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Geographies of Environmental Change

Geographies of Environmental Change. Power and change at which scale(s)?. Global and Transnational Environmental Issues: No Borders. Climate Change Acid Rain Air and Water Pollution Toxic Pollution Watershed Management Fisheries. Climate Change.

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Geographies of Environmental Change

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  1. Geographies of Environmental Change Power and change at which scale(s)?

  2. Global and Transnational Environmental Issues: No Borders Climate Change Acid Rain Air and Water Pollution Toxic Pollution Watershed Management Fisheries

  3. Climate Change • Is climate really changing? This is not the key argument • Are “greenhouse gases” really to blame? Or something else? Most of the argument is on this topic • Policy responses: • Global scale • State scale • Local scale • Institutional and personal scale

  4. Climate Change at the Global Scale

  5. Climate Change at the Global Scale

  6. IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) 2001 • “The best estimate of global surface temperature change is a 0.6°C increase since the late 19th century with a 95% confidence interval of 0.4 to 0.8°C” • Supported by the US National Academy of Science 2002

  7. The Snows of Kilimanjaro?

  8. Pacific Islands and Polar Icecaps

  9. Global Climate Change Contest: What is the cause of CC? • Several factors: internal factors, external natural factors, external anthropogenic factors • IPCC • 1995: The balance of evidence suggests a discernible human influence on global climate”. • 2001: upgraded this by saying "There is new and stronger evidence that most of the warming observed over the last 50 years is attributable to human activities" • Contested by several groups • Science and Environmental Policy Project

  10. Climate Change Policy • 1992: UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) • 1997: Kyoto Protocol • reduce Greenhouse Gas emissions 6-8% below 1990 levels • Current status: 149 signatories/ratified • Exceptions: US, Australia, Kazakstan, Zambia, Monaco, Croatia • Came into force Feb. 2005 after ratification by Russia

  11. US Positions on Kyoto • US Senate 1997: (Byrd Hagel Resolution) “the United States should not be a signatory to any protocol that did not include binding targets and timetables for developing as well as industrialized nations or ‘would result in serious harm to the economy of the United States’". • Continues to be supported by Bush Administration • “The world's second-largest emitter of greenhouse gases is China. Yet, China was entirely exempted from the requirements of the Kyoto Protocol. This is a challenge that requires a 100 percent effort; ours, and the rest of the world's.”

  12. Comparative CO2 emissions

  13. Comparative CO2 emissions

  14. Conclusion • Global Climate change has been a key opportunity for the establishment of global institutions of governance • Success: major achievement of global structure of cooperation • Failures: • Lack of cooperation of biggest emitter of GGs: US • Little real movement towards goal? • Options: solutions at other scales • Regional, states, local • Industrial

  15. Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) (http://www.rggi.org/) • state level emissions capping and trading program. It is believed that the state-level program will apply pressure on the federal government to support Kyoto Protocol. • Participating states: Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Delaware. • Observer states and regions: Pennsylvania, Maryland, District of Columbia, Eastern Canadian Provinces, New Brunswick. • US cities have adopted Kyoto Protocol • Boulder, Seattle, dozens more

  16. Are there other scales for more successful environmental planning? Personal Scale Solutions Institutional/Corporate Solutions Local Planning Solutions Regional Planning Solutions

  17. Transborder regional planning: US? Mexico Border: Borderline Cases • Mexican toxic waste emissions • Tijuana/San Diego Waste Water treatment • Tijuana Watershed project • El Paso, Texas/ Ciudad Juarez, Mexico air pollution

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