🌍💰 Ka-Ching! Global Carbon Tax Brings in Whopping $95B – But Is it Enough to Tackle Climate Change? 🤔
TL;DR; 💡
A mega $95 billion was raked in globally last year from companies paying the price for their carbon dioxide emissions. 🏭💨💵. But the World Bank reckons it’s still not hitting the mark when it comes to meeting the Paris climate goals. 🌍🎯📉 The dollar figures are getting bigger, but are they big enough? 💸💡🔍
📝 Report Time 📝
In 2022, nations managed to scoop a record-breaking $95 billion just by making corporations cough up for their CO2 emissions.🏭💰 But don’t pop the champagne yet – or should we say, eco-friendly, carbon-neutral, locally-sourced sparkling water? 🍾🍃. The World Bank dropped a reality check stating that despite this dough, the prices being charged are still too measly to instigate the drastic changes required to meet the Paris climate agreement targets.💔🌍
Think about it, what’s the point of having a carbon price if it’s not going to make the corporations sweat a little? 🥵💦 If you’re going to make a rule, at least make it count, right?
“But to really drive change at the scale needed, we will need to see big advances both in terms of coverage and price,” insisted Jennifer Sara, who’s got the fancy title of Global Director for Climate Change at the World Bank. 🌐💼 She’s got a point though, doesn’t she? If you’re not feeling the pinch, are you really going to change?
As it stands, several countries are running with this carbon pricing strategy, charging either taxes or operating under an emissions trading system. They’re hoping it’ll be their golden ticket 🎫🍫 to achieving their climate goals. But is hope enough in the face of a crisis?
There’s a total of 73 carbon pricing instruments at work globally, a wee bit of a jump from the 68 noted in the World Bank’s report in May 2022. The coverage? Around 23% of the global greenhouse gas emissions. 🌍🔥 A start, but let’s be honest, could we be aiming a bit higher? 😏🔝
Now, let’s rewind to 2017, when the High-Level Commission on Carbon Prices dropped a bombshell. They stated that to keep global temps from skyrocketing over 2 degrees Celsius 🌡️🔥, carbon prices needed to be bouncing between $50-100 per ton by 2030. That’s the limit agreed in the 2015 Paris Agreement.
Fast forward to April 1, 2023, and less than five per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions are covered by a carbon price within or above that recommended range. 📊📉 Has anyone else noticed the glaring gap between what we’re doing and what we need to be doing?
After adjusting for inflation, these prices would now need to be in a $61-122 ton range. So, what’s the hold up? 🚦⏱️💰
💬 Time for a chat 💬
We’ve all heard the saying “Money talks” 💵🗣️, but is it speaking loud enough when it comes to climate change? With current carbon pricing, are we just letting companies buy their way out of taking real action? 💼💨💸
Do we need to jack up the prices, or is there another way to incentivize
