Chapter 25

1. Chapter 25 Politics, Environment, and Sustainability

2. Chapter Overview Questions • What is the environmental policy cycle? • How is environmental policy made? • What is the role of environmental law in dealing with environmental problems? • What are the major types and roles of environmental groups and their opponents? • What types of global environmental policies and treaties exist, and how might they be improved?

3. Updates Online The latest references for topics covered in this section can be found at the book companion website. Log in to the book’s e-resources page at www.thomsonedu.com to access InfoTrac articles. • InfoTrac: Home on the (artillery) range. Kevin Krajick. OnEarth, Summer 2006 v28 i2 p6(2). • InfoTrac: Fowl runoff spurs fierce poultry fight. Chicago Tribune, June 13, 2006. • InfoTrac: The catch: what happens when industry insiders write their own regulations? Michael W. Robbins. Mother Jones, March-April 2006 v31 i2 p49(6). • Convention on Biological Diversity • Environmental Literacy Council: U.S. Endangered Species Act

4. Core Case Study: Rescuing a River • In the 1960s, the Nashua River was considered one of the nation’s filthiest rivers. • Marrion Stoddart (left) used politics to help clean-up the river. Figure 25-1

5. ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY • Developing environmental policy involves identifying a problem and its causes, coming up with a solution, implementing the solution, and monitoring and adapting the solution as needed.

6. RecognitionIdentify the problem. FormulationLook for solutions. ImplementationImplement solutions. ControlThings are improving. Nonpoint-source water pollution Global warming Outdoor air pollution Acid deposition Urban sprawl Ozone depletion Indoor air pollution Sewage treatment Nuclear wastes Municipal solid waste Reuse Biodiversity protection Drinking water treatment Mining wastes Protecting endangered species Pollution prevention Groundwater contamination Point-source water pollution Toxic wastes Environmentally harmful subsidies Pest control Resource productivity Recycling Soil erosion Market prices do not include environmentally harmful costs Some infectious diseases Aquifer depletion Environmental justice Need for integrated environmental management Sustainable economic development Fig. 25-2, p. 593

7. Recognition Identify the problem. Nonpoint-source water pollution Indoor air pollution Reuse Mining wastes Groundwater contamination Environmentally harmful subsidies Market prices do not include environmentally harmful costs Need for integrated environmental Management Formulation Look for solutions. Global warming Urban sprawl Nuclear wastes Biodiversityprotection Pollution prevention Toxic wastes Resourceproductivity Aquifer depletion Environmental justice Sustainable economic Development Implementation Implement solutions. Acid deposition Ozone depletion Municipal solid waste Protecting endangered species Pest control Soil erosion Control Things are improving. Outdoor air pollution Sewage treatment Drinking water treatment Point-source water pollution Recycling Some infectious Diseases Stepped Art Fig. 25-2, p. 593

8. DEALING WITH ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEMS IN DEMOCRACIES: SOME DIFFICULTIES • Democracies have difficulty dealing with long-term, interrelated environmental problems. • In passing laws, developing budgets, and formulating regulations, elected and appointed officials must deal with pressures from.

9. Principles for Making Environmental Policy Decisions: Some Guidelines • Existing or proposed environmental policies should be guided by several principles: • The humanity principle. • The reversibility principle. • The precautionary principle. • The polluter pays principle. • The integrative principle. • The public participation principle. • The human rights principle. • The environmental justice principle.

10. What Can You Do? Influencing Environmental Policy • Become environmentally literate on issues • Run for office (especially at local level) • Make your views known at public hearings • Make your views known to elected representatives • Contribute money and time to candidates for office • Vote • Form or join nongovernment organizations (NGOs) seeking change • Support reform of election campaign financing to increase the influence of ordinary citizens on government policy Fig. 25-4, p. 595

11. Principles for Making Environmental Policy Decisions: Some Guidelines • Most improvements in environmental quality result from citizens putting pressure on elected officials and individuals developing innovative solutions to environmental problems. • Each of us can play a leadership role in establishing and changing environmental policy.

12. ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY IN THE UNITED STATES • Formulating, legislating, and executing environmental policy in the U.S. is a complex, difficult, and controversial process. • Lobbying consists individuals or groups use public pressure, personal contacts, and political action to persuade legislators to vote in their favor. • Most environmental bills are evaluate by as many as ten committees in the U.S. House of representatives and Senate.

13. Lobbyists Lobbyists Lawmaking body Public hearing Special-interest groups Regulating enforcement body Public advisory Laws and regulations Legal action Legal action Lawyers Lawyers Environmental organizations Courts Corporations and small business Laws and regulations Membership support Boycotts Individual Fig. 25-6, p. 598 Purchase recyclable, recycled, & environmentally safe products Recycle cans, bottles, paper, & plastic Plant a garden Donate clothes & used goods to charities Use water, energy, & other Resources efficiently Use mass transit, walk, ride a bike, or carpool

14. President Council on Environmental Quality Office of Management and Budget White House Office • Environmental policy • Agency coordination • Environmental impact statements • Budget • Agency coordination and management • Overall policy • Agency coordination Dept of Health & Human Services Environmental Protection Agency Department of the Interior Department of Agriculture Department of Justice Department of Defense • Air & water pollution • Noise • Pesticides • Solid waste • Radiation • Toxic substances • Civil works construction • Dredge & fill permits • Pollution control from defense facilities • Health • Endangered species • Energy • Minerals • National parks • Public lands • Fish and wildlife • Water development • Soil conservation • Forestry • Environmental litigation Department of Housing and Urban Development Nuclear Regulatory Commission Department of Commerce Department of Transportation Department of State Department of Labor • Airplane noise • Mass transit • Oil pollution • Roads • Oceanic and atmospheric monitoring and research • Occupational health • Licensing and regulation of nuclear power • International environment • Housing • Urban parks • Urban planning • Energy policy • Petroleum allocation Tennessee Valley Authority Department of Energy • Electric power generation Fig. 25-5, p. 597

15. How a Bill Becomes a Law • Individual citizens and lobbyists can influence how the bill is written before it is introduced and through subsequent stages. Figure 25-7

16. How a Bill Becomes a Law Senate House of Representatives Referral to Standing Committee by leadership and parliamentarian Introduction of Bill by Member We will assume this is an appropriations bill, so the Constitution specifies that it be introduced in the House. Committee Action • Possible referral to subcommittee • Alternatives similar to those of the House Referral to Standing Committee by leadership and parliamentarian Calendar placement Committee Action • Possible referral to subcommittee • Hearings on major bills common • Committee decisions: Table, Defeat, Accept and report, Amend and report, Rewrite Senate Floor Action Alternatives similar to those of the House include rejection, acceptance, or additional amendments Conference Committee If the Senate approves a bill that is not identical to the one passed in the House, a conference committee is requested. This committee consists of appointed members from both houses who compromise on a final version of the bill. This compromise version is then sent to each house for final approval. Calendar Placement Rules Committee (major bills) Hearings to decide whether bill will go to the floor earlier than calendar date. Back to the Senate Floor Bill is signed by Speaker and Vice-President. House Floor Action • Reading, general debate • Second reading • Amendment(s) report to the House • Third reading • Passage or defeat President • Approve • Veto • Pocket veto • Permit bill to become law without his or her signature Law Fig. 25-7, p. 599

17. Major Environmental Laws in the U.S. • Many of these laws have been amended (weakened or strengthened) since 1969. Figure 25-8

18. Case Study: Managing Public Lands in the U.S. – Politics in Action • Since the 1800s, controversy has swirled around how publicly owned lands in the U.S., which contain valuable resources, should be used and managed. Figure 25-4

19. How Would You Vote? To conduct an instant in-class survey using a classroom response system, access “JoinIn Clicker Content” from the PowerLecture main menu for Living in the Environment. • Should much more of U.S. public lands (or government-owned lands in the country where you live) be opened up to the extraction of timber, mineral, and energy resources? • a. Yes. Current technologies allow the needed resources to be recovered without significant environmental damage. • b. No. For the sake of wildlife, future generations and the environment, some areas should remain indefinitely pristine.

20. Lands managed by the U.S. federal government. • U.S. citizens jointly own these and other public lands. Figure 25-9

21. ENVIRONMENTAL LAW AND LAWS • The body of environmental laws is constantly evolving through legislation and lawsuits. It includes: • Statutory laws: passed by legislative bodies. • Administrative laws: consist of rules and regulations, executive orders, and enforcement decisions. • Common law: A body of unwritten rules derived from past legal decisions.

22. Lawsuits: Loaded Dice • Environmental lawsuits are expensive and difficult to win because: • Plaintiff must establish they have the legal right to bring the suit to a particular court. • Too expensive for most individuals. • Public interest law firms many times cannot recover legal fees. • Plaintiff must establish that they were harmed. • Statutes of limitations.

23. Major Types of Environmental Laws in the U.S. • U.S. environmental laws set pollution standards, screen for toxic substances, evaluate environmental impacts, encourage resource conservation, and protect various ecosystems and species from harm.

24. Major Types of Environmental Laws in the U.S. • The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) requires evaluation of the environmental impact of an activity proposed by a federal agency. • An environmental impact statement (EIS) must be developed for every major federal project likely to have an important effect on environmental quality.

25. ENVIRONMENTAL GROUPS AND THEIR OPPONENTS • Environmental groups monitor environmental activities, work to pass and strengthen environmental laws, and work with corporations to find solutions to environmental problems. • Non-government agencies (NGOs) range from grassroots groups to global organizations. • NGOs help expose corruption and violation of national and international agreements.

26. ENVIRONMENTAL GROUPS AND THEIR OPPONENTS • Some grassroots NGOs use nonviolent and nondestructive tactics of protest and demonstrations for generating publicity to help educate and sway members of the public.

27. How Would You Vote? To conduct an instant in-class survey using a classroom response system, access “JoinIn Clicker Content” from the PowerLecture main menu for Living in the Environment. • Do you support the use of nonviolent and nondestructive civil disobedience tactics by environmental groups and individuals? • a. No. People who commit civil disobedience are criminals and their crimes could easily escalate into violence and vandalism. • b. Yes. Sometimes peaceful civil disobedience is the only way to bring about necessary changes.

28. ENVIRONMENTAL GROUPS AND THEIR OPPONENTS • Many student environmental groups work to bring about environmental improvements in their schools and local communities. • Environmental audits by students reveal that most college campuses are major polluters. • A Yale University study revealed that the school emits more greenhouse gases than 32 developing countries.

29. Case Study: Threats to the U.S. Environmental Legal and Regulatory Structure – Environmental Backlash • Three major groups are strongly opposed to many environmental laws, regulations and proposals: • Some corporate leaders who see environmental laws as threats to their wealth and power. • Citizens who see environmental laws as threats to their private property rights and jobs. • State and local government officials who resent having to implement federal environmental laws with little to no funding.

30. GLOBAL ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY • Many analysts believe that environmental security is as important as military and economic security. • Some developing nations view the concept of environmental security as an agenda for rich countries to continue their control of the world’s natural resources.

31. How Would You Vote? To conduct an instant in-class survey using a classroom response system, access “JoinIn Clicker Content” from the PowerLecture main menu for Living in the Environment. • Is environmental security just as important as economic and military security? • a. No. Terrorism, unemployment, hunger, and inflation are more urgent threats to most nations. • b. Yes. Environmental quality strongly influences the economies and security of most nations.

32. Trade-Offs Global Efforts on Environmental Problems Good News Bad News Environmental protection agencies in 115 nations Most international environmental treaties lack criteria for monitoring and evaluating their effectiveness Over 500 international environmental treaties and agreements 1992 Rio Earth Summit led to nonbinding agreements without enough funding to implement them UN Environment Programme (UNEP) created in 1972 to negotiate and monitor international environmental treaties By 2003 there was little improvement in the major environmental problems discussed at the 1992 Rio summit 1992 Rio Earth Summit adopted key principles for dealing with global environmental problems 2002 Johannesburg Earth Summit failed to provide adequate goals, deadlines, and funding for dealing with global environmental problems such as climate change, biodiversity loss, and poverty 2002 Johannesburg Earth Summit attempted to implement policies and goals of 1992 Rio summit and find ways to reduce poverty Fig. 25-10, p. 611

33. GLOBAL ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY • International environmental organizations: • Expand understanding of environmental issues. • Gather and evaluate environmental data. • Help develop and monitor environmental treaties. • Provide funds and loans for sustainable economic development. • Help nations develop environmental laws and institutions.

34. Solutions International Environmental Treaties Problems Solutions Take a long time to develop and are weakened by requiring full consensus Do not require full consensus among regulating parties Establish procedures for monitoring and enforcement Poorly monitored and enforced Lack of funding for monitoring and enforcement Increase funding for monitoring and enforcement Treaties are not integrated with one another Harmonize or integrate existing agreements Fig. 25-11, p. 611

35. GLOBAL ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY • Earth summits and international environmental treaties play important roles in dealing with global environmental problems, but most are not effectively monitored or enforced. • Making the shift to a more equitable and environmentally secure and sustainable global society is an economic, political, and ethical decision.