Sorry, Mate: Australia Confronts the Cost of Cutting Carbon

The U.S. is still trying to figure out how to craft policies to fight climate change without derailing the economy. There are some lessons from Down Under, and they’re not pretty. Mobile source of emissions (Wikipedia) Australia just presented its first stab at a nationwide scheme to cut greenhouse-gas emissions by 60% by 2050. That’s a little more ambitious than what John McCain wants and a little less than what Barack Obama is shooting for. The upshot? Trying to take the lead on fighting climate change before other countries do is tricky—and potentially disastrous–business. Australia, which like America is dependent on fossil fuels and an export-based economy, is especially vulnerable to new schemes meant to penalize emissions of greenhouse gases. In a nutshell, Australia’s government highlights two big risks with its plan... [read full story]