Four Corners covers the cost of greenhouse gas emissions.Transcript here
Meanwhile our mighty leader is poo-pooing the idea of a carbon tax because it might cost our economy money, raise the price of petrol and electricty. Because there won’t be any cost to his citizen’s health, homes and happiness caused by global warming?
Some of the show deals with trading carbon credits both internationally and inside New South Wales (people like EasyBeingGreen make money by trading packs containing energy efficient lightbulbs etc. to consumers in exchange for carbon credits which they can then trade.
The companies mentioned on the Business Roundtable on Climate Change are Westpac, Visy Corporation,, BP (whom I believe are the largest supplier of solar cells in Australia), and the Insurance Australia Group
Interestingly some people (ie Peter Beattie) believe that introducing a carbon tax will cause everyone to start investing in gas, which will mean that money won’t be spent on clean coal research (which as far as I can tell, involves hiding the waste CO2 emissions underground via geosequestration). Personally I think that coal workers (like the timber industry workers clearing old growth forest) have to consider that they’re going the way of buggy whip makers, and the folks who sold ice for your icebox. The writing’s on the wall. The time to work out your new business model is while you still have a job. Not that I’m saying it’s easy.
Really, coal isn’t that great either, even if it does take the nuclear power industry to say it.
