The Carbon Sense Coalition today claimed that it was not possible to achieve the government's planned cuts to the production of carbon dioxide without significant shrinkage of our main industries.
The Chairman of Carbon Sense, Mr Viv Forbes, said that there are only two ways to achieve their unrealistic emission reduction targets.
"The destructive but honest way is to allow the shrinking targets and rising taxes to force closures or relocation for our backbone industries.
"The dishonest way is to pay billions of dollars for "carbon credits" from overseas carbon shysters, some of whom may actually make the reductions on our behalf.
Both options will achieve nothing except pauperisation of Australians.
"The carbon tax apologists will claim - 'but the tax only applies to the top 500 polluters'. But every company hit with the carbon tax must pass it on to all those who use their products. Soon every industry and consumer will share the costs, even if they do not understand the sneaky mechanism.
"Anyone who thinks the cuts can be achieved without affecting the real economy has not looked at the hard facts of our industries.
"It's not possible to make steel without generating carbon dioxide. No carbon tax can change that.
"It's not possible to make cement or brew beer without generating carbon dioxide.
"It's not possible to generate electricity using brown coal, black coal, diesel or gas without generating carbon dioxide.
"It's is not possible to run a car, truck, train, tractor, ship or plane on oil, gas, diesel or petrol without generating carbon dioxide. Even electric cars, trains and elevators get their energy mainly from coal or gas. As for wind power, 70% of its "capacity" will be delivered by the backup gas facilities, all producing carbon dioxide.
"Cattle, sheep, goats and pigs cannot live without generating carbon dioxide. (Even humans must exhale occasionally.)
"The Australian government plans to reduce the production of harmless carbon dioxide by 5% (or maybe 25%) by 2050, in spite of increasing population.
"Which industry will be first to cop the carbon chop?
"Or is the carbon tax just about another grab for money to buy votes?"
Viv Forbes, Chairman, The Carbon Sense Coalition, has spent his life working in exploration, mining, farming, infrastructure, financial analysis and political commentary. He has worked for government departments, private companies and now works as a private contractor and farmer.
Viv has also been a guest writer for the Asian Wall Street Journal, Business Queensland and mining newspapers. He was awarded the “Australian Adam Smith Award for Services to the Free Society” in 1988, and has written widely on political, technical and economic subjects.
