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U.S. Emissions Rise 4.2%, China's Fall 2.7%

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196 points triceratops | 1 comments | 02 Sep 25 20:02 UTC | HN request time: 0.2s | source
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K0nserv ◴[02 Sep 25 21:48 UTC] No.45109548[source]▶
The US, like most democracies, is worse at long term planning. It needs robust incentives to counteract short term instincts.

A $100/ton carbon tax would raise $490b(based on 4.9 billion tons of co2 emissions[0]) per year that could be distributed to lower income households (to offset the effect, making the tax progressive) and be used to fund green energy investment.

0: https://ourworldindata.org/co2/country/united-states

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Yizahi ◴[03 Sep 25 10:28 UTC] No.45114152[source]▶
Speaking about long term planning and short term instincts it is obvious (for me personally) that any and all so called "carbon taxes" or "carbon credits" are simply a bullshit greenwashing schemes, doing more harm than good in the real long term. They are politically motivated and short term pseudo "solutions" doing nothing but shifting emissions to some "other" party or country or region. Dollars or euros or yuan paid as a fine or incentive for emissions doesn't combat those same emissions, not even a little bit.
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triceratops ◴[03 Sep 25 13:50 UTC] No.45115793[source]▶
Definitely. Fines do nothing to deter bad behaviors. We should also get rid of traffic tickets and penalties for business crimes. They're all "justice-washing".
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1. Yizahi ◴[03 Sep 25 16:13 UTC] No.45117486[source]▶
You may be surprised, but in entrenched and widespread cases if ONLY fines are used, they almost do nothing to curb bad "something". Did war on drugs in USA teach us nothing? Or extremely common cases of speeding all across the globe in places which invite people to speed and where only fines (via cameras) are used to prevent it? It doesn't work. Some famous cameras across the globe, even in the law abiding EU countries, rack up tens of thousands of infraction per month, and it happens for years and years.

On the other hand, rebuilding a road to physically slow down cars, work even without extreme fines. Providing a complex set of prevention, therapy and replacement activities for the drug users also mostly works.

Same with carbon tax, but worse - drugs or even speeding in cars are non essential. Emitting industries on the other hand often are essential. So they have even less incentive to close or downsize if fined. Instead they will do anything to continue while being taxed. Maybe they employ shifting production elsewhere, maybe bribe officials, maybe just hike prices and pray that their monopoly position will keep them in business. Point is, it won't reduce actual emissions.