for which each region's willingness to pay to avoid a specified temperature change is an S-shaped function of regional income (Manne, Mendelsohn, and Richels 1993).

A reduced-form Excel-based version of MERGE, called MiniMERGE, has recently been developed by EPRI to permit testing of alternative inter-regional burden-sharing schemes in a simplified environment. MiniMERGE allows the user to choose one of two discount rates and to specify one of four policy objectives for global emissions: business-as-usual; stabilize emissions at 1990 levels; stabilize CO2 concentrations at 550 ppm; or optimize emissions to minimize the present value of damages. Then, region-specific costs can be calculated under a user-specified assumption of how fast the allocation of global emissions shifts to equal per-capita entitlements. (Manne and Richels 1995). Each of the above models is operational and available. For more information, contact the following:

Integrated Energy Systems Division
ATTN: Richard Richels
Electric Power Research Institute
P.O. Box 10412
3412 Hillview Avenue
Palo Alto, CA 94303
USA.

The next section is Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.

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Sources

Parson, E.A. and K. Fisher-Vanden, Searching for Integrated Assessment: A Preliminary Investigation of Methods, Models, and Projects in the Integrated Assessment of Global Climatic Change. Consortium for International Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN). University Center, Mich. 1995.

Suggested Citation

Center for International Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN). 1995. Thematic Guide to Integrated Assessment Modeling of Climate Change [online]. Palisades, NY: CIESIN. Available at http://sedac.ciesin.columbia.edu/mva/iamcc.tg/TGHP.html [accessed DATE].