Implementing Environmental Taxes: Best Practice and Lessons Learnt

As the world grapples with escalating environmental challenges, the imperative for effective environmental taxation has become more pronounced. Despite efforts, global greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise. Urgent green taxes or subsidy reforms can efficiently generate revenue and foster renewable energy investments. As discussions on further developing environmental tax policy persist, applying and implementing environmental taxes offer significant potential for learning exchange.

In the face of these mounting environmental callenges and based on the Network of Tax Organisations (NTO)'s continued effort to facilitate peer exchange and collaboration, the NTO webinar Implementing Environmental Taxes: Best Practice and Lessons Learnt aims to bring together experts and professionals from tax authorities affiliated with NTO member organisations to showcase country case studies and delve into the categories, prospects, and implementation nuances of environmental taxation.

Through country case study presentations, we will explore how environmental taxes, across the four key dimensions and including carbon taxes, harmonise economic activities with sustainability goals, shedding light on diverse global contexts.

Background

Environmental taxation gained prominence in the late 20th century with growing concerns about environmental degradation, pollution, and resource depletion. The proposal for environmental taxation is based on the belief that traditional regulatory approaches alone might not be sufficient to address complex environmental challenges. Over the last two decades, international agreements such as the Kyoto Protocol (1992) and the Paris Agreement (2015) have catalysed discussions and initiatives to incentivise environmental protection.

From user charges in the 1970s to the European Union's 2020 strategy, Europe has witnessed a dynamic evolution of environmental tax initiatives. This evolution underscores the importance of environmental taxation, which is essential for integrating environmental considerations into economic decisions, meeting international commitments, correcting market failures, promoting corporate responsibility, and fostering sustainability.

Environmental taxes are categorically defined into four main dimensions: energy, transport, pollution, and resources. They align economic activities with sustainability goals, targeting carbon emissions, waste disposal, air and water pollution, and sustainable resource management.

Please note: attendance to this event is by invitation only.

For inquiries and additional information, please contact secretariat@taxcompact.net