Environmental experts are proposing hefty charge against people or entities that cause high carbon dioxide emissions, starting in 2020 as a deterrent against climate change. Dubbed as the "carbon law" policy, it outlines the penal provisions against carbon emissions. The proponents believe that stricter measures may eventually lead to accelerated global shift towards cleaner energy sources.
200 governments agreed in 2015 in Paris on phasing out fossil fuels. Signatories believe that a shift to cleaner sources may eventually lead to lower carbon dioxide emissions. But even with the so-called "Paris agreement," there are no significant moves from signatories that phases out greenhouse gas emissions.
The Reuters cited the international team of planners in the conclusion that the Paris agreement could be salvaged although at a painstaking pace. If carbon emission can drop by at least 50 percent per annum starting in 2020, the total goal can be attained by 2050. Experts agree that even by two decades moving forward, 20 billion tons of carbon will be eradicated.
The measure is very much similar to the carbon emission tax system where heavier penalty awaits those who contributes a lot to growing pollution. Starting with 2020 up to 2050, emitters who will be charged with $50 per ton of carbon. Moving on with the succeeding decades, per tonnage could reach as much as $400. If nothing hampers the plan, all carbon emissions may reduce by 80 percent in 2050, according to Climate Action.
The Stockholm Resilience Center director, Johan Rockstorm, believes that such high charge for carbon emission will eventually lead to economic repercussions that are hard to simply ignore. Rockstorm believes that European countries and even China are going to support the measure. In fact, Chinese authorities have already pushed with the closure of its coal-fired power plants to alleviate the perennial smog that affects its cities.
Meanwhile, Rockstorm also lambasts the current US administration's stance on climate change. While President Donald Trump repeatedly said that funding the climate change initiative is a waste of money, he stressed that the government can even save due to the healthier population as a result of combating carbon emissions.