Australia is set to use international emissions trading to meet part of an emissions reduction target. Is this sensible and necessary? And how can we achieve investment in real reductions, rather than…
Cate Blanchett is among the celebrities pressed into service to persuade us on political issues.
AAP/WWF
MEDIA & DEMOCRACY: This afternoon, Andrew Hughes examines which recent political adverts have been a success, as part of The Conversation’s week-long series on how the media influences the way our…
Let’s face it; we just don’t like the word “tax”, do we? Such a brouhaha, such a fuss. But let’s just take a break from the group hysteria to look at the carbon tax from a few different points of view…
The climate won’t wait for financial markets, and it doesn’t need to.
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The stock market has taken us on a wild ride in recent times. Some, such as BHP Chairman Jac Nasser and Victorian Premier Ted Baillieu, have suggested that in light of the ongoing economic uncertainty…
Complementary measures in the tax package make it easier for businesses to reduce emissions.
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With all the focus on the carbon tax, it is not surprising many people are unaware that the government’s carbon pricing package incorporated a suite of other measures to reduce emissions. ClimateWorks…
Hazlewood coal-fired power station would be uneconomic under a carbon tax.
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The carbon tax is the latest attempt by an Australian government to legislate in order to avert disaster, this time to the climate. Whether the tax will become law sits on a knife edge, and the stakes…
Our weather systems are changing as the world warms.
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Speaking on the ABC, Professor Hans Joachim Schellnhuber, chief climate science advisor of the German Government, made a point even the least-informed should be able to understand. “Our body temperature…
Interventionist or free market - just where do our economists sit?
Flickr/Daquella Manera
A funny thing happened on the way to this year’s Australian Conference of Economists. A survey was conducted of the policy opinions of members of the Economic Society of Australia (ESA). Far from conforming…
Julia Gillard can sell the tax better if she puts it in terms of the natural wonders we are buying back.
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Science is strengthening its view that business-as-usual emissions of greenhouse gases will result in serious risks while the Australian public’s perception of climate change as a risk erodes. A recent…
Big sources of carbon emissions that Australia could influence, aren’t being discussed.
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The government’s position on climate change is now that it will pump $10 billion into particular projects and exact a minor tax on certain forms of electricity generation. The Coalition’s position is that…
Scare campaigns tap into public distrust of politicians.
The carbon tax will have a relatively small impact on household incomes, in most cases for those who are worse off, just a few dollars a week. So why is it so hard to sell? The posing of this question…
Price-gouging might occur under the carbon tax regime, but market discipline will keep it in check.
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Federal Treasurer Wayne Swan has announced that the government will provide the competition watchdog with almost $13 million in extra funding to tackle carbon tax-related price-gouging. In this context…
What will the carbon tax mean for our wide brown land?
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The flurry of media that followed Julia Gillard’s announcement of the carbon price plan on Sunday had a clear, simple message. How much will you pay, and how much will you get back? But the introduction…
The plan provides nearly $100 million for our unique biodoversity.
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How effective will the carbon tax package’s biodiversity measures be in conserving Australia’s ecosystems? The carbon price package’s biodiversity measures are a pleasant surprise. To the extent that the…
More than just a patch of dirt: the clean energy plan should help us get the most out of our land.
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The Australian government’s plan for a Clean Energy Future contains a number of measures aimed at supporting farmers and land managers to provide emissions offsets. The plan consists of a mix of market-based…
Julia Gillard was confronted by a shopper about the government’s carbon tax.
AAP/Patrick Hamilton
Before the details of the carbon tax were released this week, the government was fighting with one hand tied behind its back. Sometimes it looked like it had both hands and feet manacled as Prime Minister…
The scientists are talking and the Prime Minister is nodding, but is she really listening?
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Amid the hullabaloo about the carbon tax and Clean Energy Future plan, few seem to spot its critical discrepancy. It recognises that maintaining a safe climate requires stabilising carbon pollution in…
Money is the key theme across the climate change debate: what happened to sustainability?
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The Government’s equation for creating a prosperous and sustainable Australia includes four key factors: carbon price, renewable energy, energy efficiency and land use efficiency. But it is evident that…