Fees for GHG Emissions

The Bay Area Air Quality Management District has proposed a fee for emissions of GHGs from all facilities with stationary sources in its jurisdiction. The proposed fee has been cited in the press as in essence a carbon tax, but it is not. It is a cost-recovery fee to fund the Air District's GHG programs, principally developing an inventory of GHG emissions. The amount of the fee -- $0.042 per ton of CO2 equivalent -- is so low that it is not likely to have a significant effect on GHG emissions. The largest emitter of CO2 in the Bay Area will, according to the Contra Costa Times, pay less than $200,000 per year. Nevertheless, the fee is significant because it will be the first such fee imposed on CO2 emissions in California. More are sure to come.

-Morgan