The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is urging national governments around the world to roll back or eliminate subsidies on petroleum-based energy sources, estimating that this alone could result in a 13-percent decline in global carbon dioxide emissions.
In an unusual new paper marking its full entry into the climate change debate, the Washington-based fund on Wednesday said the cost of “pre-tax” subsidies for these products, when consumers pay less than the cost of supply, stood at about 480 billion dollars in 2011.
Further, the “post-tax” cost of these subsidies – wherein a government doesn’t charge enough to take into account the negative ramifications of energy consumption, including environmental impact – are far higher. Suggesting a figure far higher than previous estimates, the IMF puts this number at around 1.9 trillion dollars, or 2.5 percent of global GDP.
See full Article: http://www.ipsnews.net/2013/03/subsidies-play-significant-role-in-climate-change-imf-says/
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