Taxes can tackle pollution

The TAXEDU portal is shedding light on how environmental tax is protecting the environment
 

When young people are asked about how they can help solve the world’s environmental problems, some of the most common answers include taking public transport, recycling and saving water. Now thanks to TAXEDU, children around Europe are also learning how environmental taxes can be used to address a wide range of issues – from water pollution to air emissions.
 

Children can view a microlearning clip titled “Can taxes help protect the environment?”. It’s available on the TAXEDU digital platform, which features e-learning resources, videos and educational information about taxes in 22 EU languages.  Designed for students aged 9 to 12, the clip explains the purpose of environmental taxes.
 

After viewing this microlearning clip, students will be able to easily identify sources of pollution and understand the resulting negative effects on the environment. They will have also learned about the measures taken by national authorities to protect the environment, including environmental taxes.
 

Teachers around Europe can use TAXEDU’s multilingual lesson plans to initiate classroom discussions about the wide range of legislative charges placed on businesses and individuals with the goal of discouraging behaviour that is harmful to both the environment and people. 
These online resources also inspire students to consider how taxes can fund eco-innovations, reduce pollution and generate revenue that can be used by governments to protect the environment. 
 

Good tax practices
 

Examples of good practice are easy to find. There are many successful environmental taxes in Europe. For example, Ireland was among the first countries to introduce a plastic bag levy. It resulted in a 90 % reduction of plastic bag usage. What’s more, the money raised has been used to help finance environmental projects.
 

Back in 1994, Denmark introduced a tax on piped water to reduce wastewater. The tax was 75 cents per cubic metre of water and this saw a reduction of drinking water from 513 to 480 million cubic metres between 1993 and 1995. Then in 2014, the tax was increased – once again resulting in further reductions in water consumption.
 

Over in Sweden, the government introduced a tax on nitrogen (NOx) to reduce NOx emissions from energy generation in combustion plants and combined heat and power plants. This was to help with soil acidification, water eutrophication and to improve air quality. Because of this tax, NOx emissions reduced from 0,4 kg/GWh to 0,18 kg/GWh.
 

These are just a few examples of how environmental taxes are helping to protect our environment. Without them, our environment would be in a completely different shape.  So can taxation help the environment? Yes it can!