Carbon tax a fair way to help us curb pollution

MM Crualaoich’s call to scrap the carbon tax (letters, Wednesday, March 16) ignores the fact we have to make the transition to cleaner, more energy efficient and sustainable economy, in a way that considers the rights to livelihoods of future generations and of the other living beings on this planet.

Many countries, including Australia, have or are introducing a carbon tax.. Prime Minister Julia Gillard justified the tax by stating: “We cannot be stranded with a high-pollution economy as the world changes.”

The same applies here in Ireland. It is costing us a staggering €6 billion annually in imported fossil fuels and we will be “stranded” in a high pollution economy if we do not take action to wean off this dangerous dependency.

We must not forget the nasty environmental consequences of burning fossil fuels either. Modern industrial civilisation has built its shaky edifice on cheap oil.

Now that energy scarcity and environmental disruption is staring us in the face, we can no longer adopt a morally neutral stance to such problems.

Putting a price on carbon is seen as the cheapest and fairest way to cut pollution and build a clean energy economy.

Doing it now means we take responsibility for our pollution and do not pass it on to future generations

John Fitzgerald

Fahee

Kilmacow

Co Kilkenny