There's a simple reason for carbon taxes: it's a public goods problem.

Changing my own lifestyle will have significant costs, of some sort, and will have no noticeable impact on the climate. There's only a real impact if lots of other people do it too. But if they do, I can get the same benefit by freeloading on them and keeping my life unchanged. Either way, I'm better off not changing.

Nevertheless, I prefer a good climate to an unchanged lifestyle. It's just that if it's an individual decision for each of us, we're all better off as freeloaders.

A carbon tax removes the freeloader option.