The Community Wants Action
Doing nothing about Climate Change is not acceptable to ordinary Australians. The proof is in recent political history.
Carbon Tax Australia 2011
The media backlash from those with extreme right opinions together with those having a vested interest in keeping things the same, actually reinforces the need for action.
The clumsy attempts to derail action simply strengthens the resolve of the rest of those of us who have a healthy respect for the science. We understand the reality of what is actually happening to our climate, our glaciers and rising sea levels.
What to do about it is where most of the conflict of opinion really lies.
Julia Gillard Carbon Tax
Since the 2007 victory of the Rudd Government over John Howard’s Liberal Government there has been increasing swings to Greens and Independents. This clearly illustrates that Climate Change action still a significant issue in the minds of the majority of Australians. Climate Change, though interrupted by the Global Financial Crisis, clearly was one of the major tipping points for a change of government in Australia and arguably in the USA. I am willing to give Julia Gillard as Prime Minister a fair hearing on the Carbon Tax Australia 2011 scheme.
No Carbon Tax – Sceptics
Destructive efforts by the so-called sceptics calling for no carbon tax has caused some havoc but has simply not held the day, despite aggressive, dishonest or ignorant efforts to confuse the minds of the average person.
Carbon Footprint
The rise of installation rates for rooftop solar – installing PV cells on domestic rooftops, is a clear indication that people are willing to contribute to solutions rather than listening to continual denial of the dangers of inaction.
Population Growth Problems
For the entire 20th century politics has been solidly based on population growth and ever-increasing rates of consumption.
While most people for the last 20 to 30 years have been aware that this strategy was no longer working, leaders of political/economic systems in the developed world have still insisted on continuing business as usual. Clearly, increasing population and consumption must eventually reach a dead end.
Most population experts recognize that we are rapidly reaching that crisis point. We need a new modern economy that is sustainability-based.
So far any attempts to create a workable solution have been clumsy and inadequate. It is complex and difficult to identify problems and determine the best place to start.
Carbon Tax in Australia
The reality is that the Gillard carbon tax is still ‘another tax’ and the voters surely have a legitimate right to be suspicious of the longer-term agendas of politicians who introduce it.
We simply need a price placed on carbon pollution for many changes to begin and allow the free markets to react in a way that delivers outcomes and new innovations.
At least a carbon tax Australia 2011 will be a solid a start for a price on carbon pollution to be placed.
Let Market Decide Carbon Price Initiatives
My preference is for a fair and equitable market mechanism to allow industries to take initiatives while knowing that a price on carbon is part of the new economic system.
Carbon Tax in Australia Requires Stable Policies
Industries needs certainty in our energy policy to allow investment decisions to be made in confidence.
The manipulation of feed in tariffs, the downward adjusting of rebates for PV and solar water heaters has created uncertainty in the solar industry.
Carbon Tax Australia 2011 is not a perfect solution, but it is an imperfect world. We need to be mindful that we have a minority government which is in many ways by its nature constrained to what can be done and how it can be done and what promises can be made at election time or not.
Hard to Find a Credible Alternative
If the Carbon Tax Australia 2011 is approved by parliament and successfully introduced, I think we should all be pleased that finally we in Australia are making a start. Detractors, who acknowledge the need for action on Climate Change, need to come up with a credible alternative for putting a price on carbon pollution to have any credibility with thinking voters.
Alternative to Carbon Tax Australia 2011
One alternative to the carbon tax Australia 2011 would be to have well crafted feed in tariff for commercial as well as domestic property owners who invest in renewable energy technologies and systems. We have discussed feed in tariff WA earlier in this blog.
The truth is, the rest of the world is moving on Climate Change and development of renewable energy. Economically we cannot become laggards when we are the richest nation on earth per head of population.