Читать книгу Environment and Society - Paul Robbins - Страница 50

One of the most direct ways to harness the market, and therefore to influence environmental decision-making by people and firms, is through artificially altering prices. According to the market response model, after all, it is increasing prices that drive providers to search for new sources, innovators to substitute, consumers to conserve, and alternatives to emerge. Taxing certain goods or services, and so increasing prices, should result in either decreased use of these resources or creative innovation of new sources or options. The money raised through the tax can be used directly by the government either to provision services or to search for alternatives.

Many examples of such “green taxes” exist. Facing landfill costs, labor expenses, and related costs in the provision of garbage disposal, for example, some municipalities have required households to dispose of all waste in special trash bags, purchased by consumers themselves, and often costing a dollar or more each. The results have been greatly increased recycling and more careful attention by consumers to packaging and waste. By internalizing the costs of trash to consumers, there has been an observed decrease in the flow of garbage from households.

More radically, such taxes have been proposed for the control of greenhouse gases that drive global warming. Sweden enacted a carbon tax in 1991, followed by other countries, including the Netherlands, Finland, and Norway. This tax is leveled against oil, natural gas, coal, and a range of fuels. Such taxes have also been considered in the United States and the European Union, although they face significant political opposition.