President Sarkozy of France has proposed a carbon tax, a tax on CO2 emissions, starting January 1, 2010. The tax will be initially €17 per tonne of carbon dioxide and will be levied on individuals and businesses for fossil fuel consumption, but will not include electricity, 80% of which in France is nuclear. British Columbia introduced a similar tax last year, which has been criticized for penalizing rural and northern consumers who require more fuel than urban dwellers for basic necessities. The BC carbon tax began in Summer 2008 at C$10/tonne of carbon-equivalent emissions and was to rise by C$5/year for the subsequent four years. Greenpeace France was critical of President Sarkozy’s proposal because it excludes electricity and starts at a low rate.
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