GOVERNMENTS should radically restructure their tax systems to penalise those who damage the environment, according to the Worldwatch Institute, a think-tank based in Washington DC. A market-based approach to environmental preservation is a central theme in the institute鈥檚 1996 State of the World report, which shows how well the world is progressing towards a sustainable society.
鈥淲e have a tax system that belongs to another age,鈥� says David Roodman, who wrote the report on taxation. 鈥淭he government needs to place substantial taxes on environmental destruction which would reflect the true costs of the activity as a whole.鈥�
Making polluters pay would reduce the cost to the state of cleaning up pollution, easing the burden on the taxpayer. New environmental taxes could be offset by a reduction in taxes on wages and corporate earnings, says Roodman, which would also stimulate productivity and business.
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