Carbon tax: the price for environmental impact
It has been suggested in a recent University of Cape Town blog that the price of carbon is primarily a reflection of potential climate change (I say "potential" as a climate change sceptic, not that anthropogenic emissions will impact climate, but sceptical about how models describe these potential impacts. I'm not the only sceptic, which should be the default position of scientists until the evidence suggests otherwise, but I digress). At a recent event about health and the energy sector, it seemed quite apparent that the impact of coal upon human health and the natural environment is ignored. The price of a carbon tax should reflect the more tangible externality cost of pollution caused by fossil fuel consumption: direct costs to humans such as the effects of airbourne pollutants upon human health; indirect costs such as the cost of mining upon water resources. Recently I travelled across South Africa and was surprised at the extent of coal transportation; even the impact upon roads (reducing the life-span of tarmac surfaces) could legitimately be included in such a carbon tax.
To overcome the economic impact of a carbon tax upon South African businesses, firstly there should not be any exemptions! Instead, carbon taxes should be imposed on imported costs, at variable levels according to life-cycle analysis. This is essential to prevent South African businesses being undercut by Chinese imports produced using fossil fuels with carbon taxes imposed in China. It could be argued that additional import duties could be imposed to reflect unfair labour practices between countries such as access to healthcare, pension, holidays, etc., but that's for the economists to debate; all this is anathema to the free-trade, race-to-the-bottom globalisation agenda of the elite...