GEP - barriers to achieving an international response to global environmental protection

Question 1

List barriers 3

Answer 1

• state sovereignty
• economic and political agendas
• greater demand for natural resources - due to population growth and consumer culture

Question 2

Give examples for barrier of state sovereignty 10

Answer 2

• International Whaling Commission, International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling 1946 (aimed to protect and conserve whale species, governing the commercial, scientific and indigenous whaling practices), Australia v Japan 2014 ICJ –> Australia initiated proceedings for its ‘continued pursuit of a large-scale program of whaling’, found Japan breached several provisions under the Convention and that their actions weren’t justifiable as scientific research as they claimed, ordering them to cease further activity. Initially complied but then in 2018 withdrew from the convention and commission
• Institute for Cetacean Research found in 2016 Japan killed 333 whales of which 90% were pregnant and in 2021 hunted over 380 whales including 25 sei whales who are considered endangered
  conversely state sovereignty can have positive effects:
• Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer 1987 aimed to phase out the use of substances that were thinning and creating holes in the ozone layer such as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs). SS allowed 197 nations to ratify the protocol of which outcomes demonstrated great success –> according to the UN globally 98% of ODS (ozone-depleting substances) have been phased out
• adopted the ‘common but differentiated responsibility’ principle which involves developed nations carrying a greater burden in their reduction targets and developing nations given greater time to reach their goals –> developing nations phased out use of CFCs by 2010 and developed nations by 1995
• 95% of ozone layer holes tracked since 1979 were closed in 1988
• Without the protocol and law reform, UV radiation in mid-latitude locations would have quadrupled
• SS allowed Australia to sign, ratify and enact principles into the Ozone Protection Act 1989 (Cth) to make it enforceable
• success of this protocol isn’t just relevant to improving the state of the ozone layer, but also global phasing out of 85% of HFCs will reduce HFC emissions equivalent of up to 72 billion tonnes of CO2 by 2050
• ‘one of the most successful and effective environmental treaties ever negotiated and implemented’ - The Conversation, 2012, Rae
• “The declaration today is out of step with the international community, let alone the protection needed to safeguard the future of our oceans and these majestic creatures,” Sam Annesley, executive director at Greenpeace Japan, The Guardian, 2018 describing decision to leave International Whaling Commission

Question 3

Give examples for barrier of economic and political agendas/changes in government leadership/political parties 6

Answer 3

• Donald Trump withdrew US from Paris Agreement in 2016, claiming its involvement would ‘undermine’ the US economy and put them at a ‘permanent disadvantage’
• Researcher Katie Tubb at Centre for Energy, Climate and the Environment found US committing to the environmental policies under Obama administration would have resulted in a loss of $2.5 trillion in gross domestic profit by 2035
• Despite Biden re-entering the agreement in 2021, if not re-elected its unlikely his efforts will be continued –> inconsistency in the implementation of green policies
• Energy Act 2011 (Cth) introduced a carbon tax in Australia in response to its ratification of the Kyoto Protocol 1997 in 2007 (delayed response) –> was repealed by Tony Abbott in 2014 due to societal pressure, households suffering under the additional financial burden (over $500 more annually for the average household)
• Coal exports contribute to approximate $50 billion in exports and provides over 50,000 direct jobs whilst also supporting another 300,000, (Pitt, 2021)
• Gloucester Properties Ltd v NSW Planning Minister (2019) LEC –> judge refused permission for a new open-cut coal mine in the Hunter Valley due to the accelerating effects it would have on climate change, estimated that they would have mined 21 million tonnes of coal which would have resulted in over 85,000 pounds of CO2

Question 4

Give examples for barrier of greater demand for natural resources –> concerns about intergenerational and intragenerational equity in having enough resources for current and future generations 10

Answer 4

• Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal 1989 (Basel Convention), 186 signatories, aim to control exports and imports of hazardous materials
• its estimated they’ll be more plastics in the sea by 2050 than fish, Great Garbage Patch which has 1.8 trillion pieces of plastic
• 2019 Conference of the Parties amended the annexes to the Basel Convention to tighten up the controls relating to plastic waste –> (invites) member states to set targets and achievable goals so that by 2030 all plastic packaging will be recyclable or reusable
• 40 million tons of plastic waste generated in the U.S. in 2021, only 5% to 6% — or about two million tons — was recycled of which the US signed the Basel Convention in 1990 and despite advice from US Senate to ratify, claims to not have sufficient provisions or mechanisms to successfully ratify as in US ratification automatically makes it enforceable domestic law
• Humanity currently uses resources at a rate 50% faster than they can be regenerated by nature –> creating significant pressure on the demand for finite and non-renewable resources such as coal, oil and gas
• Article 4 promotes the reduction of waste to a minimum.
  Article 9 refers to ‘illegal traffic’, which includes the right of a member state to return to the ‘exporter
  or generator’ any materials deemed to have breached the convention
• During 2019, Malaysia did just that – it returned five containers of imported materials back to Spain that had been ‘misrepresented’ as recyclable plastic. The Malaysian Minister for the Environment stated that, ‘Malaysia will not be the dumping ground of the world’
• ‘makes strides’ and ‘transformative’ law - Rwanda, Global Times 2022
• ‘Climate Anxiety Is an Overwhelmingly White Phenomenon’ - Scientific America, 2022 –> environmental concern as a white privilege
• ‘its unfair to expect developing countries to abandon fossil fuels’ - SABC, 2021