What a carbon tax offers to Australians

Australia has taken a bold step forward by approving a carbon tax.  This is an insightful article from the Canberra Times on the opportunities such a tax brings.

Carbon tax a chance to rethink our energy use

July 1, 2012

Canberra Times

Many Australian families will wake up this morning with a sense of uncertainty about whether July 1, 2012 will be the day their lives got harder, thanks to the carbon tax.

They have been led to believe, by those who oppose the tax, that costs of groceries, power, petrol and other essentials will spiral out of control.

There has been so much rhetoric, posturing and conflicting information about the real impact on families that it is understandable that few would fully understand what the real impact of the changes will be.

The federal government estimates that the cost to the average family will be less than $10 a week in the first year, to be largely passed on through energy prices.

But a hefty package of compensation will also arrive today that includes tax cuts and increases to welfare payments, to the point where far more people will be compensated than those who are not, according to Treasury. In fact, there will be some who will be better off as a result.

Canberrans, with the country’s highest average salaries, will shoulder more of the cost than other parts of the country.

. . .

In one sense . . . the tiny reduction in carbon emissions, should the government meet its stated targets, will have a negligible impact on the global situation due to Australia’s relatively small population.

But as one of the world’s worst emitters per capita, it will hopefully help to put consumption, waste and energy efficiency more prominently in the minds of the millions of Australians who have long enjoyed cheap power, subsidised by the cost on the environment.

Those who want to reduce the impact on their bills can do so by reducing their consumption. If the carbon tax contributes to a national change in behaviour that drives us to question more deeply how we use our resources, then it will be worthwhile.