5 Enclosures and Rights of Nature Flashcards
When/what were the Enclosure Acts in the UK?
18th Century
Fencing in of land to prevent others from accessing it
What did this signify?
Shift from community led and collective decision making (e.g. when to sow, plough, graze) to fenced fields and individual decision making/ownership
What was the argument for?
Underpinned the economic and agricultural development of Britain
Improved the health/quality of landscape
Gave farmers great autonomy
What was the argument against?
Theft of land -
Impoverishing the many for the sake of a few
What was common land and what was it used for pre- 18th century?
All those in the village had customary rights to access/utilise it for common purposes e.g. grazing, collecting firewood
Why was common land so important?
Formed often a significant part of income for poorer families and allowed them to heat their homes/cook, as fuel was very expensive at this time
Who did well out of the Acts?
Land owners; they had greater freedom to develop and improve their land and incomes and could sell land which suddenly increased in price to the rising middle class
Church of England; could lease
Landscape; general improvement to draining, bogs, heath land, afforestation etc
How did the landscape change?
There were new farms, farm houses, roads which were now outside of the centre of the village
Significant changes to rights of way/bridleways etc
How was this linked to parliament?
Land ownership was inherently linked to parliament membership
Why is there concern that this is happening again in modern Britain?
Since 1979, state has sold 10% of Britain’s land area and 50% of its public land
What land has been sold?
Large amount of Forestry Commission land
Formerly nationalised land e.g. railways, water, steel, coal
How was the selling of land justified?
Invoke the ‘hidden hand of the market’ as an agent for greater efficiency
However what is the main risk of privatisation in reality
Tragedy of the Commons
In pursuit of the highest rents possible, owners restrict everyone else’s opportunity to enjoy social amenities
What does privatisation mean for Britain’s least advantaged?
They have to pay rents that have increased 6-7% per anuum since 1979
Link with parliament now?
1/4 of MPs are landlords
Which factors have driven increasing pressure on global land and water resources?
Rising food demand
Increasing population
Dietary changes
Enhanced biofuel production driven by rising oil prices and new biofuel policies
Give an example of a policy that has driven changes in the biofuel industry
EU 2008 Renewable Energy Directive
What has this pressure driven?
Increased purchase of foreign agricultural land by major companies and corporations
During which years has this trend been greatest and how much land has changed hands?
2005-2009 with a peak in 2009
45 million ha of land
Which event in particular increased the amount of land grabbing?
Global Food Crisis 2007-2008
Which commodities in particular increased in price?
Wheat, rice, soy beans, maize
How much did they increase?
2008 cereal prices reached a peak 2.8x their 2000 price, and in July 2010 remained 1.9x this price
What was the rise caused by?
Growing food demand (esp China and India)
Increased biofuel production
Financial speculations
Adverse climatic conditions in the world’s ‘breadbaskets’
What was the social impact of the global food crisis?
Drove 44 million people into poverty
Sparked food riots in e.g. Mozambique September 2010
What are the social and environmental drawbacks of ‘land grabbing’
Limited consultation of local public
No adequate compensation of previous land owners
No opportunities create for new jobs or enhancement of environmental sustainability
What is land grabbing from a neutral perspective?
Measure by governments/companies used to meet their food/energy requirements by acquiring land in foreign countries
What is land grabbing from a biased perspective?
21st century form of colonialism which violates human rights which has no consideration of social and and environmental impacts
Examples of nations deemed ‘land grabbers’?
South Korea and Saudi Arabia
Acquired land in Ethiopia and Madagascar
Where are these deals made?
In the legal grey areas between traditional land rights and modern forms of property
Where is land grabbing concentrated?
Africa (40%), in which it is concentrated on large rivers Nile and Senegal
How many people in global indigenous populations?
2.5 billion
What % of global land do indigenous have customary property rights?
50%
On how much of this do they act have common property rights?
10% of this
Which countries are these large corporations targeting and why?
Those with poor governance in order to maximise profits and minimise red tape
Evidence of this?
3/4s of 56 countries where land deals were agreed 2000-2011 scored below average on World Bank Governance indicators e.g. control of corruption, rule of law, voice and accountability and regulatory quality
Which Guatemalan policies are aiding and abetting land re-concentration?
Private individual land tilting
Market let agrarian reform
What has this meant for indigenous land renters?
Colonos Farmers provide labour/payment for the right to live and farm on the land owned by others
These families were forcibly removed and homes and crops burnt
What has happened to global freshwater withdrawals in last century?
Increased 7x
What has been deemed the new 21st century enclosures
Ocean Grabbing
Examples of the purposes of ocean grabbing by big corporations?
Building of luxury beach hotels in Sri Lanka
Clearing of Ecuadorian mangroves from global shrimp export
Rights Based Fishery policies titling oceans to European and Canadian fishing companies
How are the grabs technically legal?
They are just hidden inside policy documents, trade agreements, conservation mandates and fishing policies
How many people depend on small scale fishing for subsistence globally?
Half a billion
What happened in South Africa in 2005?
Over 90% of 70,000 fishers were denied access to their resources when the government privatised fishing grounds
How is the World Bank complying?
World Bank and other organisations highlight unsustainability as the reason they are attempting to establish property rights and privatising the oceans?
What should we be doing instead?
Implementing polices which prioritise small scale local fishers
How can market based mechanisms work to conserve?
Allocation of first order property rights
Give legal property rights to groups defending biodiversity, local people or give areas legal standing
Water scarcity situation in Africa?
1 in 3 endure water scarcity and CC will only make this worse
River in Ethiopia and who relies on it?
Alwero River - Anuak people
How does the lifestyle of the Anuak people conserve the ecosystem?
Pastoralists/farmers so they move around according to the seasons which helps to maintain healthy soil fertility
Recent development in the area?
New plantation owned up Saudi billionaire is irrigated with water from the Alwero - threatening supply
What is Saudi Arabia’s resource problem?
Lack water instead of land to grow food
Another country struggling with water resources and why?
India (companies e.g. Karuturi global doing the same) due to severely depleted underground aquifers due to decades of unsustainable irrigation
