Finsoul: Ross Garnaut calls for Australian carbon tax.

Jan. 26, 2010 - PRLog -- FinSoul has learned that Australian Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd’s former climate change advisor and author of Australia’s Climate Change Review, Ross Garnaut, has called on the
administration to press ahead with plans aimed at reducing greenhouse gases and to consider implementing a de facto carbon tax on emitters.

Garnaut, a Distinguished Professor of Economics, has suggested that the price of carbon be fixed indefinitely instead of being floated according to the market forces, until a satisfactory binding global agreement emerges.

Finsoul believes he has recommended a price of around A$20 or about $18 a metric ton of carbon equivalent.

In a recent speech Gernaut said he believes that Australia could lead the way by setting up a regional emissions trading scheme with other similar minded nations such as New Zealand and Japan.

Currently the globes largest coal exporter, Australia has, as FinSoul has previously reported, twice attempted to introduce carbon trading legislation in the last year. Kevin Rudd’s government attempted to pass legislation aimed at creating a cap-and-trade platform by 2011 but didn’t have sufficient power in the Senate to carry the bill through. His party has pledged to reintroduce the proposed legislation to parliament in February, where it is expected to meet with strong resistance from the opposition party who fear it will increase energy costs and create widespread unemployment.

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