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Coughing up for climate change
05/11/2007 13:07 - (SA)
London - Millions of people around the world are willing to make personal sacrifices, including paying higher bills, to help redress climate change, a global survey said on Monday.
The survey found 83% of those questioned believed lifestyle changes would be necessary to cut emissions of climate warming carbon gases.
The survey, conducted by two polling organisations for the
BBC World Service, covered 22 000 people in 21 countries.
In 14 of the 21 countries from Canada to Australia, 61% overall said it would be necessary to increase energy costs to encourage conservation and reduce carbon emissions.
"People around the world recognise that climate change
requires that people change their behaviour," said Steven Kull,
director of the Programme on International Policy Attitudes which
conducted the poll with GlobeScan.
"And that to provide incentives for those changes there will
need to be an increase in the cost of energy that contributes to
climate change," he added.
Scientists say carbon emissions from burning fossil fuels
for power and transport will push global average temperatures up
by between 1.8 and 4.0 degrees Celsius this century, causing floods, famines and violent storms putting millions at risk.
Climate taxes
The response to climate taxes was more muted than that on
raised energy prices, but it swung in favour if the revenue from
those taxes was ring-fenced for use solely on measures to raise
energy efficiency or develop clean energy sources.
There was also a greater acceptance of higher green taxes if
they were offset by cuts in taxation elsewhere so the net effect
on the individual's pocket was neutral.
"While few citizens welcome higher taxes, the poll suggests
that national leaders could succeed in introducing a carbon tax
on energy," said GlobeScan President Doug Miller.
"The key requirement is that their citizens trust that the
resulting tax revenues will be invested in addressing climate
change by increasing energy efficiency and developing cleaner
fuels," he added.
The survey said the findings applied equally in China, which
is building a coal-fired power station a week to feed its
booming economy, and in the United States, which is the world's
biggest carbon polluter - although China is fast catching up.
They will be ammunition for UN environment ministers when
they meet on the Indonesian island of Bali in December amid
urgent calls to agree to start talks on a follow-up to the Kyoto
Protocol on cutting carbon emissions which expires in 2012.
- Reuters
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