Environmental Justice and Carbon Pricing: Can They Be Reconciled?

Abstract

Abstract Carbon pricing has been criticized by environmental justice advocates on the grounds that it fails to reduce emissions significantly, fails to reduce the disproportionate impacts of hazardous co‐pollutants on people of color and low‐income communities, hits low‐income households harder than wealthier households, and commodifies nature. Designing carbon pricing policy to address these concerns can yield outcomes that are both more effective and more equitable.

Keywords

• carbon cap
• carbon dividends
• carbon price
• carbon tax
• environmental justice