How Countries Cut Carbon by Putting a Price on It: QuickTake Q&A
What Trump's Climate Policies Mean For Global Warming
Carbon taxes and cap-and-trade are two ways countries around the globe are using economic incentives to reduce greenhouse gases. They’re based on a simple idea: if something is made to cost more, there’ll be less of it produced. Putting that idea into practice has proven to be politically and technically daunting. While some want a global pricing mechanism, others consider that to be a bridge too far. A United Nations conference in Bonn in May will debate rules to limit emissions. About half of the 194 nations that signed the 2015 Paris agreement expect to use some form of carbon pricing.
Right now 19 countries impose levies with prices ranging from less than $1 to $131 a metric ton of carbon dioxide emitted -- the equivalent weight of an elephant or a small car. They include Finland, Japan and Mexico. Australia had a carbon tax but changed its mind in 2014.