Carbon Rationing in the Future?

The Future?

Last month, I wrote a post about our carbon footprint and how we need to do better. All of us. And I raised the possibility of one solution being carbon rationing. It seems a radical concept, but is it?

Right now, we have carbon taxes, a controversial subject that affects some of us more than others. In BC, our gasoline prices are quite high because we have a high carbon tax. In Alberta, gasoline prices are much lower because they don't have a significant carbon tax. A carbon tax is also not ideal because it disproportionately affects the poor more than the wealthy. When you have money to burn... a carbon tax on gasoline doesn't impact you as much as it would someone who is on a tight budget.

Carbon rationing on the other hand would affect everyone the same. And no, there would be no carbon trading allowed. Because carbon trading, again, affects the poor more than the wealthy.

UK WW2 Ration Book

When I tossed the idea of carbon rationing out there... I was basing that more on my knowledge of rationing in the UK during the Second World War. People received a ration book and you had a set amount of sugar, meat, milk, clothing, etc that you could purchase. It was a pretty basic system with a paper ration book and little detachable squares that you would hand to the merchant as you purchased your ration of sugar. German had the same thing.

This system was accepted by most of the populace because it affected everyone equally. Everyone, rich or poor, was in the same boat. You didn't get a bigger ration if you were wealthy. You got the same ration of meat as the next person. 

I did a bit more research into this idea and... it's a thing. It's actually been trialed in Finland and Australia! Imagine opening an app on your phone each morning and checking your carbon footprint. And seeing how each and every trip in your car impacts your carbon budget. And no... there is no "carbon credit card" where you buy now and pay later. Although maybe there will be "lay away"... where you save your carbon allowance for a big trip? Interesting ideas...

The idea of carbon rationing has been around for a while. In 2006, David Miliband, then UK Environment Secretary, suggested it as a way to engage the average person in addressing climate change. But a subsequent investigation by the UK's Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) reported that a scheme to track everyone’s carbon use was too costly, unproven and lacked public support. DEFRA concluded that carbon rationing was “an idea currently ahead of its time”. 

That was almost 20 years ago... perhaps it's time has come? Or maybe it's a carbon tracking scheme.... where you track how much carbon you are emitting. Because, honestly... we really have no idea how much carbon a trip to the grocery store "costs". But what if we did? What if we could then make smarter choices?

Carbon rationing would be a pretty draconian measure... but those times might come. And with technology's leaps and bounds... it might be a lot easier to track than a paper booklet. What if, on your store receipt... you could see the carbon cost of that whole chicken that you bought from the grocery store? What if it was all tracked automatically? I know, I know... Big Brother is watching. I hate to tell you this... but they are already watching.

What if carbon rationing is the only way that we can save our children and grandchildren from a desolate future of runaway climate change? Would you make that sacrifice for your children? Our grandparents made that sacrifice during the Second World War. What makes us think that we are exempt or immune from something similar? To save the planet. And our future.

Because right now... we are all in a HUGE carbon debt. All of us. And there is no way to declare carbon bankruptcy. The consequences aren't simply... oops... you lose your house and now you get no credit cards for 7 years. Our carbon debt has global implications.

Move aside Bitcoin... maybe the future is Carboncoin. And if it is... we should all start practicing how to track our spending and balance our budget with our own personal finances... It's somewhere to start.

More Reading

BBC - Can rationing carbon help fight climate change? - 2020
New Republic - The Climate Case for Carbon Rationing - 2023
Nature - Personal Carbon Allowances Revisited - 2021
Resilience - The Best Climate Policy You’ve Probably Never Heard Of - 2022
Globe & Mail - The Climate Crisis is like a world war - so let's talk about rationing - 2019

Our Carbon Footprint Could be Better... Needs to be Better!

After calculating our carbon footprint last week... I was pretty satisfied with it. 12 tonnes of CO2 per year per person isn't bad! It's certainly better than folks in Alberta who rely on coal powered electricity power plants. Right? Right.

Global Neighbours

Well... turns out, we're not the only ones on the planet. And our carbon footprint in Canada is not great. In fact, it's worse than pretty much any European country. I know why too... distance. We fly more. We drive more. We don't have super-fast trains that connect cities. Our wide-open skies and huge distances mean we do a LOT of travelling and... that's where we are racking up a lot of our CO2 emissions. Not to mention all of our food has to travel long distances, etc, etc. And let's not mention holidays... if we want to flit off to a Mexican vacation, we are talking thousands of kilometres of flight distance... whereas in Europe... those distances are often smaller... just flit down to Greece or Spain or Italy for a winter vacay.

Yeah... except... China has an average carbon footprint of 5 tonnes... and they are a big country too... We are in trouble.

Climate change isn't going to cut us any slack. A recent study confirmed that by 2050, Canadians are going to have to cut their emissions an average of 95%. Eerk... that would mean... an average of 0.6 tonnes of CO2 per year... Ummm... where's my chart??

Basically... we could heat our home, handle garbage and recycling and drive a tiny bit in our gasoline powered car, and eat a vegan diet... Remember... in my previous blog, this carbon footprint didn't include diet at all! 

Yep, it's official... we are in trouble.

2035 and 2050 Targets

Here's what it looks like... There we are at the top of the pack... and there's Brazil and India near the bottom. And we can see our targets as well. The 2035 target is 2.5 tonnes/person/year. But by 2050, we need to get that down to 0.7 tonnes/person/year.

Hot & Cool report on climate change - 1.5-Degree Lifestyles Report | Hot or Cool

Seriously... it seems impossible to go from 12 tonnes/year to 2.5 tonnes/year! And then down to 0.7? HOW???

Reducing Carbon Footprints

The Hot or Cool report offers the most bang for your buck suggestions. And for Canada, a high-income country... we are looking at the following...

Biggest Reduction - 0.5 to 1.5 Tonnes/year per option

• shift from gas-guzzlers to fuel-efficient vehicle
• shift from gasoline car to electric car
• car-free private travel (a vacay with no car??)
• reducing  international flights
• shift from meat-based diet to vegan or vegetarian diet
• shift from fossil fuels to renewable energy

Medium Reduction - 0.25 to 0.5 Tonnes/year per option

• living closer to the workplace
• car-free commuting with electric bikes, ride sharing
• smaller living space
• hybrid car
• car-free commuting with public transportation
• closer weekend leisure
• efficiency improvement of home appliances

Small Reduction - less than 0.25 tonnes/year per option

• food production efficiency improvement
• alternative dairy products
• renting a guest room
• telework
• efficiency improvement of buildings, heat pump or air conditioner for temperature control
• reduction of sweets and alcohol
• reduction of domestic flights
• household food loss reduction
• saving hot water
• lowering temperature at home
• supply side food loss reduction,

The Bottom Line

My sense is that a lot of us are focused on the Small Reduction section. We are trying to save hot water by showering less. We are lowering the thermostat and wearing sweaters. We are composting and trying to reduce food waste. We are installing a heat pump. But while all of these things are good... they aren't making a big difference.

For the biggest difference... we are going to have to address things like our car-culture... gasoline cars in particular. And our preference for individual transport over communal transport.

We are going to have to address our fixation with fossil fuels... whether it's natural gas for heating homes or coal-powered electrical generating plants. Those don't work anymore.

We are going to have to look at our addiction to air travel. In France and Austria, they have banned short-haul domestic flights under 2 hours. You'll need to take a train instead. And that works for them because they have the rail system to support that. Here... our rail system is pathetic. And we like our warm-weather winter vacations too... and flitting off to Arizona for the entire winter. Those things might be a relic of the past in a few years.

Carbon Budget

I wonder what would happen if we had a carbon budget for the year. And no... you can't borrow or trade carbon like you would money. This is a budget that can't be altered. You only have so much carbon money to spend. Once it's gone... that's it.

Of course we'd buy our heating and electricity first... and then want?

Things like garbage and recycling... but then travel? Transport? Diet?

We made the switch to a primarily vegan/vegetarian diet three years ago. Beans... tofu... tempeh... and a bit of salmon here and there for the Omega-3s. It works. It's actually quite yummy. Do we miss milk? Nope. Do we miss cheese? Sometimes. We do dabble in yogurt and butter but minimally. But if we had a carbon budget... and had to cut something... yogurt and butter would be the first to go. But what about eating local? What if we ate some local bison? Makes no difference. Meat whether it is next door, or across the country still has a high carbon footprint.

I'd probably be cutting my daily drives to Starbucks. In favour of walking or biking to another coffee shop. I'd make sure that all of my errands are tied together like a daisy chain. They generally are... but sometimes we make that run to the grocery store for a packet of basil because we need it for the recipe we are cooking. Maybe that's a place to start... track our annual kilometres and make an effort to reduce our daily car use.

As for travel... when my mother immigrated to Canada in the mid-1950s... there were no international flights. Heck there weren't even domestic flights. She took a passenger ship from Bremen to Quebec City. She then boarded a train that travelled all the way across Canada. Took days and days. She remembers a time when there were no cheap and easy flights. They are a luxury. And one that we can ill afford the way it stands.

It's enough to make one's head ache. And yet... it's all pretty obvious.

• Buy local - farmer's markets
• Buy seasonal - don't buy raspberries in January
• Eat more vegetables - including dried legumes... best bang for your buck
• Eat less meat - beef is bad... fish is better
• Walk or Bike more - time for an e-bike?
• Drive less - plan your errands... vacation locally

Right now... we still have some free will and choice in all of this. We can choose to do better. There may come a day when we don't get that choice. When it's gotten so desperate that we have carbon rationing... or a ban on international flights or... who knows. I can't see the future but it doesn't take a rocket scientist to see the writing on the wall.