Agriculture and Emissions

The earth faces many important problems today. These problems are different in nature, and so are the investments (tools and techniques) developed to address them in the short and long term. The issue of global warming and greenhouse gases has undoubtedly emerged as one of the most important problems facing the world today. The world is experiencing changes in temperature and sea levels, changes that are inherently unfavorable. These changes not only made some parts of the world uninhabitable, but also affected diverse flora and fauna. To ensure that global warming is taken care of excellently, there have been different measures instituted from one country and region to the other. Global warming is mainly caused by the release of gases – commonly referred to as greenhouse gases – that cause damage to the atmosphere and the ozone layer. The damage on the ozone layer is responsible for the abnormal rise in temperature and drastic changes in climate.

Due to the adverse effects attached to global warming, people all over the world have become sensitive in light of the energy they use and the emissions generated thereof. Low-energy lifestyles are extremely encouraged in different parts of the world and people are integrating the various precepts therein to their day to day lives. Here, it is not about using low levels of energy, but rather, understanding the nature and level of emissions contained in a specific energy source and how this can be taken care of effectively. People have switched to sources of energy that produce minimal greenhouse gases in a bid to ensure the atmosphere is efficiently rehabilitated and conserved over both the short and the long-terms. In different parts of the world, people have found out that it is possible to use less energy and maintain a high quality of life. In fact, the quality of life today is underpinned on the nature and level of emissions presented in an energy source. However, there are different challenges presented to the section of people who have switched to low energy sources. The main challenge they encounter is slow industrialization and related developments.

The introduction of carbon tax in Australia would have implications for the economic and environmental sustainability. The implications of the carbon tax are different in the short term compared to the long-term. Although the carbon tax would have long-lasting environmental sustainability implications, the short-term implications are completely different. For a range of business and households, the short-term implications of the introduction of carbon tax are negative in nature (Centre of Policy Studies, 2008). The main aim of this paper is to conduct a review with regards to relevant articles and reports with regards to the rationale for the introduction of carbon tax. The review will also discuss predictions about the various implications of the carbon tax on the economic on both the long and short run (Nordhaus, 2007). These predictions will be founded on and or supported by economic theories. The carbon tax was founded and established on environmental sustainability but this was with regards to the long run. The short-term implications of the carbon tax are completely different from the long-term implications of this move to ensure there is environmental sustainability (Ahammad, et al., 2004),

Background information about the carbon tax is important in understanding the implications – both long-term and short-term – of this environmental sustainability legislation. The carbon tax is an important legislation through which the level of carbon in the various fuels. The carbon tax is Pigouvian in nature. Pigouvian – also known as Pigovian – is a classification of taxes which is usually applied to an activity – a market activity – characterized by negative externalities. This taxation practice is usually intended to ensure that the market outcome is corrected to the highest level of efficiency. Most – if not all – of the fuels contain carbon. The government places a price on the various carbon-containing fuels through carbon pricing. Carbon pricing involves practices such as carbon tax, emission trading, and subsidies. Through carbon pricing, the government can control the quantity of carbon emissions and thus lower air pollution. There are more than enough adverse effects associated with the release of carbon dioxide. The current major concern with regards to carbon emissions is climate change evident in global warming. Carbon taxes have been imposed by the various governments throughout the regions of the world on their subjects. Carbon taxations have become such an important international issue that various governments have come together to form international bodies through which carbon emission issues are addressed. Although carbon taxation is a global issue, the main aim of this paper is to analyze the impact of carbon tax within the Australian borders (Wissema &Dellink, 2007).

The history of carbon taxation in Australia dates back to July 2012. One the first day of July in 2012, the Federal government in Australia introduced carbon taxation. On that day, the government attached a carbon price to the various fuels. The government imposed a mandatory $23AUD tax on every tone of emitted carbon dioxide. This tax was imposed on the various fossil fuels, most of which are used by the various industrial companies. The revenue collected from carbon tax was useful as it played a central role in light of the reduction of income tax. Pension and welfare payments were increased in a bid to cover anticipated increases in price. Some of the affected industries were also compensated by the government through special programs. In Australia, the carbon emissions were an important issue in the carbon taxation. The fixed price set by the government through the carbon tax was set to increase by 2.5% each year until certain standards established to curb pollution were attained. The carbon taxes were established to aid in the emissions trading scheme transition that was set for 2015-2016. An emission trading - also known as cap-and-trade – is one of the various market-based approaches through which pollutions is controlled. In emission trading, there are incentives – economic in nature – that are employed in an attempt to curb the various forms of pollution.

The carbon tax by the government will have negative implications on tourism. The tourism industry in Australia is in a bad state and the carbon tax being introduced by the government will make things worse. The tourism industry is already struggling from a series of natural disasters that rocked the country. The price increase associated with both the direct and indirect energy costs will hurt or cripple the tourism industry. Different areas in the tourism industry will be affected in different measures. Australia’s tourism sector competes on both the international and domestic platforms. The competitiveness attached to Australian tourism and the various hospitality services will be affected on both the national and international platform. Although the domestic tourism will be negatively affected by the introduction of carbon tax, this is nothing compared to what will take place on the international tourism platform. On the international platform, the competitiveness of the Australian hospitality services and tourism will greatly decrease

On the domestic platform, the exchange rate has continued to negatively impact the various businesses. The Australian dollar has been unfavorable to the local business. The local businesses are feeling the pinch associated with an unfavorable exchange rate as more and more domestic tourism is being lost to international tourism. The number of people who prefer domestic tourism over international tourism has decreased while the number of people who would rather have international holidays over domestic holidays has – and continues to – steadily increase. The cost of local tourism has been on a steady increase as a result of the decline in the country’s currency. The carbon tax is set to increase the airfares on the domestic platform and this is one of the major reasons why domestic tourism continues to experience challenges in the short run.

The introduction of the carbon tax by the government will lead to increase in energy production in the long run. The company will reap the benefits of the carbon tax in the long run. As the government focuses on renewable energy, the country will enjoy the benefit of cheap and clean energy in the long run. As the various industries within the Australian economy embrace the introduction of the carbon tax, the households throughout the country will experience price changes. Customer confidence in the tourism industry is also set to be affected as a result of the introduction of the carbon tax. Customers will limit their spending on the various discretionary items such as holidays. The tax will be ineffective as there would be less than proportional change in the balance between profit in business and reduction of the different greenhouse gases. Businesses will have a large section of their profits ripped but the amount the initial levels of the various greenhouses gases would be minimized. Tourism is not set to receive any form of compensation unlike other energy companies. Tourism and other export-oriented businesses will be negatively impacted on both the long and short terms. (Allen, 2000).

In conclusion, the introduction of the carbon tax will affect the factors of productions. Households in the country are dependent on these factors of production for their income. In the short run, the household will experience an increase in the price of commodities. The pass forward effect which is an element of finance is of great importance with regards to the analysis of the impact of carbon tax on the Australian economy and households (Ahammad & Mi, 2005). In the pass forward effect, the direct impact of taxation on household commodities is extensively analyzed. The introduction of carbon tax in the Australian economy is also set to have implications with regards to employment. In the short run, employment will be adversely affected by the introduction of the carbon tax (Humphreys, 2007). Unemployment rates will increase as a result of the introduction of the carbon tax as most industries will experience a decline in the level of production. In the long run, the employment rate may increase as a result of cheap and readily energy. Production will increase and become more efficient in the long run (Adams, 2007),

The term pollutions can be defined as the introduction of biological molecules, particulates, or any form of harmful materials into the natural environment thus causing adverse changes. Usually, pollution takes the form of energy or chemical substances. Pollution occurs in different forms but the three major forms of pollution are air, water, and noise pollution. Air pollution can be defined as the introduction of harmful materials into the atmosphere thus causing adverse changes. Air pollution causes damages to the living organism in various capacities.

The first resource is important in the research as it presents information with regards to the 1990 Clean Air Act and the amendments that have been done therein. The entire state of Texas has been an important arena with regards to the 1990 Clean Air Act and the amendments that have been undertaken therein. Some of the important topics under air pollution that have been presented throughout the course of this resource include the ozone layer depletion, global warming, smog, acid rain, diminishing rainforests, spreading deserts, and excessive lumbering. Each of these topics is important as it presents relevant information through which the main research question is addressed.

The second resource is designed to provide information about a symposium that was jointly organized by the Netherlands Ministry of Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment, and the United States Environmental Protection Agency. Clean air is one of the major topics that have been handled throughout the course of the research. Respiratory problems have also featured prominently throughout the course of this resource. There are numerous respiratory problems that have been presented in this resource as it seeks to connect air pollution to the various respiratory and respiratory-related problems. This resource is rich in addressing the main research question and providing grounds for comparison through which respiratory diseases can be effectively addressed.

The third resource is designed to analyze the role and impact of burning coal with regards to the energy requirements in the United States. The state of Texas has been focused on in light of burning coals and related activities that lead to air pollution. The topic of air pollution in this resource is broken down into important topics such as air quality standards, public health, respiratory health, and the ozone layer.

In the fourth resource, the Clean Air Act – and its enactment in 1970 – has been one of the important topics of analysis. Other important topics include air quality, respiratory health, automotive emissions, greenhouse gases, and public health.

Global warming passes on to an augment in standard global temperature, which in turn surfaces climate change. Climate change refers to alterations in seasonal precipitation, temperature, humidity, and wind of a given region. Climate change can entail cooling or warming. Temperature findings obtained from around the universe in current years, and scientific readings of corals, ice cores, and tree rings, portray that the standard global temperature has increased since the industrial improvement started, with augments shooting up over the last few years. The overpowering consensus among scientist is that a greater number of the augment is due to human economic doings, specifically the cremating of fossil energy and deforestation. These doings make a payment to a construct-up in carbon dioxide and other related gases in Earth’s atmosphere. The atmosphere is comprised of gases, such as oxygen, nitrogen, and carbon dioxide, and water vapor, which characterizes like a cover or carpet draped around the universe. Some of these gases absorb heat, decreasing the degree that breaks to space, and augmenting global warmth. This is what is termed or called the Greenhouse effect and these related gases are frequently termed as “greenhouse gases”. Without this procedure, the warm or atmospheric temperature would be standard and about 30 degrees colder than it is currently, making it complex for the world to maintain life as people know it. Nonetheless, if the carpet or cover were to become too thick with a lot of gases trapping a lot of heat, and the world would be unsustainable. For instance, in the atmosphere of Venus, a build-up of carbon dioxide has shown the way to broiling warmth of 500 degrees Celsius (Simon 45).

Global warming is not a myth. The global standard temperature that was recorded as the third hottest since recording keeping started in the closing stages of the1800s is 2003 – 1998 was the initial one while 2002 was the subsequent one – and the ten warmest durations on catalog have taken place since the 1990s. The heartfelt decade in the Northern Hemisphere was the 1990s documented in the last 1000 years. Some Scientist carry on to converse the extent to which people or human are affecting global temperature and stimulating climate change. The larger part of scientists who read these shortcomings around the world – taking into account of those with the global meteorological organization – agree that people are the key force behind the authentic global warming patterns of the last century. There are a lot of manners of approach that organizations or corporation as well as other big companies like universities, hospital, and government agencies can restrain the degree of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases the dish out into the atmosphere. At the creation and processing stage, for instance, organizations can hoard energy and other related resources by creating products with less materials and few packaging, and by producing fresh and innovative merchandises out of recycled materials. By means of their formal buying institutions, channel can dedicate to making use of energy-effectual office instruments or fixtures, and can make use of recycled material like paper, which need less energy to make. Some corporations have already dedicated to diminishing their greenhouse gas emanation by buying energy from renewable sources, and by selecting fleets of less emanation vehicles. Corporations can also dish out advantages that endorse workers to make use of infrastructure, and facilitate telecommuting (Miller 21).

Governments can enforce regulations and tax policies that enhance or endorse energy conservation; the advancement and appliance of more-energy-effectual cars, systems, and buildings; and the improvement and appliance of renewable energy like wind power, solar, and bio-fuels. Governments can also enhance investment in infrastructure and endorse improvement configurations that diminish sprawl. Currently the regulations or policies of a lot of nations favour the great intensive types of infrastructure, and are prejudiced toward traditional energy over renewable, and toward fresh and innovative energy sources over effectually measures. But forced greatly by the consideration about climate change and energy security, numbers of countries have started to endorse the sustainable making use of energy by means of green taxes, which transfers the tax workload from labor to energy, and by enforcing vital policies to improve the establishment and appliance of renewable energy and energy-effectual technologies. While it is considered unattainable for an individual to put a stop to global warming, it has a straight effect on the circumstances that permit warming to take place. People dedicate themselves to do their part to pollute less and conserve energy. Whether at school, home or on our way to work, in the store, or in the office, there are things that can be done to diminish our payment to climate changes. Instances of stuff an individual can perform takes into account the turning off lights and systems when they are not in appliance, making use of carpooling, or public transportation, recycling, driving less, buying energy effectual systems – in the United States, search for energy star mark – or a more energy-effectual car, purchasing food grown locally, imagining the water heater, and at home, and picking “green” electricity from an organization vending produced from recyclable or renewable sources like the sun or wind, which is now a great possibility in a lot of regions References

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