Australian senate on 8 November 2011 passed legislation that would impose a carbon tax on the nation’s 500 largest polluters. The government reasoned that it was necessary to control climate change. Australia's largest polluters will now pay 23 Australian dollars for every metric ton of carbon gases they produce. Australia is one of the world's worst greenhouse gas emitters per capita because of its heavy dependence on abundant reserves of coal to generate electricity.
Critics contended that Australian businesses would become uncompetitive because the carbon tax is very high. However, through this tax, the government could achieve its target of reducing Australia's carbon emissions by 5 percent below 2000 levels by 2020.
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