From Matthew Benton, Bristol, UK
Carbon taxes are probably a vital tool for weaning humanity off fossil fuels and onto clean renewables (17 November, p 7 and p 22). Unfortunately people rarely vote for more taxes, and unpopular taxes will probably increase climate change denial.
A solution might be the carbon dividend, where revenue from a carbon tax is not kept by the government, but paid out equally to citizens to offset energy price rises. Middle and low income earners should gain most, since the wealthy consume more energy. Importantly, green energy would look more economically attractive. This proposal uses a free-market mechanism to fix a problem largely caused by free-market economics. But with emissions rising, maybe this small economic risk is worth taking before any high-risk fixes such as geoengineering.
In the US, conservative groups such as the Climate Leadership Council and Americans for Carbon Dividends, hope to push this idea in the 2020 elections.
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