Tag: carbon tax

Author SuzannePosted on Categories Climate Change & EnergyTags , , ,

It can be done: Carbon emissions in the UK have fallen to a 120-year low 

Akshat Rathi, QUARTZ
The last time the UK emitted less carbon dioxide than it did in 2016, most Brits were still traveling by horse and carriage.
Last year, the UK emitted 381 million metric tons of carbon dioxide (CO2), according to an analysis by Carbon Brief. The last time the country spewed less of the greenhouse gas was way back in 1894. (Industrial strikes in 1921 and 1926 also resulted in lower emissions, but for unintended reasons.)
Carbon emissions in 2016 fell by 5.8% compared with 2015, and the use of coal fell by a record 52% over the same period. More oil and gas was burned that year, but both are relatively cleaner fuels. The UK also generated more power from wind than coal for the first time ever last year.
The precipitous drop in coal use was attributed to UK’s carbon tax, which doubled in 2015 to £18 ($22) per metric ton of CO2.
Carbon emissions in 2016 fell by 5.8% compared with 2015, and the use of coal fell by a record 52% over the same period. More oil and gas was burned that year, but both are relatively cleaner fuels. The UK also generated more power from wind than coal for the first time ever last year.
The precipitous drop in coal use was attributed to UK’s carbon tax, which doubled in 2015 to £18 ($22) per metric ton of CO2.
Source: Carbon emissions in the UK have fallen to a 120-year low — Quartz

Author SuzannePosted on Categories Climate Change & Energy, Sustainable LivingTags , ,

Op Ed: A conservative proposal for a carbon tax

Eric Biber, LEGAL PLANET
An impressive lineup of senior Republican leaders has embraced a carbon tax as an approach to address climate change.  The proposal is to trade away the Obama Administration Clean Power Plan and tort liability against fossil fuel companies for a $40/ton carbon tax that would increase over time.  All revenues from the tax would be rebated per capita to individuals, producing a per-person payment of about $2000/year, and increasing over time.
Right now, given the current chaotic political scene in DC, the proposal is probably dead in the water for now.  But I think it is significant, because it is the first serious attempt by Republican institutional leaders to push for action on climate change.  In that light, it is a very positive development for the future.
Is this a deal that we should take?  I’m cautiously optimistic.  As this report from the group that sponsored the proposal indicates, a $40/ton carbon tax would have a major impact on emissions in the U.S., lowering them by about 28% by 2025 from 2005 levels, meeting the U.S.’s Paris commitments.  The carbon tax is about three to four times higher than the current price for cap-and-trade credits in California, and similarly higher than EU emissions trading credits.
Here are the issues that I think still would need to be worked out with the proposal – which I hope the leaders working on this are thinking hard about.
Read more at: A conservative proposal for a carbon tax | Legal Planet

Author SuzannePosted on Categories Climate Change & Energy, TransportationTags , Leave a comment on Steinberg scraps plan to replace carbon market with tax on fuels

Steinberg scraps plan to replace carbon market with tax on fuels

Rory Carroll, REUTERS

A top Democratic lawmaker in California on Monday backed off an unpopular plan to tax gasoline and diesel fuels and instead proposed a less controversial plan to spend up to $5 billion a year from the state’s fledgling carbon program on affordable housing and mass transit.

California Senate leader Darrell Steinberg proposed building affordable housing near transit hubs, repairing state roads and highways, and helping fund mass transit projects including Democratic Governor Jerry Brown’s beleaguered high-speed rail project.

His plan also calls for returning a portion of the money collected by the state from the sale of carbon permits to California’s drivers, who are expected to see gasoline prices jump by about 12 cents a gallon next year when the state’s greenhouse gas reduction program expands to cover distributors of transport fuels.

via California lawmaker scraps plan to replace carbon market with tax on fuels – Yahoo News.