I don't think it would be practical to award points to people who come to the government and claim to have become vegan. But it might be possible to tax animal products instead. (Except that people dislike new taxes, so any practical implementation would likely be ass-backwards and involve a carbon surcharge on all foods, with discounts for fruits and vegetables.)
I was wondering about points similar to those mentioned when I posted my initial comment. Thanks for the links. I really wonder about the utility of carbon-footprint taxation. I guess there's at least two parts to the question: (1) will increasing the cost of goods actually cause the majority of people to change their behaviour, or will it just make things more expensive for poor people and (2) what will happen to money collected in the name of offsetting carbon emissions?
I imagine the amount of change we see in consumption patterns would see would depend, at least in large part, on taxation levels. And I would guess a lot of the money collected from taxes would be used to purchase carbon offsets and/or fund environmental programs that accomplish something similar. But I am not an economist, and do not have a clear picture of the details.
After the 1973 oil crisis, European countries have progressively increased taxes on gasoline as prices were coming down, in order to keep prices up. It's quite clear today that Europeans generally drive a loss less and buy a lot more efficient cars than Americans. Also, the cost of energy in general is quite higher in Europe and Europeans consequently adjust their energy usage. Putting a timer on the hot water tank (so that the water is only hot during the part of the day when you need hot water, e.g. morning shower) is something I had never seen before going to Paris.
So we know that taxation can impact consumption levels and create new habits.
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branchandroot
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Date: 2008-11-19 07:52 am (UTC)Earn carbon credits for consuming local goods.
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Date: 2008-11-19 12:46 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-11-19 11:53 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-11-19 11:51 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-11-20 05:57 am (UTC)No, no, no.
I don't think it would be practical to award points to people who come to the government and claim to have become vegan. But it might be possible to tax animal products instead. (Except that people dislike new taxes, so any practical implementation would likely be ass-backwards and involve a carbon surcharge on all foods, with discounts for fruits and vegetables.)
no subject
Date: 2008-11-20 06:12 am (UTC)posted my initial comment. Thanks for the links. I really wonder
about the utility of carbon-footprint taxation. I guess there's at
least two parts to the question: (1) will increasing the cost of
goods actually cause the majority of people to change their
behaviour, or will it just make things more expensive for poor
people and (2) what will happen to money collected in the name of
offsetting carbon emissions?
no subject
Date: 2008-11-20 06:32 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-11-25 11:14 pm (UTC)So we know that taxation can impact consumption levels and create new habits.
no subject
Date: 2008-11-25 11:38 pm (UTC)I wasn't really that serious... :P
Interesting stuff regarding eating local, though.
no subject
Date: 2008-11-19 10:41 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-11-19 11:51 pm (UTC)