The Swiss government, which has been trying to work through a number of different proposals on a carbon tax (earlier post), decided last week to start by levying a 9 centime (approx $0.075) per liter tax on heating oil, but only opted for a trial 1–1.6 centime (approx. 0.8 cents to 1.3 cents) voluntary tax on transportation fuel, called the “centime climatique.”

The centime climatique will be tested until the end of 2007, at which point, if the Kyoto objectives are still not met, the federal government will impose a tax of up to 30 centimes (approx. $0.25) per liter at the pump.

Switzerland is currently tracking to a 4% reduction in CO₂ emissions rather than its targeted 10% under the 2000 Swiss CO₂ law.