This post is taken from the newsletter ” Human warmth “, sent every Tuesday at 12 noon. Every week, journalist Nabil Wakim, who hosts the Chaleur Humaine podcast, answers questions from Internet users about the climate challenge. You can register for free here:
” Good morning. I listened to the episode with Christian Gollier on the carbon tax, but I find it very unfair for the poorest, I heard about the idea of having a carbon account for each citizen which could limit emissions of greenhouse gas. Are there any parties that offer this? » Question posed by Françoise to the address [email protected]
” I heard Jean-Marc Jancovici on the radio say that each person should have the right to fly four times in their life only (I have already exceeded my quota!) Is this type of quota possible? What could that look like? » Question posed by Sandrine to the address [email protected]
My answer : Yes, people have been advocating for a “carbon account” for many years. The idea is notably supported by the association “carbon account” and defended by the former senior civil servant and essayist Pierre Calame (see this column published by The world). It is not supported by any political party represented in the Assembly, but some deputies, such as Delphine Batho (Ecology Generation), Francois Ruffin (BIA) or Jean-Marc Fievet (Renaissance) spoke out for this principle, without however fully adhering to the concept.
1/What is the “carbon account”?
The starting point is the fact of considering that the quantity of fossil fuels (oil, gas, coal) that we can still use to meet our climate objectives is limited. Under these conditions, it is best to distribute what remains in the most balanced way possible. The concept is summarized in this way in a Ted Talk on the subject : “ If you’re going on a hike and you only have one packet of cookies, you divide them among the hikers. In the end everyone ate the same amount of cookies, and everyone was free to eat their cookies whenever they wanted”.
In other words: each person is assigned a carbon quota to consume during the year. Each year, the quantity of carbon distributed would decrease by 6% to enable France’s climate objectives to be achieved.
2/How could this be implemented?
As I received several questions on the subject, I asked Pierre Calame, one of the main promoters of the carbon account, to explain me. In concrete terms, this amounts to creating a second currency: carbon. In addition to paying in euros to buy a car, for example, I also spend part of my carbon portfolio at the same time, which corresponds to the greenhouse gas emissions necessary to produce the car and bring it to me. If I run out of carbon currency, I can buy it from others – or on an exchange. The richest will therefore be able to buy back carbon quotas from the poorest.
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