Many environmental and economic issues currently affecting the world we live in are caused by human pollution. The most pressing issues – global warming, ozone depletion, acidification of our rain and oceans produce negative health effects (asthma, cancer, disease), and cost the world economy trillions annually in natural capital depletion, environmental destruction and medical care.
An Emissions Tax would curtail these problems greatly by effectively pricing pollution. Currently, there is very little financial cost to pollute, therefore, everyone does it when they hop in their gasoline powered vehicles. If the cost to pollute were equal to the cost to clean up, basic economics would lead consumers to seek lower cost, cleaner alternatives where they can.
This section will be used to discuss those issues and to discuss them in a productive format.
Benefits of an Emissions Tax
An Emissions Tax can help provide the incentive needed to get people and businesses to reduce the amount of pollution they emit into our earth, water and air, all without forcing them to do so. By taxing toxic emissions, consumers of fossil fuels and producers of waste will receive financial savings by not polluting. When a tax is paid on pollution, those funds can go to pay for the clean up or invested in green public works and research programs.
Competition to reduce and or clean toxic emissions will drive innovation in the marketplace for energy, manufacturing and service sectors.
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