Comments on: Tackling climate change: targeted investment vs handouts http://www.crikey.com.au/2008/10/20/tackling-climate-change-targeted-investment-vs-handouts/ now with extra source Sun, 22 Nov 2009 10:00:38 +1100 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.6 hourly 1 By: Kevin Cox http://www.crikey.com.au/2008/10/20/tackling-climate-change-targeted-investment-vs-handouts/#comment-7755 Kevin Cox Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000 #comment-7755 Emissions Permits Trading will not work as expected. How can anyone be so naive as to believe that artificially increasing the price of a commodity like energy way above its cost of production will not cause more of that commodity to be produced is beyond me. The extra profit from the burning of coal will go mainly to the coal industry, the power generating industry and the government. What incentive do these groups have to reduce emissions - none unless ALL the money collected from the sale of emissions permits goes directly to investment in renewables. A token amount will go to things like energy savings and a little research into renewables and we will end up with more expensive energy.<br /><br />The same economists who brought us the sub-prime crisis and the debt burden are about to compound their errors with an inflation boosting energy price increase to boost the profits of multinationals and increase the tax take for governments.<br /> Emissions Permits Trading will not work as expected. How can anyone be so naive as to believe that artificially increasing the price of a commodity like energy way above its cost of production will not cause more of that commodity to be produced is beyond me. The extra profit from the burning of coal will go mainly to the coal industry, the power generating industry and the government. What incentive do these groups have to reduce emissions - none unless ALL the money collected from the sale of emissions permits goes directly to investment in renewables. A token amount will go to things like energy savings and a little research into renewables and we will end up with more expensive energy.

The same economists who brought us the sub-prime crisis and the debt burden are about to compound their errors with an inflation boosting energy price increase to boost the profits of multinationals and increase the tax take for governments.

]]>