The Institute for Domestic and International Affairs
Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean Relationship Between Economic and the Environment Rutgers Model United Nations 16-19 November 2006
Director: Sheila Ramachandra
Š 2006 Institute for Domestic & International Affairs, Inc. (IDIA) This document is solely for use in preparation for Rutgers Model United Nations 2006. Use for other purposes is not permitted without the express written consent of IDIA. For more information, please write us at idiainfo@idia.net
Introduction _________________________________________________________________ 1 Background _________________________________________________________________ 2 Recent History ___________________________________________________________________ 3 Environmental Degradation ________________________________________________________ 5 Pollution ________________________________________________________________________ 8
Current Status ______________________________________________________________ 11 Unilateral Approaches to Environmental Regulation __________________________________ 13 Ethanol Production and Use in Brazil _______________________________________________ 15 The Mesoamerican Biological Corridor______________________________________________ 17 Guarani Aquifer System Project ___________________________________________________ 19 Areas of Concern ________________________________________________________________ 21
Key Positions _______________________________________________________________ 23 Central American and Caribbean States _____________________________________________ 23 South American States____________________________________________________________ 25 Developed States_________________________________________________________________ 26 Business Interests ________________________________________________________________ 27 Non-Governmental Organizations __________________________________________________ 27 Media__________________________________________________________________________ 28
Summary___________________________________________________________________ 29 Discussion Questions _________________________________________________________ 30 Works Cited ________________________________________________________________ 31 Works Referenced ___________________________________________________________ 34
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Introduction The states of Latin America and the Caribbean rely on their vast natural resources to fuel economic development, but are depleting these important commodities at an unsustainable rate. Natural resources have long been the basis for economic development in the region, but generations of inhabitants have failed to grasp the fact that the value of natural ecosystems goes far beyond their direct economic use.
This shortsighted
perspective has led to centuries of detrimental use by virtually everyone, from European colonists seeking gold in the 16th Century to modern cattle-ranchers. Current rates of environmental degradation are unsustainable in the long-run, and air and water pollution levels are mounting. In the 21st Century, states face the dangers of future environmental and economic crises if they do not make substantial progress in curbing environmental degradation and encouraging sustainable development. A dominant opinion among Latin American policymakers is that a tradeoff exists between economic growth and environmental sustainability, as Latin American and Caribbean states seem to prioritize economic growth and productivity. As developing states, they face the challenges of adjusting to market-based reforms, repaying enormous debt to international agencies and developed states, maintaining economic stability in an increasingly global environment, and coping with severe wealth inequality and widespread poverty. Many states also rely on export-based industries and sectors to fuel economic growth, and these sectors engage in more environmentally degrading practices. Although states have formally recognized the need for increased efforts in environmental conservation, immediate economic and social pressures often take precedence over longterm environmental concerns. In addition, modern environmental institutions face a number of challenges, as they are often under-funded and lack sustained support from central governments. Consequently, many of the environmental protection laws and regulations enacted in recent years go unenforced. Environmental agencies and ministries often lack clear
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mandates or have overlapping responsibilities, which can lead to conflicts and power struggles with other governmental agencies. Due to the great diversity in ecosystems, geo-political climates, and economic and social environments among Latin American and Caribbean states, there is no universal solution to the environmental dilemma. Ultimately, effective environmental management in the future depends on the cooperation between government at the local, state, national, regional and international levels as well as stakeholders that have a vested interest in environmental resources including nongovernmental organizations, indigenous peoples, and industrial and agricultural sectors.
Background The era of colonization in Latin America and the Caribbean, beginning with the arrival of Christopher Columbus on the island of Hispaniola in 1492, has had an enduring impact on the economic development and use of natural resources of the region. One can trace many of the environmental problems plaguing Latin America and the Caribbean back to the practices first established by European settlers in the 15th Century. Spanish and Portuguese explorers in the 16th and 17th Centuries sought one primary commodity, gold.
European explorers rapidly explored and established
settlements throughout Latin America and the Caribbean in their quest to find and extract large quantities of gold to bring back to Europe. Europeans established hundreds of gold and silver mines from New Spain to the Andes Mountains in less than a century. A particularly damaging aspect of the mining process was the use of mercury to separate rocks from precious metal. Mercury not only caused severe neurological damage to slaves but also had a long-lasting degrading effect on wildlife and the natural ecosystem of the area.1
1
J. Timmons Roberts and Nikki Demetria Thanos, Trouble in Paradise: Globalization and Environmental Crises in Latin America, (New York: Taylor & Francis Books, Inc., 2003), 8.
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In addition to extracting precious metals to export back to Europe, colonists introduced their own crops including sugarcane, coffee, tobacco and cotton. Huge tracts of the best land in these new American colonies were burned and cleared to establish vast plantations to grow and export these profitable imported crops. The production of sugar also required substantial firewood to refine sugarcane, leading to severe deforestation. In order to meet substantial demand in Europe, intense production quickly eroded the soil and led to rapid colonization of new tracts of land.2 The widespread introduction of foreign plants and also animals dramatically altered the natural landscape of Latin America and the Caribbean. From the onset of colonization, imperial powers typically operated their possessions through a mercantilist relationship, which created a dependence on foreign investment. Europeans exploited the region’s vast natural resources primarily to drive European economic development.
Environmental issues including
deforestation and soil degradation have their roots in the agricultural and mining practices of early
Mercantilism: A system for using the economy to enrich the state, mercantilism encouraged exports and discouraged imports to amass a surplus of gold. It flourished from the age of European discovery through the early nineteenth century and closely involved governments with their economies. Source: www.politicalscience.utoledo.edu/ faculty/lindeen/glos3260.htm
settlers.
Recent History In recent decades, significant swings in economic stability and growth have had notable implications for the natural resources and environment of Latin America and the Caribbean. As many states in the region financed Inflation: A rise in the general price level that results in a decline in the purchasing power of money. Source: www.senate.michigan.gov/sfa/ StateBudget/glossary.html
2
Ibid, 9
economic growth through foreign investment, debt crises in the 1980s sent most economies into prolonged recessions lasting several years. When the price of oil fell early in the decade, states from
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Argentina to Mexico defaulted on foreign loans and inflation became a core problem. In order to rescue the region’s economies from financial crises, multilateral lending agencies including the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund intervened with aid packages to refinance what was sometimes crippling debt.3 To qualify for these aid deals, states had to comply with strict regulations – IMF and World Bank aid agreements required Latin American and Caribbean states not only to severely restrict government spending and but also increase trade balances. These stipulations harmed basic social services and state-supported industries, and also impaired the abilities of the states to enforce environmental regulations. In addition, in order to increase trade balances and pay back staggering loans with mounting interest, states in the region struggled to quickly and substantially raise exports of basic commodities and raw materials.4 These exportdriven economies inevitably induced unsustainable use of natural resources and placed greater strains on the environment. States commonly used IMF loans to fund large-scale projects such as dams, highways, ranching and mines. These enormous projects often spiraled out of control as fiscally weak states encountered tremendous financial, environmental, social and regulatory challenges.5 Although debt-relief programs of the multilateral lending agencies had long-term ramifications, at the time Latin American and Caribbean states had no other option to avert further financial crises. Originally hailed as a beacon of responsible reform the IMF’s philosophy of deregulation, liberalization and privatization has subsequently incurred criticisms from Wall Street financiers to the IMF and the World Bank’s own economists as too premature and difficult to implement in Latin American and the Caribbean’s emerging markets. The early 1990s marked a turning point from both an economic and environmental standpoint in the region. States began recovering from the in some cases severely
3
Ibid, 19 Elizabeth Dore, “Capitalism and ecological crisis: legacy of the 1980s” in Green Guerrillas: Environmental Conflicts and Initiatives in Latin America and the Caribbean, ed. Helen Collinson (Montreal: Black Rose Books, 1997), 10. 5 Roberts and Thanos, 20 4
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recessionary period of the previous decade as inflationary and destabilizing pressures decreased; however, overall economic growth rates still lagged behind pre-recessionary levels. The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), informally known as the Earth Summit, was held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 1992. By focusing on sustainable development, it represented “the most universal and coordinated political step taken in the early 1990s towards establishing an international system of cooperation for mainstreaming the environmental dimension into development.�6 Latin American and Caribbean states eagerly ratified the legally-binding documents of the 1992 Earth Summit, but have lagged in effectively implementing these environmental policies. In the 1990s, increased population growth and urbanization became additional challenges to implementing sustainable environmental and economic policies.
Environmental Degradation States in this region are widely known and prized for their vast natural resources and unique ecosystems, and are considered to have the greatest diversity of species in the Closed Forest: An area completely dominated by the tree stratum due to the closure of the crowns. See canopy closure. Source: www.geobotany.uaf.edu/ toolikgeobot/definitions.html
world, as well as thirty-two per cent of the global extension of closed forests.7 Centuries of destructive land use since the beginning of European colonization have taken their toll, resulting in the cumulative loss of millions of hectares of plant cover. Although the region has the
highest percentage of closed forest cover, it is also losing more hectares of forest than any other region of the world each year.8 The continuation of unsustainable agricultural, industrial and governmental practices has severe implications for the survival of the
6
The Sustainability of development in Latin America and the Caribbean: challenges and opportunities (Santiago: Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) and the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP), 2002), 181. 7 Ibid, 82 8 Kevin Hillstrom and Laurie Collier Hillstrom, Latin America and the Caribbean: A Continental Overview of Environmental Issues (Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO, Inc., 2004), 95.
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unique and valuable natural ecosystems of Latin America and the Caribbean in future years. The prevailing approach for forest use has been to “mine� forests for all raw materials of commercial value and to then move on to new tracts of forest once all potential sources of profit have been exhausted. European colonists first practiced this environmentally degrading approach, and many states actively promoted this practice to promote economic growth in the latter half of the 20th Century.9 After utilizing the existing forest resources, landholders then convert the land to agricultural use, constituting the greatest factor leading to overall deforestation in Latin America and the Caribbean. The rich plant cover contains much of the ecological value of forests, thus overexploitation of land quickly erodes the soil. Historically, peasants farmed small plots of land for subsistence and traded only in local markets.
With the advent of
globalization, agriculture became commercialized as a commodity, and small farmers could not compete with wealthy ranchers and plantation owners who produced cash crops for export. These wealthy landowners paid little heed to local environmental conditions and overtaxed land.10 The agricultural sector focuses on cash crops including cocoa, coffee, sugar, tobacco, beef and cotton, and few farmers are producing these crops in an environmentally sustainable manner.
As land use devoted to crop cultivation and
livestock pasture grew by more than seven per cent in the 1990s, agricultural activity has placed an increasing stress on the region’s forest ecosystems.11 Government policies in recent decades also promoted deforestation in Latin America and the Caribbean. In the 1970s and 1980s many states promoted governmental projects designed to spur economic growth that often did little more than seriously harm the environment. In Mexico and Brazil, governments actively sought the deforestation of enormous areas of vegetation for agricultural use and stock-raising. Tax breaks and
9
Ibid, 94 Roberts and Thanos, 76 11 Hillstrom, 114 10
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cheap credit gave wealthy landowners the ability to easily purchase land to expand already vast ranches and plantations, and did little to promote either local development or safe stewardship of the land. Past government policies have had enduring effects as medium and large-scale landholders accounted for more than seventy per cent of deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon in the 1990s. Other government activities such as road-building have directly increased deforestation rates. Apart from the initial clearing necessary to build a road, squatters and land speculators that move into areas near government-constructed roads further induce illegal deforestation.12
Controlling the
illegal cutting of wood presents a significant problem in the region, as illegal logging accounts for more than two-thirds of overall logging in the region.13 In addition, states have promoted commercial forest plantations for logging purposes, but these plantations have overtaken large tracts of land with rich and varied native forests. Although the vast forests of Latin America and the Caribbean boast the highest biodiversity and species richness in the world, the inadequate assessment of the value of these lands by both policymakers and private interests has contributed to the high rates of deforestation in the area. The practice of assessing forests purely by their commercial value does not account for the numerous other vital functions of forest ecosystems including carbon sequestration, non-timber forest production, climate moderation, and the maintenance of species that have chemical
and
medicinal
uses.14
Deforestation has posed major detriments to
Carbon Sequestration: The ability of forests or other natural systems to "sink" or store carbon, thereby preventing it from collecting in the atmosphere as CO2. Forests absorb carbon when they break down CO2 during photosynthesis. Source: www.pacificforest.org/about/glossary.html
biodiversity and the fragile ecological balance of natural ecosystems in Latin America and the Caribbean. Economic as well as population growth in the region have also placed high pressure on forests. Overall, the trends in agricultural practices and government
12
Ibid, 101 The Sustainability of development in Latin America and the Caribbean: challenges and opportunities, 85 14 Hillstrom, 86 13
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policies of the 20th Century generally lacked a sustainable approach to environmental management, which will prove to be an inhibiting factor to economic growth.
Pollution In terms of freshwater resources, the Latin American and Caribbean region boasts the highest availability of water supplies in the world. Although the region has only 8.5 per cent of the world’s population, it has one-third of the world’s total renewable water supply.15 Some of the world’s most extensive watersheds are in the region, including the vast Amazon River Basin that covers more than six million square kilometers.16 Unfortunately, the perception of seemingly unending water supply has promoted wasteful Renewable Water Supply: Water continuously renewed within reasonable time spans by the hydrologic cycle, such as that in streams, reservoirs or other sources that refill from precipitation or runoff. The renewability of a water source depends both on its natural rate of recharge and the rate at which the water is withdrawn for human ends. To the extent water is withdrawn faster than its source is recharged, it cannot be considered renewable. Source: www.cnie.org/pop/pai/glossary.html
and careless use of water resources and has masked growing problems of diminishing water availability in certain areas.
During the 20th
Century, the rate of water extraction and consumption increased much faster than the world rate and outstripped the level of growth attributable
to
population
growth.
This
unprecedented demand for water has led to
increased competition for useable water resources. Extraction has exceeded the restoration of groundwater to aquifers rendering the consumption level unsustainable.17 Economic and population growth has also contributed to the degradation of existing resources as competition for water supplies has increased between various sectors of the economy and domestic households.
Agriculture has historically
represented the single greatest consumer of water, although consumption levels have somewhat decreased from ninety-five per cent of total water consumption in the mid-20th Century. As the majority of land in Latin America and the Caribbean is devoted to 15
The Sustainability of development in Latin America and the Caribbean: challenges and opportunities, 111 Hilstrom, 131 17 The Sustainability of development in Latin America and the Caribbean: challenges and opportunities, 115 16
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agriculture, this dominant economic activity largely determines the environmental conditions of water resources. Reliance on chemicals in the agricultural sector of the region including fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides has severely degraded freshwater systems. In rural areas, agricultural run-off has become the primary culprit of ground and water pollution.
Trends indicate that the use of agrochemicals has risen
disproportionately with respect to overall growth in the sector in recent decades.18 Despite the abundance of water resources in Latin America and the Caribbean, states have generally lacked appropriate infrastructure for sewage treatment. As a result, many states have only treated a small fraction of liquid wastes arising from human settlements and industrial activities, and millions of tons of toxic liquid pollutants have been dumped into regional water systems. This practice has not only damaged the quality of surface water and harmed fragile water ecosystems, but has also permanently reduced the availability of useable aquifers. This trend presents a troubling outlook for the region, as cleaning severely polluted water sources is quite costly.19 In addition to these unfortunate practices, mining has contributed to pollution in Latin America and the Caribbean for centuries. Since many states have relied on this industry to provide valuable foreign investment and spur economic development, they have consequently implemented few regulations regarding the manner in which ore is extracted. Unsustainable mining practices have had dramatic detrimental effects on water systems and other natural resources, as large mining operations have dumped millions of metric tons of toxic waste materials directly into local river systems throughout Latin American states.20 Small-scale mining has also historically had notable negative effects on natural ecosystems in the region, especially in Brazil, where thousands of independent poor miners, known as garmpeiros, search for gold in creek beds and deep rivers using mercury to extract gold. Garmpeiros have illegally invaded indigenous and ecological
18
Hillstrom, 145 The Sustainability of development in Latin America and the Caribbean: challenges and opportunities, 117 20 Hillstrom, 146 19
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reserves in their search for gold, and years of mercury contamination has severely impacted the Amazon River basin.21 Air quality represents another byproduct of inappropriate environmental exploitation in the region, especially in urban areas. The trend of urbanization in the 20th Century has led to seventy-four per cent of the region’s population living in urban areas, making the region the most highly urbanized in the world.
This combination of
economic and population growth has increased overall consumption patterns.
The
demand for manufactured goods and automobiles has risen substantially in the past decade, leading to mounting emissions of chemicals that degrade air quality during production, not to mention the emission of pollutants during normal operation.22 The primary cause of declining air quality in the region is the dramatic increase in motor vehicle use in the past there decades.
A particular concern is that many of these
automobiles still operate on leaded fuel, leading to unsafe concentrations of lead in the atmosphere. In addition, the majority of vehicles on the roads every year in urban centers are more than ten years old and lack adequate pollution mitigation technology.23 Emissions output from the industrial sector has also grown over the past decade, especially from enterprises ranging from textile plants to oil refineries. Due to the lack of effective regulatory mechanisms at all levels of government, many high-polluting enterprises have continually caused damage to local environments and nearby human settlements.
That said, large multi-national firms bring greater environmentally-
sustainable operating practices to the developing states of the region. Multi-national corporations operate under the close supervision of an international consumer market and the high regulatory environment of states that are members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).24
21
Roberts and Thanos, 153 Hilstrom, 201 23 Ibid, 204 24 David Wheeler, Racing to the Bottom? Foreign Investment and Air Pollution in Developing Countries (The World Bank, 2001), 9. 22
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Air pollution also has a significant impact on public health as it permanently affects the lives of more than eighty million people throughout the region. States face the added challenge of coping with the health problems associated with air pollution without the financial means to provide adequate social services. While large urban centers such as Mexico City, Rio de Janeiro, Santiago and Buenos Aires have made substantial progress in controlling air pollution in the past decade through antipollution initiatives and updated emissions regulations, states have not extended these programs to mediumsized cities. Unless states make a concerted effort to improve air quality, the mounting number of vehicles in urban centers will continue to threaten past progress.25
Current Status Since the Earth Summit in 1992, states in Latin America and the Caribbean have had a mixed record of performance on economic and environmental agendas. While states have undergone significant economic reform to cope with the effects of past economic crises, the rates of growth and development has not been sufficient to recover from earlier recessions, especially with the added stress of population growth. Although productivity has increased in recent years, levels of relative poverty have generally remained unchanged. Overall, economic and social conditions to promote sustainable development in environmental terms are no better than the conditions that prevailed during the 1990s. As urban settlements grow by more than five per cent annually, the rapid urbanization of the population has led to the proliferation of environmentally degrading makeshift human settlements.26
Urban populations are increasingly
contributing to air and water pollution in the region. Additionally, increased agricultural production is leading to worsening environmental conditions in the countryside despite the fact that rural populations have stabilized.
25 26
The Sustainability of development in Latin America and the Caribbean: challenges and opportunities, 128 Ibid, 122
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States established modern environmental institutions after the 1992 Rio Summit; however these agencies are often characterized by shortcomings that prevent effective environmental management. States often created these new environmental bodies by consolidating existing governmental agencies under a broader mandate. In essence, they created new ineffectual bodies to replace old ineffectual ones.
Consequently, new
environmental agencies have an excessive number of responsibilities, but lack the capacities to carry them out.27 Mandates of different governmental agencies, for example the ministry of environment and ministry of forestry, can conflict and lead to unnecessary inter-agency power struggles that waste time and resources. A lack of transparency and accountability in governmental agencies also impede effective policy implementation.28 Most significantly, environmental institutions chronically suffer from a lack of sufficient funding. States may have adequate environmental regulations, but generally lack the resources and financial capabilities to effectively enforce them. Despite obvious shortcomings, the Earth Summit led to advances in terms of environmental regulatory frameworks in Latin American and the Caribbean. Many states have enacted legislation concerning responsibility for damaging the environment in civil, administrative and criminal regards. Environmental laws are increasingly incorporating impact assessment studies and evaluations before significant projects can be undertaken, yet throughout the region, states have only recently begun to integrate the approach of environmental conservation and sustainable resource use with mainstream policies.29 The following examples, including Costa Rica’s Payments for Environmental Services Program, Brazil’s ethanol production programs, the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor and the Guarani Aquifer System represent unilateral and multilateral environmental initiatives taken by states in the region since the 1992 Earth Summit.
27
Ibid, 162 William Ascher, Understanding why Governments in Developing Countries Waste Natural Resources, 42, no. 2 (2000). Academic Search Premier, via EBSCOHost, http://search.epnet.com 29 The Sustainability of development in Latin America and the Caribbean: challenges and opportunities, 163-164 28
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Although many these initiatives were established in the 1990s, they all continue to grow and flourish in the 21st Century.
Unilateral Approaches to Environmental Regulation In recent decades, Costa Rica has earned a reputation as an environmental safe haven in Latin America and the Caribbean for acting as a pioneer in legislating and implementing innovative environmental programs. Costa Rica
Costa Rica has high levels of biodiversity although it is the second smallest state in Central America. The state currently has an extensive and ambitious conservation program that protects more than ten per cent of its land mass.30 In 1996, Costa Rica adopted a new regulatory framework for forestry use called “Payments for Environmental Services” (PSA).31 This law relies on “polluter pays” and “beneficiary pays” principles and represents a shift towards market-based
financing
mechanisms
for
sustainability. Government programs reward participating landowners through payments for environmental services including carbon sequestration, protection of watersheds, biodiversity conservation, and the provision of scenic beauty. Financing sources include a five per cent tax on fossil fuels, payments from private industrial buyers, as well as international sources. The National Fund for Forest Financing (FONAFIFO) administers funding for PSA.32
30
Rhett Butler, “Costa Rica: Environmental Profile,” Rhett Butler, http://rainforests.mongabay.com/20costarica.htm (accessed April 24, 2006) 31 Simon Zbinden and David R. Lee, “Paying for Environmental Services: An Analysis of Participation in Costa Rica’s PSA Program,” World Development 33, no. 2 (2005): 256 32 Anthony Snider, et al., “Policy Innovations for Private Forest Management and Conservation in Costa Rica”, Journal of Forestry 101, no 5 (2003): 21
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Current program instruments include reforestation and forest conservation. A landowner participating in the reforestation program allocates a portion of his land for the planting of trees, and he receives payment for maintaining a survival rate greater than eighty-five per cent. Under the forest conservation program, the landowner enters
into
a
contract
with
the
government, during which time the landowner transfers his forest use rights
Polluter Pays: The principle which states that those who cause industrial pollution should offset its effects by compensating for the damage incurred, or by taking precautionary measures to avoid creating pollution. Source: www.evomarkets.com/ghg_glossary.html
logging or other activities during that
Beneficiary Pays: Cost sharing principle where those who benefit from an action pay for part of the action in direct proportion to the benefit they receive
time period.
Source: www.malleecma.vic.gov.au/glossarymcma.asp
to the government and cannot engage in To implement these
regulations, the PSA program assigns forest engineers an intermediary role between landowners and the government, charged with establishing management plans for participating areas, performing control and enforcement tasks, and disseminating program information.33 Since its implementation in 1997, Costa Rica’s PSA program has experienced both successes and veritable failures. By the end of 2001, landowners had submitted more than 284,000 hectares of land to the PSA program, amounting to almost six per cent of total national territory. More than 40,000 forest owners have benefited from the program, and there has been a persistent excess in demand since program implementation.34 The gross deforestation rate had significantly decreased by the beginning of the 21st Century, and reforestation efforts resulted in a net gain of forest cover.35
Despite these
encouraging statistics, the PSA program has yet to adequately fulfill its original goals of generating income and employment in rural areas as well as providing support and outreach for small and medium landowners. PSA program instruments tend to favor
33
Zbinden and Lee, 257 Ibid 35 Snider, 19 34
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better-educated, wealthier landowners who possess larger tracts of land due to administrative responsibilities, title requirements and favorable conditions for biodiversity. The ultimate long-term success of an incentive-based program such as the PSA will depend on its ability to reach and provide a viable economic alternative to poor subsistence farmers.36
Ethanol Production and Use in Brazil Ethanol: The most widely used renewable biofuel today. Ethanol is made by converting starch crops into sugars, the sugars are fermented into ethanol which is then distilled into its final form. Its main uses are to enhance vehicle performance and as a fuel oxygenate to improve the emissions profile of gasoline. Source: genencordev.zoomedia.com/wt/gcor/glossary
ethanol production.
As the world’s largest producer of ethanol, Brazil is a global leader in promoting the use of renewable energy sources to reduce dependency on fossil fuels. Brazil was one of the first states to establish a national program to support
It first implemented the PRO-ALCOHOL program in 1975 to
promote the production of sugarcane, which can be converted into ethanol through fermentation. Despite high prices of sugarcane
Brazil
and slumps in consumer confidence in the 1990s, ethanol has surged in popularity among Brazilian motorists with the introduction of the flex-fuel motor in 2003.
First introduced by
Volkswagen, this technology allows consumers to use either alcohol, gasoline, or a mixture of both to fuel their vehicles. In less than three years since its introduction, more than seventy per cent of automobiles sold in Brazil have incorporated the flex-fuel motor system.37 36
Zbinden and Lee, 270 Rohter, Larry, “With Big Boost From Sugar Cane, Brazil is Satisfying its Fuel Needs,� New York Times, April 10, 2006, late edition, Lexis-Nexis, via Rutgers Libraries, http://www.libraries.rutgers.edu
37
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The ethanol industry presents lucrative economic prospects as well as a host of environmental implications for Brazil in the future. The state expects to become energy self-sufficient during 2006 by increasing sugarcane production. High energy yields from sugarcane and production methods have given Brazil’s ethanol the lowest production costs compared with similar programs. Brazilian ethanol producers expect to remain competitive with crude oil as long as oil prices do not drop below USD $30 per barrel, a prospect that seems very unlikely as crude oil prices hover well above that level.38 Consequently, Brazilian domestic demand for ethanol is soaring and international demand is also on the rise, and analysts consider Brazil the only state capable of meeting these energy demands in the near future.39 Ethanol has the potential to become another major export-based commodity for the Brazilian economy, and conservationists worry about the environmental implications of further promoting the intense production of sugarcane. Ethanol production has generated more than one million direct and indirect jobs and saved Brazil more than USD $20 billion in oil imports. Also, ethanol use has led to a notable decrease in greenhouse gas emissions and improvements in air quality. Expanding areas of sugarcane cultivation can lead to further land degradation; however Brazilian officials argue that the environmental threat is not severe. Sugarcane farmers are able to reuse land that has already been degraded and abandoned by the cattle farming industry.40 Environmentalists argue that the surge in sugarcane production, in response to mounting domestic and international demand, may push the cattle industry further into forested areas of the Amazon and promote illegal forestry use as cultivated areas quickly expand. Ultimately, while ethanol will no doubt produce great economic benefits for Brazil, its success as an environmentally-friendly alternative to fossil fuels will depend on the government’s ability to effectively enforce environmental legislation and promote sustainable production methods. 38
Ibid Mario Osava, “High Hopes Over Rising Demand for Fuel Alcohol,” Inter Press Service News Agency, December 15, 2004, http://www.ipsnews.net/interna.asp?idnews=26693 40 Ibid 39
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The Mesoamerican Biological Corridor The
Mesoamerican
Mesoamerican Biological Corridor
Biological Corridor (MBC) is
a
regional
launched
in
initiative 1997
that
includes areas in the states of Central America and the five
southern
states
of
Mexico. This region covers 768,990 square kilometers and contains diverse ecosystems from coral reefs to grasslands.
Although
Mesoamerica contains only one half of one per cent of the world’s land, it has seven per cent of the world’s biological diversity. Proper environmental management of the region is crucial for future years. The program focuses on sustainable social and economic development to promote ecological conservation and recognizes that “wildlife preservation efforts cannot be addressed in isolation from socioeconomic realties that put pressure on fragile natural resources.”41
In order to be truly effective in both
conservation and sustainable development, this ambitious effort requires multi-tiered cooperation between numerous stakeholders. These stakeholders include public agencies at local, regional and national levels, the private sector, civil society organizations, as well as rural populations and indigenous peoples.42 The basic framework of the MBC centers on the establishment of different of zones to promote its various policy goals. Core Zones are areas strictly reserved to
41
Hillstrom, 74 Kenton Miller, Elsa Chang and Nels Johnson, Defining Common Ground for the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor (Washington, DC: World Resources Institute, 2001), vii.
42
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protect wildlife and natural ecosystems. Currently, about eleven per cent of the region is formally designated as protected areas. These areas are then surrounded by Buffer Zones, which serve as transitional zones between reserves and land used for commercial purposes and economic development.43
Buffer zones aim to absorb the destructive
effects of economic activities in proximity to core zones. Corridor Zones link the various Core Zones and focus on environmentally sound land management practices to ensure a “high level of biological connectivity.” The Multiple-use Zones are dedicated to human uses, including human settlements, agriculture and managed forestry, but policies promote the sustainable management of land and natural resources.44 As environmental issues span several national borders, the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor initiative has the potential to serve as a vehicle for the development of multilateral environmental policy, but it faces several challenges. Future success is contingent on continued funding from various international organizations and foreign governments along with sustained cooperation among its various stakeholders. The failure of any of the primary stakeholders to cooperate on some level with each other, including conservationists, governments or rural populations, could jeopardize the future of the initiative. This endeavor has already shown success in acting as a catalyst in the region for improving states’ overall environmental performance, as in the case of Guatemala’s first legal mechanisms to support conservation and responsible natural resource use.45 Although the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor is still in the initial to medium-term stages of planning and implementation, it represents an important regional approach to environmental management in Latin America and the Caribbean that attempts to reconcile the interests of biological conservation with sustainable social and economic development.
43
Hillstrom, 75 Miller, Chang and Johnson, viii 45 Hillstrom, 76 44
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Guarani Aquifer System Project Concerns regarding water availability and proper management of water resources have become increasingly urgent in the 21st Century with the combined pressures of population growth and increased economic development on available water resources. States in Latin America and the Caribbean have begun to recognize the need to transition from a sectoral to a regional approach to freshwater management as major water systems and aquifers generally span national boundaries.46 A number of models have failed to show progress due to a lack of sufficient funding and institutional conflicts, however the Environmental Protection and Sustainable Development of the Guarani Aquifer System Project represents a promising regional initiative in terms of sustainable water management. The World Bank is the implementing agency and the regional executive agency is the Organization of American States – Office for Sustainable Development and Environment. The General Secretariat of the Project is responsible for carrying out project components between 2003 and 2007.47 The Guarani Aquifer is a critical source of freshwater for the Latin American states of Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay. Although it encompasses more than 460,000 square miles and is one of the largest aquifers in the world, these states are depleting the Guarani Aquifer at an unsustainable rate. This project has given much needed recognition to the issue of groundwater management. Groundwater is a critical resource because it rarely needs treatment prior to consumption due to natural biological filtering processes. In contrast, surface water is very susceptible to contamination from agricultural run-off, industrial and domestic effluents and requires expensive water treatment.48
The long-term objective of this project is the sustainable, integrated
management and use of the Guarani Aquifer System for current and future generations.
46
Ibid, 138 The General Secretariat, “Guarani Aquifer System // Project,” Guarani Aquifer System Project, http://www.sgguarani.org/index/site/proyecto/pto_introduccion.php (accessed June 11, 2006) 48 Latin America and Caribbean Region - Guarani Aquifer Project - International Waters MERCOSUL (GEF) Vol. 1 (English) (World Bank, 2001), 2. 47
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In order to develop an effective joint management framework, states have implemented Guarani Aquifer
and coordinated data gathering networks to
continually
assess
groundwater
availability and quality from the aquifer. States have recognized the importance of greater participation by nongovernmental organizations and business stakeholders in effective
decision-making
and
management regarding the water resource. The Guarani System Citizens’ Fund provides funding to nongovernmental institutions creating
and a
academic
institutions
collaborative
framework
sustainable even after project completion.49 The four South American states using the Guarani Aquifer System have recognized the importance of regional cooperation on trans-boundary water issues. The project represents a first step in terms of regional groundwater management, and serves as a catalyst in encouraging greater dialogue on other water issues between the participating states and reforming individual states’ water management models. Ultimately, this project is environmentally focused in nature, but pays heed to the economic water needs of the participating states. Recognizing that the uses of the Guarani Aquifer System in the future will inevitably have some detrimental environmental effects, this project aims engage in in-depth studies of these effects and promoting policy coordination to minimize their adverse qualities.
49
Ibid, 4
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Areas of Concern While Latin American and Caribbean states have embarked upon promising environmental initiatives in recent years, it is premature to determine whether many of these ventures will truly be successful and sustainable in the long term. Economic and population growth represent the two greatest threats to natural resources in the region. These trends only exacerbate environmental problems that policymakers have yet to sufficiently address. Specific areas of concern for the future range from unsustainable logging in Amazonian forests to poor water management in cities.
In order to
successfully address these concerns, states in the region must effectively stretch limited funding and juggle economic, social, political and environmental goals that often conflict with each other. In the case of water management, privatization of water resources has become a growing trend among Latin American and Caribbean states. Although the region boasts some of the most plentiful freshwater resources in the world, pollution, geography and social inequity significantly impede access to water supplies. Water supply concerns are particularly acute in the region’s fast growing urban areas where burgeoning populations drain existing aquifers at unsustainable rates.
In addition, both local and federal
governments have largely failed to address other factors that aggravate water loss, such as the widely unregulated industrial contamination of available water supplies and infrastructure leakage that drain away more than fifty per cent of the water supply in urban areas.50 Instead, many states in the region have turned towards water privatization, a liberal market-oriented framework favored by the World Bank. Since states began supporting water privatization in the early 1990’s, it has generally been met with strong public opposition. The effects of water privatization in Latin America and the Caribbean have been similarly documented worldwide in other developing states: reduced water quality, rate hikes, cut-offs for customers that cannot 50
Maude Barlow and Tony Clarke, “The Struggle for Latin America’s Water,” NACLA Report on the Americas, July/August 2004, Academic Search Premier, via Rutgers Libraries, http://www.libraries.rutgers.edu
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pay, huge corporate profits, and general corruption and lack of transparency.51 In 2000, the giant engineering firm Bechtel set up a subsidiary water company in Bolivia. Consumers suddenly faced over two hundred per cent rate increases. Subsequently, widespread public protests forced the state to reverse Bechtel’s privatization efforts although the firm has since sued the state for twenty-five million dollars in lost profits.52 In 2001, the Mexican government introduced the Program for the Modernization of Water Management Companies (PROMAGUA) with generous loans from international financial institutions such as the World Bank to promote the privatization of water resources in cities with more than one hundred thousand people. The program attracts private investments by providing generous subsidies and since inception has spread to twenty-eight of Mexico’s thirty states and covers seventy per cent of the entire urban population.
With PROMAGUA’s growth, Mexican residents have simultaneously
experienced escalating fees from private water companies and deteriorating water quality as these firms neglect investment in pipe infrastructure. Although public resistance is growing, water privatization continues to spread across Latin America and the Caribbean as private water corporations enjoy the support of states and multilateral lending agencies. States in the region have not yet found an effective way to balance the need to manage shrinking water resources with the goal of economic liberalization and market reform. Another area where environmental and economic goals have come into conflict is rainforest conservation. The Amazon tropical forests in Brazil are home to the greatest biodiversity in the world and the state has engaged in a number of conservation programs and implemented environmental regulations to protect these forests. At the same time the state is also pursuing economic goals in the rainforests such as the “Advance Brazil” development plan, which includes building highways, dams, mines and other industrial
51
Maude Barlow and Tony Clarke, “Water Privatization: The World Bank’s Latest Market Fantasy,” Global Policy Forum 52 Maude Barlow and Tony Clarke, “The Struggle for Latin America’s Water”
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developments that pose major detriments to the Amazon rainforest.53 Land tenure laws promote squatting and clearing forested areas for agricultural purposes. IBAMA, the Brazilian Ministry of Environment’s enforcement agency, has perpetually lacked adequate funding and support to combat illegal logging in the Amazon, which constitutes an estimated eighty per cent of total logging.54 Although the state managed to reduce the destruction of rainforests in 2005 by almost one-third as compared to 2004, this conservation milestone came at a heavy price. In the Amazonian state of Pará where the government has cracked down on illegal deforestation, thousands of workers who earn their livelihoods from the forests have no work and businesses lie idle as poverty spreads.55 The state of Brazil has yet to find an effective way to coordinate the efforts of its various ministries in order to balance the goals of environmental conservation, economic growth, and the reduction of poverty.
Key Positions In many ways, the environment can be seen as a luxury good to poor developing nations. Forests represent a waiting stock of valuable resources in terms of lumber, but also represent an impediment from expanding agricultural operations. What these states often do not recognize, or are unable to realize, is the environmental value of these lands. While in the short term it may be profitable to harvest these areas, in the long run, maintaining these virgin forests may prove even more valuable. As such, there is often a marked difference among states along the spectrum of economic development.
Central American and Caribbean States Central American and Caribbean states have initiated environmental programs to varying degrees, and Mexico is a leader in the region in such efforts. For example, 53
Greepeace International, “Amazon,” Greenpeace International, http://www.greenpeace.org/international/campaigns/forests/amazon (accessed April 4, 2006). 54 Rhett Butler, “Rainforests of Brazil—An Environmental Status Report,” Rhett Butler, http://rainforests.mongabay.com/20brazil.htm (accessed April 24, 2006) 55 “How Green Was My Valley,” Economist, April 29, 2006, Academic Search Premier, via Rutgers Libraries, http://www.libraries.rutgers.edu
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emissions standards and regulations have led to a notable reduction of air pollution in Mexico City, one of the largest cities in the world. Mexico must also comply with environmental standards of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Central American states are generally characterized by high rates of poverty, and pressing economic and social problems have overshadowed environmental efforts. Costa Rica is an important exception, as innovative incentive-based conservation based programs and an extensive national party system have earned it a strong environmental record while at the same time promoting economic growth.
From a regional standpoint, the
Mesoamerican Biological Corridor represents an important multilateral initiative in the region. In addition, due to severe losses from hurricanes in past years, many states in the region are investing in early warning systems and improving disaster relief agencies to mitigate the destruction from future natural disasters. Caribbean states typically have very fragile environments, and some governments have recognized the urgency of the ecological situation by strengthening environmental institutions and integrating them into physical policy planning. These measures promote sustainable tourism, biodiversity conservation and integration of coastal and marine resources.56 The Bahamas National Trust has reseeded original hardwoods in its Exuma National Park in an effort to promote eco-tourism. In contrast, Haiti has been overcome by political turmoil and rampant poverty and lacks sufficient resources to promote environmental conservation while satisfying burdensome debt service from developed states. As many Caribbean nations are heavily reliant on the tourism industry, these states are looking to find a delicate balance between promoting environmental conservation to sustain but not hinder this vital economic sector.
56
United Nations Environmental Programme, “GEO-2000: Chapter Three: Policy Responses – Latin America and the Caribbean – Laws and Institutions,” United Nations, http://www.unep.org/geo/geo2000/english/0183.htm (accessed April 3, 2006).
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South American States Among South American States, Brazil plays a prominent role in promoting environmental programs, but its efforts are far from sufficient. The state has taken numerous steps to protect its Amazonian rainforests. An important policy is the Brazilian Environmental Crimes Law, which actually applies administrative and criminal sanctions in the regulation of natural resource use. Strong environmental interests give further support to ecological policies in Brazil, however the state has pursued inconsistent environmental policies, including federal funding for industrial developments in the Amazon and land tenure laws that favor squatters and ranchers. Other members of the Southern Common Market (MERCOSUR) have shown support for and made progress in sustainable development policies, but have been less active than Brazil. For example, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay have pursued less stringent Environmental Impact Assessments than the MERCOSUR treaty has made mandatory.57 The rise in economic productivity and growth in major South American states presents challenges to environmental agendas, which governments have not reconciled with economic interests. President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela plans to build a major gas pipeline and an electricity transmission line across the state, which has major environmental repercussions for the Amazon region. South American states also receive a significant amount of foreign direct investment and do not want to deter foreign firms with strenuous environmental regulations. These states also have not taken a strong stance in preventing unsustainable human settlements in major urban centers such as Rio de Janeiro, Santiago and Buenos Aires. Despite its high biological diversity, Colombia has given a low priority to forestry management due to political turmoil and violence.
The state has also engaged in
environmentally degrading aerial fumigation programs to deter the illicit coca trade.58 In contrast, the small states of Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana have the lowest 57 58
Greenpeace International Butler, “Rainforests of Brazil—An Environmental Status Report,�
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population densities in all of Latin America and the Caribbean and harbor few threats to their environments.59
Developed States Since the 1992 Earth Summit, developed states have voiced concerns for international environmental conservation and sustainable development, but actual efforts have fallen short of objectives. The United States has demonstrated its wariness of multilateral environmental agreements since its reluctance to participate in the 1992 Earth Summit and 2001 retraction from the Kyoto Protocol. At the Johannesburg World
Kyoto Protocol: The result of negotiations at the third Conference of the Parties (COP-3) in Kyoto, Japan, in December of 1997. The Kyoto Protocol sets binding greenhouse gas emissions targets for countries that sign and ratify the agreement. The gases covered under the Protocol include carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons (PFCs) and sulfur hexafluoride. Source: www.eia.doe.gov/glossary/glossary_k.htm
advocated private sector engagement in
Agenda 21: Agenda 21 is a plan of action for the preservation of the Earth that was adopted at the UN conference on the environment and development at Rio de Janeiro in 1992. No fewer than 181 countries signed the document. Agenda 21 not only aims to solve environmental problems but also covers the economic and social injustice in the world. Democracy, equality and the fight against poverty play an important role.
facilitating trade and voluntary public-
Source: www.miljo.skane.se/eng/a/pa11.htm
Summit on Sustainable Development in 2002, the US urged strengthening existing environmental laws rather than establishing additional
commitments.
It
strongly
private partnerships as an approach to sustainable development as opposed to conventional methods.60 In addition, the United States remains the largest financial contributor in absolute terms to the Global Environment Facility, the mechanism through which the World Bank funds a great deal of international environmental protection.61 European states favor strong environmental regulation and conservation in Latin America and the Caribbean, as they are influenced
59
The Sustainability of development in Latin America and the Caribbean: challenges and opportunities, 92 Jutta Brunnee, “The United States and International Environmental Law: Living With an Elephant,� European Journal of International Law, 15, no. 4 (2004): 635 61 Ibid, 621 60
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by public environmental concerns. While they have not fulfilled all of their financial obligations of Agenda 21 since the 1992 Earth Summit, the European Union and European parliaments fund a variety of environmental projects throughout the region.
Business Interests The diversity among business enterprises in Latin America and the Caribbean has led to a variety of environmental views depending on firms’ economic sector and size. In recent years, firms have integrated sustainable development approaches into business management practices in order to act environmentally responsible. Business interests throughout the region have demonstrated support for sustainable development through the establishment of business councils and national centers for clean production and technology.62 Large multinational firms promote environmentally-friendly practices in order to maintain a good reputation of social responsibility and comply with OECD standards. In contrast, poor small businesses often do not give much consideration to environmental conservation and protection. Overall, regardless of how environmentally responsible firms want to be, businesses from ranchers to miners and pharmaceutical companies favor policies that promote easier access and use of natural resources in the region.
Non-Governmental Organizations Thousands of non-governmental organizations have developed in recent decades focusing on environmental conservation and protection.
Major international
environmental NGOs, such as the World Wildlife Fund and the Nature Conservancy have contributed to significant policy change in many Latin American and Caribbean states and continue to be influential in policymaking at many levels of government. Environmental NGOs generally share the same broad objectives of forest and biodiversity conservation as well as sustainable development, but differ in how they
62
The Sustainability of development in Latin America and the Caribbean: challenges and opportunities, 174
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reach these goals. Some NGOs, such as Greenpeace International, act as watchdogs and alert the public when states or economic sectors engage in destructive environmental practices. The Nature Conservancy focuses on the conservation of parks, and others simply promote environmental education and fund research studies.63
The World
Wildlife Fund engages in projects to explore alternative methods to agricultural production and logging practices that are sustainable and less destructive to the environment.
For example, through its “protect-manage-restore” approach to forest
conservation, WWF promotes certified logging through the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) as well as forest restoration.64
Ultimately, environmental NGOs prioritize
environmental conservation over the promotion of economic development and business interests with regard to natural resources, but also recognize the importance of sustainable development.
Media The media has the capacity to greatly influence public opinion about environmental issues and put pressure on policymakers to address important issues. When the media does report on environmental issues, it generally does so in a proenvironmental framework, however the amount of media coverage can vary greatly from time to time. For example, the media was very influential in exposing Brazilians to a vast amount of environmental information prior to the 1992 Earth Summit and led to a dramatic increase in public awareness of environmental concerns in the 1990s.65
63
Blaca Torres, “Transnational Environmental NGOs: Linkages and Impact on Policy” in Latin American Environmental Policy in International Perspective, ed. Gordon J. MacDonald, Daniel L. Nielson, and Marc A. Stern (Boulder: Westview Press, 1997), 166. 64 World Wildlife Fund, “WWF – Responsible Forestry: Certification,” World Wildlife Fund, http://www.panda.org/about_wwf/what_we_do/forests/our_solutions/responsible_forestry/certification/ (accessed April 4, 2006). 65 Eduardo J. Viola, “The Environmental Movement in Brazil: Institutionalization, Sustainable Development, and the Crisis of Governance Since 1987 in Latin American Environmental Policy in International Perspective, ed. Gordon J. MacDonald, Daniel L. Nielson and Marc A. Stern (Boulder: Westview Press, 1997), 98.
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Summary The future of natural resources and the environment in Latin America and the Caribbean is uncertain. States have formally recognized the need to adopt stronger institutions and mechanisms to promote environmental conservation and sustainable development, however actual efforts have lagged far behind policy objectives. The current consumption of natural resources and rates of degradation to the environment in the region is not sustainable in the long run. The region has experienced the detrimental effects of human activity for centuries. European colonists left an enduring mark on the region by their environmentally degrading practices of gold and mineral mining, cattle ranching, and single crop plantation farming. The domestic economies of the region have primarily had export-driven economies with a dependence on foreign investment. In recent years, social and economic trends have significantly impacted the effectiveness of environmental policies in Latin America and the Caribbean. States in the region have experienced swings in economic stability and growth in the 1990s was not sufficient to recover from past recessionary periods. Consequently states have placed priorities on economic stability, productivity and debt repayment. Despite the fact that most states ratified legally-binding documents aimed at fostering sustainable development and environmental conservation, deforestation and soil degradation from agricultural and mining activities continue at alarming rates. The increasing trend of urbanization coupled with population growth has led to increases in air and water pollution.
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Discussion Questions • How do states’ economic goals compare and contrast with their environmental goals? • What effect will improved environmental regulation and conservation have on economic productivity? • Identify failed attempts to protect the environment. What caused them to fail? Was it a lack of funding? Lack of a will to make difficult decisions? Lack of support from outside entities? • What are the tradeoffs, if any, between economic growth and environmental sustainability? • What capabilities and resources do modern environmental institutions lack that impede their effective management of environmental concerns? • What incentives do states have to allow the exploitation of natural resources? • How have the interests of businesses and the industrial sector influenced environmental policymaking? • What role do non-governmental organizations play in impacting environmental policies? • Why have governments failed to enforce laws and agreements protecting the environment?
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Works Cited Ascher, William. Understanding why Governments in Developing Countries Waste Natural Resources, 42, no. 2 (2000): 8-18. Academic Search Premier, via EBSCOHost, http://search.epnet.com Barlow, Maude and Tony Clarke. “The Struggle for Latin America’s Water.” NACLA Report on the Americas, July/August 2004. Academic Search Premier, via Rutgers Libraries, http://www.libraries.rutgers.edu Brunnee, Jutta, “The United States and International Environmental Law: Living With an Elephant,” European Journal of International Law, 15, no. 4 (2004): 617-649. Butler, Rhett, “Costa Rica: Environmental Profile,” Rhett Butler, http://rainforests.mongabay.com/20costarica.htm Butler, Rhett, “Rainforests of Brazil—An Environmental Status Report,” Rhett Butler, Rainforests of Brazil—An Environmental Status Report,” Dore, Elizabeth. “Capitalism and ecological crisis: legacy of the 1980s.” In Green Guerrillas: Environmental Conflicts and Initiatives in Latin America and the Caribbean, edited by Helen Collinson, 8-19. Montreal: Black Rose Books, 1997. The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) and the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP). The Sustainability of development in Latin America and the Caribbean: challenges and opportunities. Santiago: Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) and the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP), 2002. Greepeace International, “Amazon,” Greenpeace International, http://www.greenpeace.org/international/campaigns/forests/amazon General Secretariat. “Guarani Aqufer System // Project,” Guarani Aquifer System, http://www.sg-guarani.org/index/site/proyecto/pto_introduccion.php Hillstrom, K. and L. Hillstrom. Latin America and the Caribbean: A Continental Overview of Environmental Issues. Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO, Inc., 2004. “How Green Was My Valley.” Economist, April 29, 2006. Academic Search Premier, via Rutgers Libraries, http://www.libraries.rutgers.edu
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Miller, K., E. Chang and N. Johnson. Defining Common Ground for the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor. Washington, DC: World Resources Institute, 2001. Osava, Mario. “High Hopes Over Rising Demand for Fuel Alcohol.” Inter Press Service News Agency, December 15, 2004. http://www.ipsnews.net/interna.asp?idnews=26693 Roberts, J. and N. Thanos. Trouble in Paradise: Globalization and Environmental Crises in Latin America. New York: Taylor & Francis Books, Inc., 2003. Rohter, Larry. “With Big Boost From Sugar Cane, Brazil is Satisfying its Fuel Needs.” New York Times, April 10, 2006, late edition. Lexis-Nexis, via Rutgers Libraries, http://www.libraries.rutgers.edu Snider, Anthony et al. “Policy Innovations for Private Forest Management and Conservation in Costa Rica.” Journal of Forestry 101, no 5 (2003: 18-23 Torres, Blaca. “Transnational Environmental NGOs: Linkages and Impact on Policy” in Latin American Environmental Policy in International Perspective, edited by Gordon J. MacDonald, Daniel L. Nielson, and Marc A. Stern, 156-178. Boulder: Westview Press, 1997. United Nations Environmental Programme, “GEO-2000: Chapter Three: Policy Responses – Latin America and the Caribbean – Laws and Institutions,” United Nations, http://www.unep.org/geo/geo2000/english/0183.htm. Viola, Eduardo. “The Environmental Movement in Brazil: Institutionalization, Sustainable Development, and the Crisis of Governance Since 1987 in Latin American Environmental Policy in International Perspective, edited by Gordon J. MacDonald, Daniel L. Nielson and Marc A. Stern, 88-110. Boulder: Westview Press, 1997. Wheeler, David. Racing to the Bottom? Foreign Investment and Air Pollution in Developing Countries. The World Bank, 2001. The World Bank. Latin America and Caribbean Region - Guarani Aquifer Project International Waters MERCOSUL (GEF) Vol. 1 (English). World Bank, 2001. World Wildlife Fund, “WWF – Responsible Forestry: Certification,” World Wildlife Fund, http://www.panda.org/about_wwf/what_we_do/forests/our_solutions/responsible_ forestry/certification/
Rutgers Model United Nations 2006 Zbiden, Simon and David Lee. “Paying for Environmental Services: An Analysis of Participation in Costa Rica’s PSA Program.” World Development 33, no. 2 (2005): 255-272.
33
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Works Referenced Ascher, William. Understanding why Governments in Developing Countries Waste Natural Resources, 42, no. 2 (2000): 8-18. Academic Search Premier, via EBSCOHost, http://search.epnet.com Athanas, Andrea. “Role of Business – The role of business in biodiversity and impact assessment,” Impact Assessment and Project Appraisal, 23, no. 1 (2005): 29-35. Azqueta, Diego and D. Sotelsek. “Comparative advantages and the exploitation of environmental resources” in CEPAL Review, no. 68, 115-136. The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, via ECLAC Library, http://www.eclac.cl/biblioteca/default.asp?lang=english&page=information Barlow, Maude and Tony Clarke. “The Struggle for Latin America’s Water.” NACLA Report on the Americas, July/August 2004. Academic Search Premier, via Rutgers Libraries, http://www.libraries.rutgers.edu Brunnee, Jutta, “The United States and International Environmental Law: Living With an Elephant,” European Journal of International Law 15, no. 4 (2004): 617-649. Butler, Rhett, “Costa Rica: Environmental Profile,” Rhett Butler, http://rainforests.mongabay.com/20costarica.htm Butler, Rhett, “Rainforests of Brazil—An Environmental Status Report,” Rhett Butler, Rainforests of Brazil—An Environmental Status Report,” Dore, Elizabeth. “Capitalism and ecological crisis: legacy of the 1980s.” In Green Guerrillas: Environmental Conflicts and Initiatives in Latin America and the Caribbean, edited by Helen Collinson, 8-19. Montreal: Black Rose Books, 1997. The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) and the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP). The Sustainability of development in Latin America and the Caribbean: challenges and opportunities. Santiago: Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) and the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP), 2002. Greepeace International, “Amazon,” Greenpeace International, http://www.greenpeace.org/international/campaigns/forests/amazon
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General Secretariat. “Guarani Aqufer System // Project,” Guarani Aquifer System, http://www.sg-guarani.org/index/site/proyecto/pto_introduccion.php Hillstrom, K. and L. Hillstrom. Latin America and the Caribbean: A Continental Overview of Environmental Issues. Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO, Inc., 2004. Hopkins, Jack W. Policymaking for Conservation in Latin America. Westport: Prager Publishers, 1995. “How Green Was My Valley.” Economist, April 29, 2006. Academic Search Premier, via Rutgers Libraries, http://www.libraries.rutgers.edu Miller, K., E. Chang and N. Johnson. Defining Common Ground for the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor. Washington, DC: World Resources Institute, 2001. Osava, Mario. “High Hopes Over Rising Demand for Fuel Alcohol.” Inter Press Service News Agency, December 15, 2004. http://www.ipsnews.net/interna.asp?idnews=26693 Roberts, J. and N. Thanos. Trouble in Paradise: Globalization and Environmental Crises in Latin America. New York: Taylor & Francis Books, Inc., 2003. Rohter, Larry. “With Big Boost From Sugar Cane, Brazil is Satisfying its Fuel Needs.” New York Times, April 10, 2006, late edition. Lexis-Nexis, via Rutgers Libraries, http://www.libraries.rutgers.edu Snider, Anthony et al. “Policy Innovations for Private Forest Management and Conservation in Costa Rica.” Journal of Forestry 101, no 5 (2003: 18-23 Sunderlin, William et al. “Livelihoods, Forests, and Conservation in Developing Countries: An Overview,” in World Development, 33, no. 9 (2005): 1383-1402. Torres, Blaca. “Transnational Environmental NGOs: Linkages and Impact on Policy” in Latin American Environmental Policy in International Perspective, edited by Gordon J. MacDonald, Daniel L. Nielson, and Marc A. Stern, 156-178. Boulder: Westview Press, 1997. United Nations Environmental Programme, “GEO-2000: Chapter Three: Policy Responses – Latin America and the Caribbean – Laws and Institutions,” United Nations, http://www.unep.org/geo/geo2000/english/0183.htm.
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Viola, Eduardo. “The Environmental Movement in Brazil: Institutionalization, Sustainable Development, and the Crisis of Governance Since 1987 in Latin American Environmental Policy in International Perspective, edited by Gordon J. MacDonald, Daniel L. Nielson and Marc A. Stern, 88-110. Boulder: Westview Press, 1997. Wheeler, David. Racing to the Bottom? Foreign Investment and Air Pollution in Developing Countries. The World Bank, 2001. The World Bank. Latin America and Caribbean Region - Guarani Aquifer Project International Waters MERCOSUL (GEF) Vol. 1 (English). World Bank, 2001. World Wildlife Fund, “WWF – Responsible Forestry: Certification,” World Wildlife Fund, http://www.panda.org/about_wwf/what_we_do/forests/our_solutions/responsible_ forestry/certification/ Zbiden, Simon and David Lee. “Paying for Environmental Services: An Analysis of Participation in Costa Rica’s PSA Program.” World Development 33, no. 2 (2005): 255-272.