Friday, January 18, 2008

Carbon tax or "cap and trade"

Portland Tribune-

A new phrase which is starting to pop up more and more often, is the "carbon tax" in which you pay a tax for the carbon dioxide that you generate in order to stem off global warming.

Some states like California and Oregon have tried to convince the EPA to allow the states to create their own auto emissions requirements for car makers. This in my opinion would raise the price per car significantly. Fortunately for us and to Kulongoski's dismay, the EPA ruled that states are not allowed to have their own rules.

"Cap and trade" would be designed to keep emissions of certain pollutants below a set level by placing a mandate that would put a limit on industrial greenhouse gases by equating them with credits that can be traded on the open market.

"This thing has the potential to reach out and touch everyone in Oregon in one way or another,” said state Rep. Chuck Burley, R-Bend, who attended the stakeholder meeting."

The program will be presented to the Oregon Legislature in the 2009 session which starts next January. If the Legislature approves the program, the earliest it could be launched would be 2010.

here's one thing I could see coming out of all this... in addition to renewing your vehicle registration, they could add a carbon tax based on the output of carbons from your vehicle. E.g. the cleaner or more efficient that your vehicle is, the less your registration would be.

And like with all taxes, who would receive the money?

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

the largest producer of CO2 today happens to be the creation of our roads and sidewalks. concrete or cement is a big offender and we need alternative ways to make roads. cars being more efficient is just a big band aid on an open wound.