The 4 Pillars of Utopia - Pillar #1: Controlling Pollution

See previous article here https://lukemacmichael.medium.com/the-4-pillars-of-utopia-30eff4681b85

Pillar #1: Controlling Pollution— with Fair Worldwide Taxes on all Forms

As a quick intro discussion, there are essentially four methods along a linear spectrum which we can use to control pollution. Essentially, these are:

• Ban the pollution (e.g. ozone-depleting CFC’s, single-use plastic bans)
• Charge for the pollution (e.g. Sewage fees, garbage fees, carbon taxes)
• Pay people not to pollute (e.g. Renewable energy subsidies, Home energy retrofit incentives)
• Ask people nicely not to pollute (e.g. Sustainability education initiatives)

Each of these strategies can have advantages and disadvantages which we will discuss in more detail throughout future articles. In many cases, multiple methods may be necessary to implement together to receive optimal results. However, for the purposes of this article today I’d like to focus on the second option as I generally believe it is the fairest and best method to employ in most situations if implemented correctly. First of all though in order to begin our discussion on pollution we need to address the current economic system of the industrial world: Capitalism.

Making Capitalism Fair

“I’m a capitalist. I believe in capitalism. But capitalism only works if you have safety nets to deal with people who are naturally left behind and brutalized by it.” — Thomas Friedman

In the past, when capitalist ideals first became popular, pollution costs and use of land, air, and water were all considered negligible because there was just so much to go around. We allowed and encouraged individuals and corporations to exploit the land and resources around us as much as possible to improve our way of life.

However, in today’s world, where common resources of land, air, and water are becoming more scarce and valuable than ever, we need to rethink the methodology of how our businesses are built from the ground up.

For Capitalism to function in the long run, all the costs of a given product must be accounted for so that people purchasing it can make an informed decision about whether or not it is actually worth the price. We can no longer allow companies to externalize the costs of pollution and over-exploitation of our common resources onto the rest of society.

If we set a fair price for pollution and resources of all kinds and then use that money to clean up whatever problems the creation of each product may cause then the free market will sort out all pollution issues for us accordingly. It will lead us towards more innovation and eventually ensure that the costs of sustainable and renewable goods can compete with alternative cheap and dirty options. That’s really all there is to it.

The only challenges left are exactly how to decide on a fair price for all the different types of pollution and then getting the whole world (or most of it at least) to agree to pay it. No small feats for sure but we are definitely getting closer everyday to making them possible.

Setting the Correct Price

”People ‘over-produce’ pollution because they are not paying for the costs of dealing with it.”

-Ha-Joon Chang

It can obviously be very tough to figure out the exact true costs to society of anything with so many interconnecting variables always in play. However if we stick to scientifically proven duplicatable methods and not the whims of whatever corporation or political party might be currently in charge, then we can at least begin to move in a steady direction.

First of all we need to get a clear picture of how much pollution the world can process and absorb by testing things on a small scale and then extrapolating to a global scale. We can then move forward by adjusting taxes in a way that the global output of each type of pollution does not exceed the sustainable threshold allowable by nature.

The trick is to start small with each form of tax and then gradually work up to the full true cost to allow time for innovation and conversion to cleaner methods. As long as there is steady progress, it will send a clear signal to all governments and corporations worldwide that they can save more money and become more prosperous in both the short and long term if they focus on developing sustainable options for everything sooner rather than later.

It’s also very important that we ensure fair and efficient use of the collected pollution tax dollars for the highest benefit of all. Regular audits and full transparency with strict actions to combat corruption will be essential. It’s time for us to rebuild trust in ourselves and in the governments we support to work together for a sustainable future for us all.

Getting the Whole World to Agree

“The greatest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it.”

-Robert Swan

For any large-scale pollution controls to work in the long term, our focus needs to be on how we can get the whole world, or at least most of it, to agree on a fair price for each type of pollution. Otherwise, you end up with Global corporations outsourcing all their biggest polluting businesses to countries that allow it for a lower price, or for free, and the global problem continues to get worse.

So, how can we get the whole world to agree? In a small group, reaching consensus may be easier; however bringing people of various nations, with various interests, together is a much more challenging task. The debate is never-ending; the more impoverished countries complain that, since the more affluent countries have been polluting so much more than them proportionally in the past, now they should have a turn. At the same time, the more prosperous nations are worried that they might have to give up some of their comparatively luxurious living standards if they restrict their pollution rates and give up some of their competitive advantages. First of all, everyone has to realize that it is a global issue, and by working together to solve it, we can accomplish so much more than by working alone. The richer nations will likely need to share more resources and technology with the impoverished ones in exchange for them agreeing to global prices and rules for limiting world pollution and level the playing field for all corporations worldwide.

The United Nations already has several frameworks in place for this type of collaboration with the 17 Sustainable Development Goals. We need to continue to do everything we can to support and achieve these goals. A percentage of the worldwide taxes on pollution could be a central source of funding for achieving them all.

The changes we seek can all begin on a local level, with each individual making a conscious decision to only support businesses and politicians who favor environmentally friendly options. Once that is done, the next step is making sure that your country moves towards importing or buying from only countries or businesses that also favor environmentally friendly alternatives.

Our focus needs to be on the concept of providing maximum freedom for every individual and corporation to be productive and profitable without hurting or abusing others. Pollution hurts all of us and as such should never be entirely free.

One example of pollution taxes would be to tax plastics and other packaging at the point of production. We now have options to use completely biodegradable bags and containers for just about everything. The only problem is that they are more expensive because they don’t externalize the societal cost of pollution like the other more harmful options do. If we taxed all plastics and non-biodegradable packaging at a gradually increasing rate, eventually every company would transition to completely biodegradable or easily recyclable options. The money we save on garbage collection and landfill maintenance would be very significant indeed. If we carry it forward far enough, then eventually, every household could have automatic waste processing containers and compost piles, and we could reduce overall waste to less than 1% of what it is currently.

A final thought about Taxes in General:

“I like to pay taxes. With them, I buy civilization.” ― Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.

We all understand taxes are a necessary part of any modern civilization. We use them to pay for all the shared resources of society such as Infrastructure, Safety, Law Enforcement, Education, Health Care, Environmental Protections, Social Welfare Systems and all the government organizations required to manage it all in a sustainable manner. Sometimes, we may feel our tax dollars are wasted on things we don’t agree with and we all typically wish we could pay less individually and keep as much of our hard earned money as possible. However, if we could choose to redesign the entire tax system of all nations from the ground up, I’d suggest that we use taxes to incentivise people to make healthy sustainable choices as much as possible. Meaning, we raise taxes on things we want less of in society, (Pollution, Waste, Extreme wealth, luxuries such as mansions and yachts, unhealthy food and substances, etc) and we lower taxes on things we’d like more of (ie. healthy food, beneficial work, and social communities).

Ideally we could remove all personal and corporate income taxes worldwide and get all of our necessary revenue from pollution, consumption, land and wealth taxes. We could pay back a certain portion to everyone as a basic rebate to ensure the poor can still afford basics like food, energy, and shelter. However, those who consume and waste less should be rewarded more for their efforts. In a finite world with limited space and resources, minimalism should be celebrated and encouraged rather than frowned upon because people aren’t supporting “the economy”. We need to forget about archaic measures like GDP and traditional economic growth. They don’t really matter when it comes to tracking overall human well-being and happiness. We need to continue to refine and employ Genuine Progress Indicators (GPI’s) worldwide as a standard for creating better social and corporate regulations and tax laws.

Next time we will dig deeper into Pillar #2 : Preventing Slavery- with a basic income and job guarantee