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Written by spacetravel.org
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Thursday, 12 May 2005 19:08 |
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Beginning in 2007, New Zealanders will pay NZ$15 for each ton of carbon dioxide or its equivalent in other gases that they emit. This carbon tax, the worlds first, was announced on May 4. The tax is expected to add NZ$208 (US$152) to the average households bills. It is hoped that the tax will change consumer behavior, so that people will look for energy-efficiency when shopping for items such as cars and refrigerators.
By itself, the tax is not expected to have much effect on New Zealands greenhouse gas emissions. Still, environmentalists think it is a step in the right direction. A few European countries have already introduced taxes which they call carbon taxes, but they do not apply to all fossil fuels or are not based on the quantity of carbon dioxide emitted.
Companies can opt out of paying the carbon tax by making a binding commitment to adopt the worlds best practice for emission management in their industry. Companies are given this option in order to prevent carbon leakage, companies moving offshore to avoid paying a carbon tax. This could cause job losses, but would not reduce overall emissions.
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