PROJET DE SOCIl!?Tti
Document and Information ASSESSMENT
Committee:
OF AGENDA
21
Prepared for the Third National Stakeholder’s Assembly December 14-17, 1993
Assessmentof Agenda 21
TABLE OF CONTENTS Foreword
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ..~
Acknowledgements
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iii
Chapter 1 - Preamble to Agenda 21 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Chapter 2 - International Cooperation to Accelerate Sustainable Development . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Chapter 3 - Combatting Poverty
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Chapter 4 - Changing Consumption Patterns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 Chapter 5 - Demographic Dynamics and Sustainability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 Chapter 6 - Protection and Promotion of Human Health . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 Chapter 7 - Promoting Human Sustainable Settlement Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73 Chapter 8 - Integration of Environment and Development in Decision-Making
. . . . . . . . . .
85
Chapter 9 - Protection of the Atmosphere and United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Chapter 10 - Integrated Approach to the Planning and Management of Land Resources . . . . . 115 Chapter 11- Combatting Deforestation and the Forest Principles Chapter 12 - Combatting Desertification and Drought Chapter 13 - Sustainable Mountain Development
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .147
Chapter 14 - Promoting Sustainable Agriculture and Rural Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157 Chapter 15 - Conservation of Biological Diversity and Convention on Biological Diversity Chapter 16 - Environmentally Sound Management of Biotechnology Chapter 17-ProtectionofOceansandtheirLivingResources
. . 169
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193
Chapter 18 -Protection of Freshwater Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . -213 Chapter 19 - Environmentally Sound Management of Toxic Chemicals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229
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Chapter 20 - Environmentally Sound Management of Hazardous Wastes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239 Chapter 21- Environmentally Sound Management of Solid Wastes and Sewage-Related Issues 251 Chapter 22 - Safe and Environmentally Sound Management of Radioactive Wastes . . . . . . . 263 Chapter 23 - Strengthening the Role of Major Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .271 Chapter 24 - Global Action for Women Towards Sustainable and Equitable Development Chapter 25 - Children and Youth in Sustainable Development
. . . 273
. , . . . . . . , . . . . . . . . . . ,283
Chapter 26 - Recognizing and Strengthening the Role of Indigenous People
...........
299
Chapter 27 - Strengthening the Role of Non-Governmental Organizations .............
313
Chapter 28 - Local Authorities’ Initiatives in Support of Agenda 21 ................
325
Chapter 29 - Strengthening the Role of Workers and their Trade Unions ..............
335
Chapter 30 - Strengthening the Role of Business and Industry Chapter 3l-
The Scientific and Technological Community
...................
,341
.....................
,353
...........................
Chapter 32 - Strengthening the Role of Farmers
,361
....................................
,369
Chapter 34 - Technology Transfer ....................................
,379
Chapter 33 - Financial Assistance
Chapter 35 - Science for Sustainable Development
..........................
Chapter 36 - Education, Public Awareness and Training
,389
......................
Chapter 37 - National Mechanisms and International Cooperation for Capacity-Building Chapter 38 - International Institutional Arrangements
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............................
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421 ,429
Chapter 39 - International Legal Instruments and Mechanisms ................... Chapter 40 - Information for Decision-Making
,399
,439 ,447
Planning for a Sustainable Future
Assessment of Aged
Foreword
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FOREWORD The following assessment of the chapters of Agenda 21 and the UNCED Conventions, forms one part of the Projet de so&t&s Document and Information Committee’s (the Committee) Report to the Third National Stakeholders Assembly (December 16-17, 1993, Ottawa). The chapter assessments follow a common format. They are based on a framework, devised by the Committee, to ensure consistency in the presentation and development of the content of the chapter assessments. Authors were asked to gather important information in a balanced fashion and to capture some of the critical points necessary for a meaningful assessment of Canada’s response to the provisions of Agenda 21, and recent progress toward achieving sustainable development. An assessment of where Canada has come from and where we are now, forms a basis for considering where we have to go, as stakeholders, to achieve sustainability. The structure of the chapters are as follows: First, the nature of the problem is briefly outlined. nature of the problem as outlined in Agenda 21.
For the most part, this reflects the
Second, the objectives of the relevant Agenda 21 chapter are set out as they are found in Agenda 21, Third, the various Canadian positions at UNCED are identified where they actually exist. The four different views represented reflect the major players at the Rio Conference: government, the NGO community, the business community and Indigenous Peoples. To ensure that the chapter assessments reflected the positions of the major groups accurately, each chapter was checked and/or completed by a member of the NGO community, the business and industry community, and the Indigenous Peoples’ community. In some cases, not all major groups had articulated positions for a variety of reasons. Fourth, the chapter assessments identify the commitments or promises made by Canada or Canadians, officially or informally, including commitments by NGOs through their alternative treaties and by indigenous groups through the Kari-Oca Declaration. Fifth, any deficiencies in the chapter are interpreted by the author. Sixth, a comparison between current government policy and the commitments made is indicated, wherever possible. Seventh, examples are provided of relevant Canadian activities, within and outside government, which support the transition to sustainability.
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Foreword
Assessmentof Agetulia21
Finally, a list of other relevant international fora is included, along with a list of information sources including organizations and readings. This list has been contributed to by the author, the reviewers and the editors of this document. This Assessment is not a consensus document. Jn most cases, the chapters were written by individuals with interest and expertise in the subject matter of the chapter. The names and affiliations of the authors or organizations are clearly set out at the beginning of each chapter, as are appropriate disclaimers. Nothing in the chapter assessments necessarily reflects the views of the authors’ organizations, the Government of Canada, or the Projet de societe. The views expressed in the chapter assessments are those of the authors, who have received comments from a number of stakeholders. This was done in order to ensure that the authors had access to the views of relevant stakeholders and to prevent any inadvertent misrepresentation. Each chapter was reviewed by three individuals or organizations. For each chapter, reviewers were found from the federal government, the NGO community and the business community. The Assessment is available on diskette from the Projet de so&t& c/o NRTEE, 1 Nicholas Street, Suite 1500, Ottawa, Ontario, KlN 7B7.
DOCUMENT AND INFORMATION COMMITTEE:
Lynn Broughton Forum for Sustainability Theodora Carroll-Foster InternutionulDevelopmentResearch Centre Gordon Clifford Consulting& Audit Canada Heather Creech IntermuionalInstitutefor Sustainable Development Beatrice Olivastri InternationalInstitutefor Sustainable Development
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Sarah Richardson NationalRound Table on the Environment a?ld the Ikorwmy Sandra Scott Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment Roger Street Environment Canada Judith Swan Oceans Instituteof Canada Robert Valantin InternationalDevelopment Research Centre
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Acknowledgements
Assessment of Agenda 21
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Members of the Document and Information Committee would like to thank the following individuals and organizations all of whom contributed to this Assessment. Agriculture Canada Vahid Aidun Canadian Federation of Agriculture Angus Archer United NQti0n.s Associationin Canada David Barron CanadianPulp and Paper Association David Baslaw NationalRound Table on the Environment and the Economy Andre Beaulieu McGill UniversityCentrefor Medicine, Ethics and Law Cheryl Beillard Canadian Councilfor InternationalBusiness
Claire Briere InternationalDevelopmentResearch Centre Raymond Brouzes Managing EnvironmentalChange Jim Brown CanadianFertilizer Institute Doug Bruchet CanadianAssociationof Petroleum Producers Jeb Brugmann InternationalCouncilfor Local Environment Initiatives Jeremy Byatt Friends of the Earth Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment
Mia Benjamin Robinson TatonkaFoundation
Canadian International Development Agency
David Bennett CanadianLabour Congress
Brock Carlton Federation of CanadianMunicipalities
Johannah Bernstein EbthAction International
Kindi Chana NationalRound Table on the Environment and the Economy
Simon Brascoup Apikan Indigenous Network Francois Bregha Resource Futures International
Ron Chaplin CanadianAssociationof Petroleum Producers Bob Clapp Petroleum Producers Institute
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Assessmentof Age&a 21
Philippe Clkment Nan’onalRound Table on the Environment and the Economy
Gordon Edwards Canadian Coalitionfor Nuclear Responsibility
Ann Coffey OttawaGreen School Project
Environment Canada
Louise Comeau Sierra Club of Canada
Environment Canada UNCED Tark Group Fisheries and Oceans Canada
Ted Cooke UnitedNationsEducational, Scient@ and Cultural Organization Frank Cosway InternationalInstitutefor Sustainable Development
Jean-Marc Fleury InternationalDevelopmentResearch Centre Sylvia Franke CanadianInstituteof Planners Egon Frech Atomic Energy of CanadaLimited
Ann Dale SustainableDevelopmentResearch Institute, Geoffrey Grenville-Wood Universityof British Columbia United NationsAssociauon in Canada Kate Davies Tee Guidotti Consultant Universityof Alberta, Occup~‘onal Health Program Department of Foreign Affairs John Dillon Business Council on NationalIssues
Pierre Guimond CanadianElectrical Association
Tim Dottridge InternationalDevelopmentResearch Centre
Andrew Hamilton InternationalJoint Commission
Carla Doucet NationalRound Table on the Environment and the Economy
Tonya Hancherow ECO-ED
Charles Draper NationalAdvisory Councilfor the InternationalConference on Populationand Development
Trevor Hancock Public Health Consultant Kelly Hawke Baxter NationalRound Table on the Environment and the Economy Doreen Henley CanadianManufactrers ’ Association
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Assessment of Agendu 21
Sally Lemer Universityof Waterloo
Susan Holtz Chuck Hopkins TorontoBoard of Education
Hugo Li Pun InternationalDevelopmentResearch Centre
Hugh Howson Oz Environs
Gordon Lloyd Canadian Chemical Producers Association
Robert Huebert Oceans Institute of Canada
Jean Pierce Martel Canadian Pulp and Paper Association
International Development Research Centre Julie Martinat NationalRound Table on the Environment and the Economy
International Insitute for Sustainable Development
H&l&e Massie NationalRound Table on the Environment and the Economy
Michael Keating Environment Writer and Consultant Robert Keyes Mining Associationof Canada
Elizabeth May Cultural Survival Canada
Matthew Kiem~
The Innovest Group International
Patrick McGuiness Fisheries Council of Canada
Hans Konow CanadianElectrical Association
Sheldon McLeod Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment
Linton Kulak Shell Canada Limited Aprodicio Iaquian Universityof British ColumbiaCentrefor Human Settlements
George Miller Mining Associationof Canaa’a
Roger Larson CanadianFertilizer Institute
Sarah Murdoch Student, Universityof Ottawa
Justyna Laurie-Lean Mining Associationof Canada
Sophia Murphy Canadian Councilfor International Cooperation
Lorraine Lee British ColumbiaRound Table on the Environmentand the Economy
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Evelyne Meltzer United NationsAssociationin Canada Halifax Branch
Future
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National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy David Neave WildlifeHabitat Canada Ron Nielsen OntarioRound Table on Environmentand
Edwin Smith National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy Robert Sopuck ManitobaDepartment of the Environment Status of Women Canada
EcO?W??ly
Catherine O’Brien Social Justice Committeeof Montreal Peter Padbury Canadian Councilfor International Cooperation Leone Pippard CanadianEcology Advocates Chester Reimer Inuit Circumpolar Conference Nigel Richardson, Consultant Barry Sadler Project Director, Projet de societe’
Shauna Sylvester British ColumbiaEnvironmentand Development Working Group Susan Tanner Friends of the Earth Terry Taylor Ontario Waste Management Association Kathy Thompson Canadian Federation of Municipalities Steve Thompson NationalRound Table on the Environment and the Economy Peter Timmerman Institutefor EnvironmentalStudies
Vijay Sankar InternationalInstitutefor Sustainable Development
Michael Toye Canadian YouthFoundation
Sarah Shadforth NationalRound Table on the Environment and the Economy
Allison Webb NationalRound Table on the Environment and the Economy
Denise Simmons NationalRound Table on the Environment and the Economy
Jack Wilkinson Canadian Federation of Agriculture
Naresh Singh InternationalInstitutefor Sustainable Development Dan Smith United NativeNations
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Zonibel Woods Canada World Youth Miriam Wyman Women and Environments Education and Development Foundation
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Chapter 1
Assessment of Agenda 21
CHAPTER 1 Preamble
I
Chapter 1 of Agenda 21 is the document’s preamble. It states that partnerships are required among all nations of the globe in order to achieve sustainable development. Agenda 21 focuses on current, pressing problems, and also addresses the global challenges of the next century.
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Implementing the developmental and environmental objectives of Agenda 21 will require a substantial flow of new and additional resources to developing countries.
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Chapter 1 also describes the framework used in Agenda 21 and clarifies a number of terms used throughout the document.
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Chapter 2
Assessment of Agenda 21
CHAPTER 2 International Cooperation to Accelerate Sustainable Development in Developing Countries and Related Domestic Policies -- Sarah Richardson --
THB NATURE OF THE PROBLEM
Chapter 2 of Agenda 21 acknowledges that movement towards sustainable development is not going to gather momentum if developing countries are weighted down by excessive debt, if aid to developing countries is inadequate, if trade barriers restrict access to markets, and if commodity prices and terms of trade in developing countries are depressed. Such was the case throughout the 1980s; these trends need to be reversed. To this end, international cooperation should be designed to complement and support sound domestic economic policies in both developed and developing countries. Because of the global nature of many environmental problems and the increasing economic interdependence of nations, sustainable development can only be achieved through effective international cooperation on many fronts. In particular, Chapter 2 of Agenda 21 notes that the commodity sector dominates the economies of many developing countries and that during the 1980s the real prices for most commodities declined, resulting in a substantial contraction in commodity export earnings for many countries. For developing countries, the ability to mobilize through international trade, the resources needed to finance investments required for sustainable development, may be impaired by tariff and non-tariff barriers limiting access to export markets. The removal of these distortions in international trade is essential.
Sarah Richunlson is the Foreign Policy Advisor at the N&‘orud Round Table on the Environment and the Economy (NRTEE). The views expressed in this chapter are those of the author wb received input from a number of stakeholders, and do not necessarily represent the views of the NRTEE, Ute Government of Canada, or the Projet de soci&.
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Chapter 2
Assessmat of Agenda 21
As well, Chapter 2 notes that increased investment is critical for developing countries to achieve economic growth, to improve the welfare of their population and to meet basic needs in a sustainable manner. During the 198Os, many developing countries experienced a negative net transfer of financial resources. At that time their financial receipts were exceeded by payments for debt-servicing. The burden of debt-service payments on some developing countries acts as a constraint on their ability to accelerate growth and eradicate poverty. In some cases the fmancial dram results in cuts in health care, education and environmental protection. External indebtedness has emerged as a major factor in the economic crisis in many developing countries. Chapter 2 asserts that an unfavourable external environment makes it very difficult for developing countries to mobilize the domestic resources needed to promote sustainable development and suggests that policy reforms are needed to correct sometimes misdirected public spending, large budget deficits, and other macroeconomic imbalances large budget deficits are not exclusively related to developing countries. These adjustments include appropriate savings rates, to help generate resources to support the transition to sustainable development. PROGRAM AREAS AND OBJECTIVES
Chapter 2 outlines a number of activities and processes that will help foster the necessary According to Chapter international cooperation required to achieve sustainable development. 2, the international economy should provide a supportive climate for achieving four key environment and development goals: 1.
Promoting sustainable development through trade liberalization. 0 An open, equitable, secure, non-discriminatory and predictable multilateral
0 2.
trading system, consistent with the goals of sustainable development, should lead to optimal distribution of global production which is beneficial to all trading partners. Market access for developing countries’ exports should be improved.
Making trade and environment mutually supportive. 0 An open, multilateral trading system allows for more efficient allocation
and use of resources, which contributes to an increase in production and incomes, and reduces demands on the environment. This provides additional resources needed both for economic growth and development and for improved environmental protection. This type of trading system, supported by the adoption of sound environmental policies, would have a positive impact on the environment and contribute to sustainable development.
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3.
1
Providing adequate financial resources to developing countries and dealing with international debt. 0 Investment is critical to the ability of developing countries to achieve
I 0
1 1
4.
1
I 1
CANADIAN 1.
Encouraging macroeconomic policies conducive to environment and development. 0 Establish economic policy reforms that promote the efficient planning and
POSITIONS AT RIO
Official Canadian Position
In reference to the four main program areas of Chapter 2, Canada’s objectives at UNCED were:
(1)
to retain emphasis in favour of a multilateral trading system, market-oriented economic systems and trade liberalization, while reducing emphasis on market intervention in respect of commodities trade;
(2)
to avoid creating new bodies or expanding the mandates of those already in existence, regarding the role of GATT as the international body responsible for international trade rules and their relationship to the environment;
(3)
to emphasize the role of developing countries in implementing sound policies to encourage domestic savings and promote investment from domestic and foreign investors as the key means of obtaining adequate finance for sustainable development; and,
(4)
to encourage economic policies conducive to sustainable development as outlined in PrepCom negotiations.
S I
needed economic growth to improve the welfare and to meet the basic needs of their populations. Sustainable development requires increased investment, for which domestic and external financial resources are needed. The specific financial requirements for the implementation of the sectoral and cross-se&oral programs in Agenda 21 are described in those sectoral chapters and in Chapter 33 entitled “Financial Resources and Mechanisms�.
utilization of resources for sustainable development through sound economic and social policies, in particular by incorporating social and environmental costs in resource pricing.
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Chapter 2
2.
Assessmentof Agenda 21
Non-Governmental
Organizations
Canadian NGOs were disappointed with Canada’s refusal to agree to specific timetables for meeting its official development assistance (ODA) commitment. NGOs also expressed concern that the mere pledging of new monies through existing Bretton Woods institutions, such as the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, would not solve current environment and development problems. To that end, Canadian NGOs at Rio called for fundamental reform of international economic institutions to ensure that those people most affected by funding decisions are integrally involved in decisionmaking, and to ensure the redirection of bilateral and multilateral ODA away from environmentally and socially unsustainable activities and projects. As well, the NGOs encouraged the official Canadian Delegation to show support for the “peace dividend” concept. On the question of debt, Canadian NGOs urged that immediate debt relief be provided through expansion of the “Trinidad Terms” (debt relief terms for lower to middle income countries) to cover the multilateral bank debt. On the question of trade, Canadian NGOs recommended the following: 0
0
0 0
3.
the reform of trade agreements to ensure that they create a framework supportive of the intemalization of environmental and social costs in the price of traded commodities and in the production and transportation of goods; the removal of trade barriers in developed countries, particularly those against processed goods from developing countries which are produced on a sustainable basis; the introduction of trade measures to encourage compliance with multilateral environmental agreements; and, the removal of subsidies that are ecologically, economically and socially damaging, accompanied by social programs to offset any resulting social costs.
Business and Industrv
Canadian business and industry provided no specific position on Chapter 2 at UNCED. However, strong support was expressed for the Canadian government position with an emphasis on the trade liberal&&on objective. A cornerstone of the view of Canadian business and industry is that free enterprise is a Environmental policy which ignores precondition for sustainable development. economic considerations has the potential to distort and disrupt economic conditions nationally and internationally, to aggravate existing conditions of poverty, and to delay the effective implementation of the most urgent environmental protection measures.
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International business views economic development, international trade and environmental Economic growth provides the conditions wherein protection as complementary. protection of the environment can be best achieved. Business and industry would urge that full attention be given to understanding the scientific and economic aspects of environmental issues, to implementing market-oriented approaches to environmental challenges, and to the economic and trade impacts of international environmental policy.
4.
Indipenous
Indigenous Peoples participated in this process by submitting significant statements and contributions of Indigenous Peoples declarations at the PrepCorns, the NGO Conference (Paris), Kari-Oca and UNCED (see below). Among other things, Indigenous Peoples in Canada have called for funding and development of Indigenous regional and international development institution; the development of an Indigenous Peoples’ Loan Fund; and the establishment of a new partnership between Indigenous Peoples and western governments, NGOs and development agencies;
MADE BY CANADIANS
CO-S
1.
Lwallv-Bindiw
Documents
None. 2.
Political Pronouncements
In 1992, in anticipation of UNCED, Prime Minister Brian Mulroney outlined a five-point Agenda for Canada and the world, in order to achieve sustainable development. The third point in this five point agenda concerned the need for developed countries to assist less developed countries through three main mechanisms: 1) aid 2) trade and 3) debt -- which are the subjects of Chapter 2 of Agenda 21. The Prime Minister’s 5-point agenda, coupled with announcements made at Rio, led to the following Canadian commitments related to Chapter 2: 1) InternationalFinancial Assistance (Aid) -- The Prime Minister committed Canada to seeking early agreement on the purpose, amount, and the rules for providing new and additional funds to the world’s poorest countries. To this end, the Prime Minister committed $25 million to the pilot phase of the Global Environment Facility (GEF), set up to help carry out commitments made at Rio; allocated $1.3 billion to sustainable development over the following five years, to be implemented by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA); and committed
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Canada to increasing the allocation for sustainable development in Official Development Assistance (ODA) funding in the future. The Prime Minister reaffnmed Canada’s commitment to achieving the target of providing 0.7% of Canada’s annual Gross National Product (GNP) to ODA. He would not support a fixed deadline for achieving the 0.7% target, and noted that current economic realities may preclude the realization of the target by the 1997 date set by the United Nations. The Prime Minister announced that Canada would provide $2 million to a $10 million program under the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) to help developing countries prepare national sustainable development plans. He announced that Canada’s annual contribution to the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) would double between 1992 and 1997, from $1.1 million to $2.2 r&lion. The Prime Minister also announced that Canada would allocate $10 million to work with Brazil, Malaysia and Mexico to establish sustainably managed forests along the lines of the model forests concept being developing in Canada. Also, Canada would allocate $16.6 million to the Brazilian Rainforest Pilot Program created under the auspices of the Group of Seven (G-7) industrialized nations. At Rio, the Prime Minister also announced that Canada had allocated $50 million in humanitarian assistance to the victims of drought in Southern Africa. 2) Trade -- The Prime Minister committed Canada to supporting a round of GATT
negotiations in which the environment would be the focal point, once the current Uruguay Round of global trade negotiations is complete. 3) Debt Relief -- The Prime Minister committed Canada to accelerating measures to relieve the burden of debt owed to the richer countries by the less developed countries Specifically, the Prime so the latter can concentrate on sustainable development. Minister announced in Rio that Canada will convert $145 million of debt held in Latin American countries into investment in environment and sustainable development projects.
3.
Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NGO Treaties
At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organization Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Oca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. Of these treaties, three addressed the issues discussed in Chapter 2.
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Chapter 2
AlternativeTreaty on Trade and SustainableDevelopment In this treaty, NGOs at the Global Forum agreed to work to replace the GATT with an alternative, democratic International Trade Organization (ITO), which would be dedicated to the public interest. The IT0 would develop new global rules for “fair” trade in line with the principles of the NGO treaties, including preferential terms for developing countries. It would also regulate currency exchange rates, debt and the role of global institutions like the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). In addition, the treaty supported alternative models of international trade based on cooperatives of producers and consumers working together to avoid multinational enterprise in commerce between countries of the North and South. NW Debt Treaty This treaty highlights the term “ecological debt” which the northern countries owe to the Southern peoples. The treaty also asks the signatories to work strategically for the effective cancellation of the debt and for the elimination of the net transfer of resources from the South to the North. Tactically, it calls for a massive reduction of the debt burden, starting with the repudiation of all debt that it terms fraudulent and illegal. The treaty advocates joint campaigns based on case studies from the regions of Latin America, Africa and Asia. It also advocates the establishment by international organizations of a system of accounting in order to quantify the cumulative debt of the Northern countries which results from the over-consumption of resources. CapitalFlight and Corruption Some NGOs contend that half the debt of developing nations rests in the bank accounts and private capital of corrupt Southern authorities which drastically undercuts the ability of those countries to repay the debt. To fight this so-called capital flight and corruption, the NGOs in Rio agreed to work to introduce an international legal system that can act quickly, and an “economic Interpol. ” Bank transfers must become open, especially in the four countries named in the Treaty as being most responsible for accommodating corrupt authorities: Panama, Cayman Islands, Switzerland and Luxembourg. The NGOs agreed to send letters to “dictators and corrupt public authorities” warning them about the insecurity of depositing funds in these “fiscal paradises”. ,’
Karl-oca The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference. They developed and adopted a log-point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter.
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Chapter 2
The Indigenous Peoples attending the Conference agreed that at local, national and international levels, governments must commit funds to new and existing resources for education and training for Indigenous Peoples in order to assist them in achieving sustainable development. Particular attention is given to indigenous women, children and youth.
DEFICIENCIES.
GAPS AND CONSTRAINTS WITHIN CHAPTER 2
There are points in Chapter 2 that might provoke argument and should be acknowledged. examples follow.
Some
Chapter 2 deals largely with trade. Its objectives are based on the fundamental assumption that free trade will promote economic growth which is good for sustainable development. This assertion is contested by some. In its report Our Common Future, the World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED) spoke of wealth being a precondition for environmental protection; but there may be According to Northern values, a richer country is likely to be more no guarantees. environmentally conscious. However, it is sometimes unclear whether serious roadblocks to sustainable development in some less developed countries stem from governments’ inability or unwillingness, to finance basic public services or environmental programs. The assumption that an increase in wealth will cause a corresponding increase in environmental protection leads to questions about the power structures and domestic priorities in other sovereign nations that might not easily be answered. Beyond this, a general criticism that could be made of this chapter is that too much attention is devoted to further trade liberalization. Many groups, particularly in the environmental field, would have serious concern with this focus. A heavy emphasis on the merits of trade liberalization may be seen as. down-playing both its possible negative ramifications and the environmental problems which need attention in conjunction with trade liberalization initiatives. The Chapter does not address any of what some would see to be fundamental trade offs. For example, Chapter 2 suggests promoting free trade while maintaining environmental standards. Many environmentalists would argue that free trade is fundamentally incompatible with environmental protection and that the operation of the free market and the free movement of capital will result inevitably in the lowering of environmental and other social standards. Chapter 2 does not recognize any ecological limits to economic growth. Again, there might have been mention of this and the suggestion that production and consumption patterns (dealt with in a separate chapter) ought to be examined in any policy that encourages growth. This chapter does not focus on the role of the private sector which some would argue is the driving force for economic growth and the source of resources to improve environmental quality.
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Assessmentof Agenda 21
Issues for the future go beyond the environment and embrace the impact of free trade between developed and less developed nations on quality of life and issues OS social justice, notably regional, generations and gender equity, and even individual and collective identity.
COMPARISON CO-MADE
BETWEEN
CURRENT
CANADIAN
Go-
POLICY
AND
The Canadian Government laid out its environmental policy for the 1990s and articulated its support for the developing world in the 1991 Green Plan. Among the broad policy objectives in the Plan, the government committed itself to pursuing global solutions to global environmental problems. The Canadian government committed itself to helping developing countries achieve sustainable development by, among other things, increasing efforts aimed at helping them gain access to the latest skills and technology. More recently, as a member of the G-7 industrialized nations meeting in July 1993 in Tokyo, Canada committed itself to pursuing, toward developing countries, “. ..a comprehensive approach, covering not only aid but also trade, investmentand debt strategy, and a differentiated approach, tailored to the needs and performances of each country at its particular stage of development and taking environmentalaspects into account” (emphasis added). Trade A fundamental theme at UNCED, one of the principles underlying Canada’s Green Plan, the general principle adopted in Chapter 2, and the position that the Canadian government and business subscribes to is that liberalized trade promotes sustainable development. It is the government’s view that trade leads to economic growth which provides the resources for environmental protection, while a healthy environment provides the ecological and natural resources necessary to underpin long run economic growth stimulated by trade. Given this, the Canadian government can, through its pursuit of trade liberalizing deals, argue that it is promoting sustainable development and implementing the fundamental tenet of Chapter 2.
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This commitment was reiterated most recently at the July 1993 G-7 Summit in Tokyo. In the Economic Communique, the leaders of the G-7 nations noted that maintaining and expanding the “We are determined to curb multilateral trading system is essential for world growth: protectionism in all its manifestations and agree that no recourse should be made to initiatives and arrangements that threaten to undermine the multilateral open trading system.” Since UNCED, the Canadian government has successfully negotiated a regional free trade agreement that extends the Canada-U-S. free trade area to Mexico and creates a North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).
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At the multilateral level, as of November 1993 the Uruguay Round has still not yet been completed. At the G-7 Summit in Tokyo, the leaders of the G-7 nations announced that their highest priority was a successful completion of the Uruguay Round and renewed their determination to complete the Round by the end of 1993. This is now a priority of the newlyelected Liberal government. Former Prime Minister Brian Mulroney had committed Canada to a “. . -further round of negotiations in which environment will be a focal point,” once the current Uruguay Round is complete. However, it is not yet clear when this next Round will begin. Seven years elapsed between the end of the Tokyo Round of GATT negotiations in 1979 and the start of the next Round in Uruguay in 1986. Given the urgency of the transition to sustainable development, and the important role for international trade, it is critical (assuming the Uruguay Round ends in 1993 or 1994) that the international community not wait another seven years, until the next century, to begin what will be the next round. The new Liberal government has expressed support for “..a “green” round of GATT negotiations, in which trade and environment will be linked,” but it is unclear whether this is contingent upon the completion of the Uruguay Round. In November, 1993, the Canadian government participated in a Summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum (APEC), a new institution created to govern economic relations among its 16 members. The November summit was aimed at trade liberalisation. From the perspective of ensuring that the environment and trade are mutually supporting, the Canadian government has worked with its partners in North America and internationally to promote the integration of trade and environment policies. The NAFTA represents the first trade agreement that has incorporated any environmental considerations. For example, each party to the agreement has the right to establish the level of protection it considers appropriate, parties agree that it is inappropriate to encourage investment through the relaxation of domestic measures, and obligations under specifically listed international environmental agreements are not affected by NAFTA. The environmental provisions of NAFTA notwithstanding, a separate “side deal” on the environment has been concluded between the three parties to the agreement. The North American Agreement on Environmental Cooperation (NAAEC), signed in August 1993, establishes a Commission on Environmental Cooperation that will inter alia foster and improve the environment in North America and monitor the environmental effects of NAFTA. During the negotiations of the NAAEC, the Canadian government consulted with a group of stakeholders from the environmental community as well as the business community. The Agreement is designed to establish a sound environmental foundation on which to build more liberal trading relations. At the multilateral level, Canada has worked actively through organizations such as the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and the GATT to promote the integration of trade and environment.
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In the fall of 1991, the OECD created a group made up of experts on trade and experts on the environment. This group met regularly throughout 1992 and 1993. This group was given the mandate to develop guidelines to increase the mutual sensitivity of environmental and trade policies. In June 1993, the OECD Council at the Ministerial Level endorsed Guidelines for Improving the Mutual Supportiveness of Trade and Environmental Policies and Agreements developed by the OECD’s Joint Session of Trade and Environment Experts. These guidelines represent the first stage of the experts’ work, developed to improve policy integration. The Canadian government believes that the application of the procedural guidelines will make a significant contribution to the improved mutual supportiveness of trade and environment. In addition, the Joint Experts have undertaken an ambitious work program to analyze the specific issues that can give rise to trade-environment conflicts, and to develop tools for dealing with them. In the GATT, Canada plays an active role in the Working Group on Environmental Measures and Trade. In this context, mutual supportiveness is being pursued through an analysis of the relationship of GATT rules to trade measures in international environmental agreements, the transparency of environmental measures, and the trade effects of packaging and labelling programs. Canada has also supported the work that has begun on the trade/environment United Nations Conference on Trade and Development.
linkages in the
Aid and Debt Canada’s most recent commitment to developing countries was made in the G-7 Communique (July 1993, Tokyo). The G-7 nations supported the succession to, or the renewal of, the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) Enhanced Structural Adjustment Facility; Canada supported the International Conference on African Development in October 1993; confirmed the validity of the international debt strategy; invited the Paris Club to continue reviewing the question of debt relief for the poorest highly indebted countries, especially with regard to early reductions in the stock of debt on a case-by-case basis; and announced that it would make all efforts to enhance development assistance, in particular to the poorest countries. At UNCED and in preparatory discussions, the Canadian government articulated its support for both the Global Environmental Facility (GEF) and the Multilateral Fund set up in conjunction with the Montreal Protocol as adequate funding mechanisms for the global promotion of sustainable development. The GEF is the multilateral funding mechanism of choice for addressing global environmental problems. It was established in November 1990 and is implemented jointly by the World Bank, United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP). The GEF will end its pilot phase in 1993. In addition to climate change and biodiversity, the subjects of the conventions signed at Rio, the GEF concerns itself with the global environmental issues of stratospheric ozone and international waters. Canada contributed
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$25 million to the pilot phase of the GEF and thereby fulfilled the Prime Minister’s commitment announced at Rio. Negotiations are currently underway to restructure and replenish the GEF. The objective is to have all relevant parties (i.e., the parties to the conventions, developed and developing countries, and the NGO community) accept the GEF as the permanent funding mechanism for global environmental conventions. Replenishment for the GEF is set for early December, 1993, at which time Canada and all other donor nations are expected to fmalize their financial commitments. At the second meeting of the parties to the Montreal Protocol in London in June 1990, developed countries agreed to establish the US$240 million Montreal Protocol Multilateral Fund to assist developing countries in meeting the targets set out in the amended Montreal Protocol. The fund is designed to help identify and assess the scientific and technical requirements of developing nations, to facilitate technical assistance and technology transfer, and to provide training and information. Canada will have contributed up to $15 million to the fund between 1990 and 1993. In 1992 Canada contributed over US $2 million to the Multilateral Fund. Negotiations are presently under way to determine a satisfactory replenishment level for the next three-year phase of the Fund. The deadline for replenishment was the middle of November, 1993. Canadian Government Green Plan funds are presently being used to help support both the GEF and the Montreal Protocol Fund, as well as Canada’s contribution to UNEP. Canada currently contributes $2 million per year to UNEP’s Environment Fund. This is up from $1.1 million in 1992. In addition, Green Plan funds are used in support of specific bilateral activities such as the $10 million Model Forest Program that Canada is implementing with Brazil, Mexico and Malaysia, as announced by the Prime Minister at Rio. Canada’s support for UNCED follow-up initiatives incudes $2 million for “Capacity 21”, a UNDP initiative to assist developing countries in sustainability planning. Canada is also providing $380,000 for participation by developing countries and NGOs in key international negotiations following up on UNCED, including the High Seas Fisheries Conference, the first session of the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) and negotiations on a convention to combat desertification. Agenda 21 confirms the commitment of developed countries to ODA to support sustainable development in developing countries. Through CIDA, Canada has established sustainable development as a priority for international aid. CIDA has developed a policy for environmental sustainability which reinforces the long-term perspective in sustainable development cooperation and encourages grassroots participation in sustainable development planning.
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For some years, Canada has committed itself to providing 0.7% of its annual GNP to ODA. The Prime Minister reaffirmed Canada’s commitment to achieving this target at Rio. In 199192, however, Canada committed only 0.49% of its GNP to ODA. During the recent election campaign, former Prime Minister Kim Campbell effectively repudiated the 0.7% target. There is nothing in the program of the newly elected Liberal government that suggests that ODA will in fact be a priority over the coming years or to indicate that it supports the 0.7% target by the year 1997. Moreover, the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) has had its budget cut twice since UNCED, once in December 1992, and again in 1993. However, Canada also continues to provide aid to developing countries for local initiatives through multilateral lending institutions. The most important of these is the World Bank. Canada has committed $829 million to the replenishment of the International Development Association (IDA) which was concluded in 1993. At UNCED, Canada announced that it will join other major donor countries in providing funds to promote environmental and developmental objectives in the world’s poorest countries. During the negotiations for replenishment, Canada strongly advocated the integration of sustainable development throughout the IDA’s project and program portfolio. In March 1992, the Canadian government announced the intensitication of bilateral environmental cooperation with Mexico, based on a 1991 Memorandum of Understanding between the two countries. Canada and Mexico reached agreement on a series of cooperation projects valued at $1 million to reinforce environmental monitoring in Mexico. In the agreement, there is provision for a formal mechanisms for the continuing development of additional bilateral initiatives in the coming years. From the perspective of debt, at the Earth Summit Canada proposed a new initiative to convert as much as $145 million of ODA debt held by 10 Latin American countries into local currency funds to help finance environmental and other sustainable development projects. For those countries wishing to take advantage of this proposal, debt conversions will be negotiated and implemented on a case-by-case basis. They will be subject to specific conditions, and related to the promotion of human rights and democratic conditions as well as to larger economic and financial considerations. Since Rio, CIDA, the agency responsible for this initiative, has negotiated and signed debt conversion agreements with El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Colombia, involving the conversion of some $80 million of outstanding ODA debt. Since 1988 Canada, as a member of the Paris Club of official creditors and the G-7, has approved various terms of debt rescheduling and reduction for lower-income countries. For example, in September 1992, Canada and other developed countries agreed that additional resource flows to sub-Saharan Africa must be substantially larger and on highly concessionary terms. Earlier, Canadian ODA debt initiatives for this region and for other regions including the Least Developed Countries and Commonwealth Caribbean countries has resulted in the forgiving of $1.1 billion in development-assistance loans owed to Canada.
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CIDA is currently supporting the “Debt for Development Initiative� set up by the Canadian NGO, Mennonite Economic Development Associates (MEDA) to promote the debt-fordevelopment conversion mechanisms among the Canadian NGO community.
Encoumging Macroeconomic Policies Conducive to Environment and Development Within the context of the G-7 and the Interim Committee of the IMP, Canada has supported international economic conditions characterized by monetary and fiscal stability. In July 1993, the G-7 countries made a commitment to provide funds to establish a $300 million Small- and Medium- Sized Enterprise Fund in close cooperation with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). The G-7 leaders also agreed to create a Special Privatization and Restructuring Program, in cooperation with international financial institutions, consisting of enterprise restructuring support and technical assistance focusing on an initial period from July 1993 to the end of 1994. In total this program is expected to mobilize $3 billion of G-7 funds. Further, the G-7 leaders encouraged their private sectors to assist in this process, sharing with their Russian counterparts methods and techniques to increase productivity. To this end, the leaders agreed to establish a Support Implementation Group in Moscow to facilitate implementation of their support to Russia. Through bilateral assistance programs, Canada has helped several developing countries, including China, to develop national environmental plans consistent with sound economic policies. Canada has pressed international organizations to better reflect sustainable development Canada has urged the IMF to factor environmental considerations in their operations. Canada has used the consideration into the design of its macroeconomic programs. replenishment negotiations and annual meetings of the multilateral development banks to persuade those institutions to better integrate environmental and social factors into their analysis and operations. Canada is one of the contributors to a study being undertaken by the World Wildlife Fund on the links between economic reforms and the environment. The study aims to determine to what extent economic adjustment both promotes and has the potential to harm the environment and to seek win-win approaches to the environment and development. This work will provide input to economic development policies guiding Canada’s provision of aid to developing countries.
CANADU
ACTIVITIES
EVOLVING
THROUGH THX SUSTAINABILITY
PROCESS
In addition to the initiatives of the Canadian government described above, various other groups and organ&&ions in Canada are also working on issues which bear on the commitments made in Chapter 2 of Agenda 21. Some examples of these initiatives follow.
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Business Council on National Issues (BCNI) The BCNI is a senior voice of Canadian business leaders on public policy issues in Canada and It recently produced a Research Bulletin entitled, “International Trade: The abroad. Environmental Dimension”. Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment (CCME) The CCME is the major intergovernmental forum in Canada for discussion and joint action on environmental issues of national, international and global concern. Through the Secretariat, the CCME recently contracted the Centre for Trade Policy and Law, and the Institute for Research on Public Policy (IRPP) to complete a paper entitled “Trade, Competitiveness and the Environment”, which was released in July 1993. Canadian Environmental Network. International Affairs Caucus(IAC) In July 1993, the IAC of the CEN were co-sponsors of a workshop on Sustainability and Trade, along with the Rawson Academy, the Sierra Club of Canada, the NRTEE and the Mining Association of Canada, which attempted to bring a variety of stakeholders around the table in order to exchange views on the relationships between trade and sustainability. Centre for Trade Policv and Law (CTPL) The CTPL at Carleton University in Ottawa, is actively engaged in research and dialogue on reconciling trade-environment issues, and the promotion of sustainable development through trade liberalization. The Centre organized an international conference on Trade and Sustainable Development in 1992. In addition, the CTPL conducted a study on Canada’s eco-labelling program, Environmenta choice, and its impact on developing country trade. As part of its ongoing research activities on NAFTA and sustainable development the Centre prepared a report on the environmental initiatives of Canadian business and their contribution to environmental protection efforts in Mexico. The Conference Board of Canada The Business and the Environment Research Program of the Conference Board of Canada is conducting research that bears on many issues raised by Chapter 2. For example, it has produced studies on the impact on environmental measures on the international competitiveness of some industrial sectors of the Canadian economy. That work has been supported by various federal departments and industry associations. It is presently undertaking a similar study of the non-ferrous metals industry in Canada and is working with APEC on projects related to environmental management in Pacific-Rim countries. The Canadian Environmental Law Association (CELA) CELA focuses its research on the environmental impacts of regional and multilateral trading agreements. It recently published a report prepared for the Ontario Ministry of Environment and Energy entitled “The Environmental Implications of Trade Agreements*‘. International Development Research Centre (IDRC) The IDRC does a great deal of work on issues of international cooperation, aid, debt and trade.
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International Institute for Sustainable Develonment (IISD) Canada’s IISD promotes sustainable development in decision-making at all levels and within and between sectors. As part of its international trade program, the IISD has brought together experts from countries at varying levels of development in a Working Group. This Group has begun to develop Principles on Trade and Sustainable Development which are designed to break new common ground between what have been divergent policy fields. These principles could also serve as a standard by which present and future trading arrangements could be judged. In January 1993, the IISD published Trade and SustainableDevelopment: A Survey of the Issues and a New Research Agenda. The IISD has also initiated a project on Investment and Sustainable Development, This project will address the impact of sustainable development on the financial services industry in Canada and internationally. The purpose of the program is to accelerate the integration of the principles of sustainable development into the operations of the financial services industry. The Mining: Association of Canada (MAC) The MAC is one of a number of organizations which have contracted the Conference Board of Canada to undertake a study on the impact of environmental measures on the international competitiveness of the non-ferrous metals industry in Canada. MAC, along with the NRTEE, Sierra Club, and the Rawson Academy also supported a workshop in July 1992 which brought together NGOs and the business community in order to discuss some areas where trade and environment appear to be most divergent. This project is ongoing and a report will be released in early 1994 which will attempt to identify the most critical issues for future study. National Round Table on the Environment and the Economv (NRTEE) The NRTEE is an advisory body to the Prime Minister of Canada on issues of sustainable development, It is also mandated to act as a catalyst in Canadian society to promote sustainable development. The NRTEE has established a Task Force on Trade and Sustainability which has provided advice to the Prime Minister of Canada on the environmental dimensions of trade agreements and international institutions in which Canada is a member. In 1993, the NRTEE provided such advice on the environmental side agreement to the NAFTA. The NRTEE is currently ex amining the trade and environment linkages that might be made in the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum (APEC), with the aim of developing advice in early 1994. This is extremely important for sustainable development given the fact that the APEC contains the fastest growing economies in the world which often pay little attention to the environment. The NRTEE has also published a number of reports, and a book on the aspects of the tradeenvironment relationship. North-South Institute The North-South Institute in Ottawa conducts and publishes policy-relevant research on relations between industrial&d and developing countries. Major program areas include international finance, trade and adjustment, and development assistance.
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Universitv of Western Ontario Centre for the Studv of International Economic Relations Located in London, Ontario, the Centre conducts studies on international trade and economic development including the development of global general equilibrium models. Researchers with the Centre are in the process of preparing a major analytical paper on trade and the environment. The Westminster Institute for Ethics and Human Values The Westminster Institute is a private, non-profit corporation devoted to the study and analysis of ethical issues of contemporary social concern. Located in London, Ontario, the Institute organ&d a symposium in February 1993 on Growth, Trade and Environmental Values which addressed complex ethical and political questions on the relationship between trade ad environment. The proceedings of this symposium will be published in early 1994.
OTHER RELEVANT INTERNATIONAL
SUSTAINABILITY-RELATED
FGRA
Various international organizations have projects underway that bear on the subject matter of Chapter 2. However, a number of these organizations do not have as their primary aim, the promotion of sustainable development. Because of specific work programs, they are included in the list that follows even though they cannot be character&d properly as “sustainabilityrelated fora”. 0
Business Council for Sustainable Development (BCSD) The BCSD is a global group of 48 CEOsfrom major corporationsformed to provide a business perspective on sustainabledevelopmentissues during the UNCED process.
a
Canadian Council for International Business (CCIB) The CCIB is the oficial National Committeefor Canada of the InternationalChamber of Commerce and the Business and Industry Advisory Committee to the OECD. It provides a unique channel for Canadian business to major world economic and intergovernmentalorganizationssuch as the UN, the OECD, the Worhl Bank and the GAIT. It represents its members’ interestsin thesefora on issues thatincluk promoting trade agreements (including the Uruguay Round) as catalysts for firrther trade liberal&ion.
0
The Centre for our Common Future (CCF) The CCF was initiatedas a focal pointforfollow-up activitieson Our CommonFuture, the report of the World Commissionon Environmentand Development
l
General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GAIT), GATT is a multilateral treaty established in 1947 to regulate multinationaltrade practices. The GATT’s Working Group on EnvironmentalMeasures and International Trade is charged withanalysingthe impactsof environmentalregulationson tradeflows.
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International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) ICC is a non-governmentalorganizationserving world business. It works to promote world trade and investmentbased onfree competition,to harmonizetrade practices, and provide practical services to business. National Wildlife Federation (NWF) The NWF in WashingtonD. C., works to educate individualsand organizations, to conserve natural resources, protect the environmentand to build a globally sustainable future. It has a large InternationalAflairs Division which works closely withNWs in other countries involved in trade issues. As part of its program on Trade and Environment, it conducts on-going research and analysisof trade and environmentpolicy issues with an emphasis on promoting sustainabledevelopment. Natural Resources Defence Council (NRDC) Located in WashingtonD. C., the NRDCfocuses on U.S. foreign policy issues such as internationaldevelopment assistance, and the multilateraldevelopment banks. It also works withtrade representativeson U.S. participationin NAFTA and the environmental provisions of the GATT. Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) The OECD is made up of 24 industrializednationsand explores economic policy issues common to its members. In 1992, exploring the linkages between trade and the environment became a priority issue in the OECD work programme. A draft set of guidelines designed to avoid conflictsbetween the objectivesof trade and environmental policies should be readyfor approvalby ministersby 1994. United Nations Commission for Sustainable Development (CSD) AT UNC’ it was recommended that a new high-level Commissionfor Sustainable Development be created. The CSD will monitor the progress and problems of governments and UN agencies in implementingthe decisions of Agenda 21 and draw attentionto urgent new and emerging issues in sustainabledevelopment. United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) UNCTAD has undertakena majorproject: “Reconciliationof Environmentaland Trade Policies* whichfocuses primarily on issues relevant to developing countries. It is also in the process of developing a PC-usable databasefor LDC governments and exporters, encompassing all relevant trade regulationsin their various export markets. United Nations Development Program (UNDP) Uh?DPis an organizationof the UnitedNationslinked to the General Assembly and to the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). UNDP assists developing countries inpromoting humandevelopmentand developingthe capacityto manage their economies. United Nations Environment Program .(UNEP) UNEP coordinates and stimulatesenvironmentalaction withinthe UN system.
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a
The World Bank The World Bank (IBRD)may be the world’s largestproducer of research on international jbance and development. In its role as a lender it provides low-interest loans for infiastruch4re and development projects in developing countries. These are o$en contingent on economic reforms similar to the Ih4F’s structural adjustmentprograms. The WorldBank oversees the Global EnvironmentFacility (GEF).
l
World Industry Council on the Environment @VICE) WICE aims to be the voice of worldbusiness on sustainabledevelopment. It was created in February 1993 and currently includes in its membership CEOs porn 90 companies. In October 1993, WlCE issued its “ParisDeclaration* which clearly outlines business principles on sustainabledevelopment,including trade.
l
World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Located in Gland, Switzerland,the World wide Fund for Nature has produced several pieces on the sustainable development implicationsof the GATT and has proposed changes to the rules of internationaltrade.
I I 1 I I I
SUGGESTED
READINGS AND INFORMATION SOURCES
Anderson, K. and Richard Blackhurst. Harvester Wheatsheaf, 1991).
I
Chapter 2
Assessmentof Agenda 21
The Greening of World Trade Issues, (London:
Business Council on National Issues. “International Trade: the Environmental Dimension”, Research Bulletin, A Periodic Publication of the Business Council on National Issues, (Ottawa: BCNI, April 1992).
I
Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment. Environment”, (Winnipeg: CCME, July 1993).
1
Canadian Environmental Law Association. “The Environmental Implications of Trade Agreements”, (Toronto: Ontario Ministry of Environment and Energy, 1993).
I
The Conference Board of Canada. Industrial Competitiveness. Trade and the Environment: A Look at Three Sectors of the Canadian Economy, Report no. 107-93, (Ottawa: The Conference Board of Canada, July 1993).
I I I 1 I
“Trade, Competitiveness
and the
Daly, H-E., and J.B. Cobb Jr. For the Common Good: Redirectinp; the economv toward community. the environment, and a sustainable future, (Boston: Deacon Press, 1989). General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade. International Trade 90-9 1, Vol. 1 (Geneva: GATT, 1992). Government of Canada. “North American Free Trade Agreement - Canadian Environmental Review”, (Government of Canada, 1992). Projet de sod&k
Planning for a Sustainable Future
21
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Assessment of Agen& 21
International Institute for Sustainable Development. (Winnipeg: IISD, 1992).
Sourcebook on Sustainable Develonment,
Keating, Michael. The Earth Summit’s Agenda For Chanee. A Plain Lang;uaPe Version of Agenda 21 and the Other Rio Agreements, (Geneva: The Centre for Our Common Future, April 1993). Kirton, John and Sarah Richardson. Trade, Environment and Comnetitiveness, (Ottawa: The National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy, 1992). Low, Patrick. International Trade and the Environment, 159 World Bank Discussion Papers, (Washington, D-C.: The World Bank, 1992). MacNeill, Jim, Pieter Winsemius and Taizo Yakushiji. Bevond Interdeuendence. Oxford University Press, 199 1).
(New York:
Richardson, Sarah (ed). Shaping Consensus: The North American Commission on the Environment and NAFTA, Report of a Workshop, April 7 1993, Washington, D.C. cosponsored by the National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy and the Environmental and Energy Study Institute, (Ottawa: NRTEE, May 1993). Round, Robin. “At the Crossroads - The Multilateral Fund of the Montreal Protocol”, A report for Friends of the Earth International, (London: Friends of the Earth International, 1992). Runnalls, David and Aaron Cosbey. “Trade and Sustainable Development: A Survey of the Issues and A New Research Agenda”, (Winnipeg: International Institute for Sustainable Development, 1992). Schmidheiny, Stephan. Changine Course - A Global Perspective on Development and the Environment, (Cambridge, MA and London, England: MIT Press, 1992). World Commission on Environment and Development. University Press, 1987).
22
Our Common Future, (Oxford: Oxford
Projet de socidk: Planning for a Sustainable Future
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Assessment of Agenda 21
Information Sources: Canada-U.S.
Free Trade Agreement Binatiolial Secretariat, Canadian Section, Royal Bank
Centre, Suite 705, 90 Sparks Street, Ottawa, Ontario, KlP 5B4, tel(613) 992-9385, fax (613) 992-9392. Business Council on National Issues (BCNI), Royal Bank Centre, 90 Sparks Street, Suite 806,
Ottawa, Ontario, KlP 5B4, tel (613) 238-3727, fax (613) 236-8679. Canadian
Council for International Business (CCIB), 50 O’Connor Street, Suite 1011, Ottawa, Canada, KlP 6L2, tel(613) 230-5462, fax (613) 230-7087. Canadian
Council
of Ministers
of the Environment
(CCME), 326 Broadway, Suite 400, Winnipeg, Manitoba, R3C OS5, tel(204) 948-2090, fax (204) 948-2125. Canadian Environmental Law Association (CELA), 517 College Street, Suite 401, Toronto, Ontario, M6G 4A2, tel (416) 960-2284, fax (416) 960-9392. Canadian
Exporters’
Association,
99 Bank Street, Suite 250, Ottawa, Ontario, KlP 6B9, tel (613) 238-8888, fax (613) 563-9218.
Centre for Trade Policy and Law (CTPL), Room 106, Social Sciences Building, Carleton
University, 1125 Colonel By Drive, Ottawa, Ontario, KlS 5B6, tel (613) 788-6696, fax (613) 788-3981. Canadian
International
Development
Agency, Place du Centre, 200 Promenade du Portage,
Hull, Quebec, KlA OG4, tel (819) 997-5456, fax (819) 953-5469. The Conference
Board of Canada,
255 Smyth Road, Ottawa, Ontario, KlH 8M7, tel(613)
526-3280, fax (613) 526-4857. General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), Centre William Rappard, Rue Lausanne 154, CH - 1211, Genhve 21, tel (022) 739-51-11, fax (022) 731-42-06. GlobalEnvironment
Facility,
c/o The World Bank. 1818 H Street, N.W., Washington, D.C.,
20433, U.S.A., tel(202) 477-1234, fax (202) 334-8750. International
Chamber
of Commerce,
38, Cours Albert ler, 75008, Paris, France, tel(33-1)
49-53-28-28, fax (33-l) 42-25-86-63.
The International Council on Metals and the Environment,
1550-360 Albert Street, Ottawa,
Ontario, KlR 7X7, tel (613) 235-4263, fax (613) 23-2865. International
Development
Research Centre (IDRC), 250 Albert Street, Ottawa, Ontario,
KlG 3H9, tel(613) 236-6163, fax (613) 238-7230.
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International
Institute for Sustainable Development (HSD), 161 Portage Avenue Past, 6th Floor, Winnipeg, Manitoba, R3B OY4, tel (204) 958-7700, fax (204) 958-7710.
Montreal Protocol Multilateral
Fund, Montreal, Quebec.
National Round Table on the Environment
and the Economy (NRTEE), 1 Nicholas Street, Suite 1500, Ottawa, Ontario, KlN 7B7, tel (613) 992-7189, fax (613) 992-7385.
NGO Forum for Sustainability, 63 Sparks Street, Room 603, Ottawa, Ontario, KlP 5A6, tel (613) 238-3811, fax (613) 594-2948. Organization 75775,
for Economic
Cooperation
and Development
(OECD), 2, Rue Andre-Pascal,
Paris, Cedex 16, France, tel(33) 1-45-24-93-14.
The Centre
for Our Common
Future,
Palais Wilson, 52 rue des Paquis, 1201 Geneva, Switzerland, tel (41-22) 732-7117, fax (41-22) 738-5046. United Nations Commiss ion for Sustainable Development, Department of Policy Coordination
and Sustainable Development, Room S-3060, United Nations, New York, N.Y. 10017, USA, tel (212) 963-5959. United Nations Conference
on Trade and Development,
Geneva, Switzerland.
United Nations Development
Program, One United Nations Plaza, New York, N.Y., 10017, USA, tel(212) 906-5000, fax (212) 906-5364.
United Nations Environment
Program, PO Box 30552, Nairobi, Kenya, tel254-2-333930,
fax
254-2-520883.
We&minster
Institute
for Ethics and Human
Values,
361 Windermere
Road, London,
Ontario, N6G 2K3, tel(519) 673-0046, fax (519) 673-5016. World Industry
Council on the Environment
@VICE), 40, Cours Albert ler, 75008, Paris,
France, tel (33) 1-49-53-28-91, fax (33) l-49-53-28-89.
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Projet de so&W:
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Chapter3
Assessment of Agenda 21
CHAPTER 3 Combating Poverty - Catherine O’Brien -
THE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM
Poverty is a devastating condition that affects an enormous percentage of the earth’s population. Sustainability cannot be achieved without eradicating poverty. However, the causes of poverty have their roots in both the international and national domains resulting in diminished access to economic, social, and political options by the poor. Therefore, efforts to empower poor communities to regain access to these options and transform oppressive systems which sustain poverty will require a multi-se&oral, multi-dimensional approach. While there is no single solution to eradicate poverty there are factors which sustain poverty on a global scale - the unsustainable burden of debt, terms of trade that favour industrialized countries, and production and consumption patterns that do not meet the basic needs of all people. Within countries, as well, there are similar patterns of marginalization, oppression, inequity in the distribution of resources, and limited democratic participation in national development strategies. Attempts to alleviate poverty have proven that addressing the svmptoms without addressing the causes of poverty will not work. Poverty is increasing along with environmental degradation. Poverty eradication and sustainability will be achieved through community based development strategies, transformation of national and international policies that impede successful development efforts, and mechanisms for communities and governments to share in policy formation. In addition, women, indigenous people, and youth must be fully integrated into the development of policies at the community, national, and international levels.
lktherine O’Brien is the Progmm Co-oridinatorfor the So&l JmSce Committee of Monfreal which coordinates the Alternative Treaty on Debt. The views expressed in this chapter ure those of the author who received input from a number of stakeholders, and do not necessarily represent this views of the Projet de so&&t!.
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Chapter 3
PROGRAM
Assessmentof Agenda 21
AREAS AND OBJECTIVES.
The long term objective of Chapter 3 is to enable all people to achieve sustainable livelihoods by providing an integrating factor that allows policies to address issues of development, sustainable resource management, and poverty eradication simultaneously. There are five objectives in the program area of Chapter 3:
1)
to provide all persons urgently with the opportunity to earn a sustainable living;
2)
to implement policies and strategies that promote adequate levels of funding and focus on integrated human development policies, including income generation, increased local control of resources, local institution-strengthening and capacitybuilding, and greater involvement of non-governmental organizations and local levels of government as delivery mechanisms;
3)
to develop for all poverty-stricken areas, integrated strategies and programs of sound and sustainable management of the environment, resource mobilization, poverty eradication and alleviation, employment and income generation;
4
to create a focus in national development plans and budgets on investment in human capital, with special policies and programs directed at rural areas, the urban poor, women and children; and,
5)
to identify and eliminate policies and strategies (business and trade) that promote inequalities and perpetuate poverty.
CANADIAN
1.
POSITIONS AT RIO
Offkial
Canadian
Position
At UNCED, Canada had three main objectives regarding combating poverty:
26
1)
to seek to obtain national and international commitment for action on providing sustainable livelihoods for the poor through national and international policies which address issues of equity and access to, and control over, productive resources, goods and services;
2)
to seek support for an international poverty focal point within an existing institution which would be part of an UNCED follow-up arrangement to track anti-poverty commitments, and would act as a clearinghouse for successful antipoverty programs; and,
Projet de so&&!: Planning for a Sustainable Future
Chapter 3
Assessment of Agenda 21
3)
2.
to ensure that poverty stays front and centre of the international agenda and that pressure is put on national governments to continue to address the issue of poverty within their respective boundaries.
Non-Governmental
Owanizations
Many NGOs make a distinction between poverty eradication and poverty alleviation. They believe that poverty will not be eradicated until the systemic causes of poverty are tackled. They view most anti-poverty measures as poverty alleviation since they address the symptoms -- hunger, unemployment, sanitation. B& the symptoms ti the causes need to be resolved. NGOs were deeply concerned that poverty was not a central issue for UNCBD until NGOs asked for it to be put on the agenda. They advocated for concrete commitments that would demonstrate the recognition of the root causes of poverty and for a genuine effort by the international community to address these issues. Consequently, NGOs stressed the need for a massive reduction of the debts of developing countries. They lobbied for fairer terms of trade and stressed that a global export-led economy will continue to impoverish countries of the South, despite the richness of their resources. In addition, NGOs cited the need for firm commitments to reach the minimum level of 0.7% official development assistance (ODA) by countries of the North. ODA should be an interim option until the present unsustainable drain of resources from the South to North is terminated. NGOs stated repeatedly that a number of factors which impact on poverty were not being addressed at UNCED. Militarization, the control of transnational corporations, and human rights are some of these factors. 3.
Business
and Industry
Business and Industry provided no specific position with reference to this chapter. 4.
IndiPenous
Indigenous Peoples defined poverty as the loss of land, culture and language. In the world’s “materialistic� terms Indigenous Peoples are the poorest of the poor; whereas Indigenous Peoples living in their traditional ways consider they are living abundantly off the land.
Projet & so&t&
Planning for a Sustainable Future
27
Chapter 3
COMMITMENTS 1.
Assessmentof Age&h 21
MADE BY CANADIANS
Lwallv-Bindiw
Documents
None. 2.
Political Pronouncements
During his disclosure of the National Statement of Canada on June 11, 1992 at UNCED, then Minister of the Environment, Jean Charest, recognized the links between poverty, the environment and development: “In Canada, we have heard the voices from developing countries describing their most pressing needs. The relationship between poverty and degradation of the environment is evident. Addressing it needs new commitments and much greater effort. We must break the vicious downward spiral by which environmental setbacks make,poor people even poorer and force them to plunder their environmental capital. � At Rio, Prime Minister Brian Mulroney committed to exchange $145 million ODA debt of Latin American countries for sustainable development projects. 3.
Alternative
NW
Treaties and Kari-Oca
NGO Treaties
At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organization Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Oca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. Many of the Alternative NGO Treaties outline pledges and action plans that would impact on poverty. Aside from the Poverty Treaty, there are also treaties on Debt, Trade, Alternative Economic Models, Militarism, Transnational Corporations, Consumption and Lifestyle, Women and Sustainable Development, Sustainable Agriculture, Food Security, Energy, and Urbanization. Internationally, NGOs point to differences between Sustainable Development and They see the Alternative Treaties as one mechanism for promoting Sustainability. sustainability, based on sustainable lifestyles and sustainable livelihoods. Many NGOs believed that Agenda 21 dealt with symptoms and did not deal with the systemic causes of environment and development problems. The Alternative Economic Models Treaty claims that the Brundtland Model of sustainable development will perpetuate impoverishment and environmental degradation.
28
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Assessment of Agenda 21
Chapter 3
The NGO treaties point out that current models of development are based on the exploitation of people and resources and cite the net transfer of resources from South to North as an example. The current development path will continue to marginal& more and more people and degrade the environment. Therefore, NGOS pledged to support alternative development models which are rooted in democratic participation and equity.
The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. Canada’s IISD co-sponsored the event to which more than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events. During the conference they developed and adopted a 109-point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter. Indigenous Peoples state that the concept of development has meant the destruction of their lands. They reject the current definition of development. Non-indigenous peoples have exploited native lands and resources, resulting in impoverishment. “In many cases indigenous peoples are exterminated in the name of a development program”. Indigenous Peoples want their right to consent to projects in their territories recognized. They also protest the military use of their lands. To encourage self-reliance, Indigenous Peoples encourage the cultivation of traditional crops for food rather than to use imported, exotic crops that do not benefit local communities. In addition, they state that development projects must be based on the principles of self-determination and self-management. With respect to industrial products, traditional activities such as making pottery, are being destroyed by the importation of industrial goods, thereby impoverishing local peoples. This is simply one example of the cultural impoverishment that Indigenous Peoples reject. DEFICIENCIES.
GAPS AND CONSTRAINTS WITHIN CHAPTER 3
There are many points of convergence between this chapter of Agenda 21 and the chapters on women, NGOs, youth and Indigenous Peoples - emphasis on community-based development, focus on sustainable livelihoods and empowerment of sectors of society that are marginal&d. There are also a number of critical points of divergence. Chapter 3 is noticeably weak on the systemic factors that perpetuate poverty. In addition, terms such as “poverty-stricken areas” imply a perception of poverty as a natural state that is internally generated. There are many useful recommendations for action but no concrete commitments such as cancelling the debts of the “poorest” developing countries, or other innovative mechanisms of
Projet de soci&4: Planning for a Sustainable Future
29
L4b.wessnlent of Agenda21
chapter 3
financing poverty eradication programs, and the monitoring of arms trading from north to south which fuel wars and armed conflicts in the south. Finally, given the magnitude of human suffering that millions of people endure it seems as if we have not done justice to them in this chapter. Partly, it is terms such as “poverty” which tend to sterilize the oppression that permits impoverishment. Partly, it is the sense that we have accepted the existence of poverty and will & to eradicate it. Mostly, it is the fact that the voices of the poor are absent in a chapter on combatting poverty.
COMPARISON BETWEEN COMMITMENTSMADE
CURRENT
CANADIAN
GOVERNMENT
POLICY
AND
Since no concrete commitments were made in this chapter, a comparison of current Canadian government policy and commitments made must take into account other related commitments. The Canadian government has voiced its commitment to reaching the 0.7% of GNP figure for ODA while present ODA levels are .42% or .5 % of GNP, depending on whose figures are used. In 1993 the government rolled back its commitment to increasing ODA. Canada’s International Development Agency (CIDA) has spent considerable effort in policy development. It has recognized the significance of integrating human rights, the environment and women into its development policies. Critics of CIDA claim that their policies are quite good but are not carried through the process of implementation. Canada has played a leadership role in advocating debt reduction. Prime Minister Mulroney’s offer to exchange $145 million of ODA debt for sustainable development projects was certainly made with the best of intentions. However, the majority of Latin American NGOs are opposed to debt conversion measures until the debts that they believe are illegal or fraudulent have been identified. (NGO Debt Treaty). Many Canadians are concerned about the North America Free Trade Agreement. They raise the issue that we are being locked into trade agreements that lead to the misuse of resources human, financial and material. We now have agreements that do not place limits on subsidies for military production, while there are limits on subsidies for food production. Internationally, Canada has an image as a wealthy country. The impoverishment that exists within our own borders is not widely recognized. A sustainability plan for Canada will need to take account of the factors that continue to marginal& increasing numbers of Canadians. The data collected by IISD for the Projet de Societe on sustainable development initiatives indicate that initiatives related to poverty are significantly fewer compared to others which points to the lack of practical commitment to poverty eradication. Anti-poverty groups are particularly concerned with the unsustainability of policies relating to employment and job creation.
30
Projet de so&W:
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I I 1 1 1 I 1 I’ I I I r
chapter 3
Assessment of Agen& 21
CANADIAN
ACTNTIlES
EVOLVING THROUGH THE SUSTAINABILITY
PROCESS
Canadians have played a dynamic role in the sustainability process. The Canadian government facilitated the participation of many sectors during the preparations for UNCED. There were representatives from business, NGO, Indigenous Peoples, women’s groups, labour, youth, etc. on the Canadian delegations. Canada repeatedly supported the contributions of these sectors in the UNCED documents. Seven treaty Canada has also figured quite strongly in the Alternative Treaty Process. coordinators are Canadians. Both CIDA and the Canadian Council for International Cooperation (CCIC) are supporting the expansion of the Alternative Treaty networks. Women’s groups have been extremely active. The Women and Environments Education and Development (WEED) project is involved in building Women’s Networks for Sustainability. As well, the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) has collaborated with the Indigenous Peoples in Canada and elsewhere in articulating their perspectives on poverty and sustainable development. These perspectives are reflected in the publication “Our Responsibility to the Seventh Generation“. IISD will soon release a paper entitled, “Impoverishment and Sustainable Development: A Systems Perspective”, which examines poverty approaches and processes and outlines a systems approach to poverty. The Liberal government is examining RESO, a community economic and social development model which originated in poor neighbourhoods of Montreal. The RESO has facilitated the collaboration of business, unions, community groups and various levels of government to promote an integrated approach to community development. This model is being considered for application throughout Canada.
1 r. I
SUGGESTED
1 -. #
Goodland, Robert and Herman Daly. Povertv Alleviation is Essential for Environmental Sustainabilitv, World Bank, Environmental Department Divisional Working Paper 199342, (Washington, D.C.: World Bank, Environmental Division, April 1993).
I I
READINGS AND INFORMATION
SOURCES
Clarkson, Linda, Vem Morrissette and Gabrieal Regallet. Generation, (Wkmipeg: IUD, 1992).
Our Responsibility to the Seventh
Government of Canada. Canada’s Green Plan, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1990). .
Canada’s Green Plan and the Earth Summit, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1992).
Canada’s Development
National Renort: United Nations Conference on Environment Brazil. June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991).
and
I Projet a’e sociM:
I
Planning for a Sustainable Future
31
Chapter 3
Assessmentof Agenda 21
International Development Research Centre (IDRC). Agenda 21: Abstracts. Reviews. and Commentaries, (Theodora Carroll-Foster, editor), (Ottawa: IDRC, 1993). International Fund for Agricultural Development, The State of World Rural Poverty. Johnson, P. Stanley. The Earth Summit: The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development tUNCED), (Boston: Graham & Trotman/Martinus Nijhoff). Keating, Michael. Agenda for Change: A Plain Language Version of Ap;enda 21 and the Other Rio Agreements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993). World Commission on Environment and Development. Our Common Future, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987).
Information Sources: Alberta Teachers Association,
llOlO-142nd Street, N.W., Edmonton, Alberta, T5N 2Rl.
All Native Circle Conference,
18-399 Berry Street, Winnipeg, Manitoba, R3J lN6.
The Body Shop (National Campaign on Child Poverty), 15 Prince Andrew Place, Don Mills,
Ontario, M3C 2H2. Cahueadow
Charitable
Foundation,
4 King Street West, Suite 300, Toronto, Ontario, M5H
lB6. Canadian
Council for International Cooperation (CCIC), 1 Nicholas Street, Suite 300, Ottawa, Ontario, KlN 7B7, tel (613) 236-4547, fax (613) 236-2188.
International
Development
Research Centre, 250 Albert Street, Ottawa, Ontario, KlG 3H9,
tel (613) 236-6163, fax (613) 238-7230. International
Institute for Sustainable Development
@SD), 161 Portage Avenue East, 6th
Floor, Winnip&g, Manitoba, R3B OY4, tel (204) 958-7700, fax (204) 958-7710. NGO Forum for Sustainability,
63 Sparks Street, Room 603, Ottawa, Ontario, KlP 5A6, tel (613) 238-3811, fax (613) 594-2948.
North South Institute, 55 Murray Street, 2nd floor, Ottawa, Ontario, KlN 5M3, tel(613) 236-
3535, fax (613) 237-7435. Social Planning Council of Winnipeg, 412 McDermot, Winnipeg, Manitoba, R3A OA9.
32
Projet de soci&& Planning for a Sustainabk Future
Chapter 3
Assessment of Agenda 21
United Nations Commis’ ion for Sustainable Development,
Department of Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development, Room S-3060, United Nations, New York, N.Y., 10017, USA, tel (212) 963-5959.
Women
and Environments
Education
and Development
(WEED), 736 Bathurst Street,
Toronto, Ontario, M5S 2R4.
I 1 I I
Projet de so&W:
Phning
for a Sustainable Future
33
Assessmentof Agenda 21
Chapter 4
CHAPTER 4 Changing Consumption Patterns - ElizabethMay “Our enormously productive economy.. *demands that we make consumption our way of life, that we convert the buying and use of goods into rituals, that we seek our spiritual satisfaction, our ego satisfaction, in consumption...We need things consumed, burned up, worn out, replaced, and discarded at an ever increasing rate. ” (U.S. Retailing analyst Victor L.ebowin the “Journul of Retailing” at the end of the Second World War, quoted in Duming, m Much is Enough?)
THE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM A major cause of the continued deterioration of the global environment is the unsustainable pattern of consumption and production, particularly in industrial&d countries. This pattern is well documented in global terms. As the Brundtland Report pointed out, global inequities are not sustainable. The population of the industrialized world, roughly 20% of the planet, consumes 80% of the resources and produces a similar level of waste. Excessive demands and unsustainable lifestyles among the richer segments of humanity place immense stress on the environment. The poorer segments, meanwhile, are unable to meet basic food, health-care, shelter and educational needs. Chapter 4 of Agenda 21 suggests that the demand for natural resources generated by unsustainable consumption be examined and that ways be found of using resources that minimize depletion and reduce pollution. Achieving sustainable development will require efficiency in production and changes in consumption patterns, which in many instances, will require reorientation of existing production and consumption patterns in developed societies.
Elizabeth May is the Executive LXrecfor of Cultural Survival Gmada and the Sierm Club of Canada The views expressed in this chapter are those of the author who received input from a number of &kdwlders and a% not necesmily represent the views of the Projet de soci&k
Pmjet de so&W:
Planning for a Smtai~~
Future
35
Assessmentof Agen& 21
Chapter 4
PROGRAM AREAS AND OB.TECTIVES
There are two main program areas in Chapter 4. Focusing on unmstaimble patterns of production and consumption: a to promote patterns of consumption and production that
1.
0
Developing national policies and strategies unsustainable consumption patterns:
2.
l
l
0
CANADIAN
1.
reduce environmental stress and will meet the basic needs of humanity; and, to develop a better understanding of the role of consumption and how to bring about more sustainable consumption patterns. to
encourage
changes
in
to promote efficiency in production processes and reduce wasteful consumption in the process of economic growth, taking into account the development needs of developing countries; to develop a domestic policy framework that will encourage a shift to more sustainable patterns of production and consumption; and, to reinforce both values that encourage sustainable production and consumption patterns and policies that encourage the transfer of environmentally sound technologies to developing countries.
POSITIONS AT RIO
Official Canadian
Position
At Rio, the Canadian Government had the following three main objectives in relation to Chapter 4:
36
(1)
to bring the goals of this chapter into line with Green Plan objectives;
(2)
to shift the debate over consumption patterns from the moral arena to an economic forum, and pursue the development of market mechanisms by which to address correctly the environmental costs of product consumption and material on energy use; and,
(3)
to expand programs that educate and inform consumers about their role in minimizing the wasteful use of resources, and that help them make wise choices in the marketplace.
Projet de so&t&
Planning for a Sustainable Future
Chapter 4
Assessmentof Agenda 21
2.
Non-Governmental
Owanizations
Canadian NGOs from the environment, development, peace, women’s, and youth communities increasingly recognize that consumption issues must be dealt with headon in order to solve the environment and development crisis. The alternative treaty negotiated at Rio (see below) stresses this reality. i Through the Rio process and beyond, the NGOs in Canada conducted and are continuing to conduct, a lively debate. NGOs are increasingly making links between the globalization of trade, the disenfranchisement of small communities and the widening gap between the very rich and the very poor. Evidence from around the world suggests that globally as well as domestically in the industriaked and developing world, the gap between wealthy elites and the larger masses of poor is growing. The NGO critique on unsustainable consumption patterns increasingly challenges the notion of economic growth as the sine qua lzon to economic activity. Thus NGOs were highly critical of Chapter 4 for its reference to “sustainable economic growth”. As Herman Daly and John Cobb pointed out rather sharply in their treatise, For the Common Good, “sustainable development” need not be an oxymoron, but “sustainable growth” most surely is. 3.
Business and Industrv
The business community has a major role to play with regard to changing consumption patterns. No specific submissions were made by business for this It is none the less clear that changes in consumption patterns must be chapter. supported by business and in turn these changes will drive the transition to sustainability. The business community in Canada supports the notion that healthy investment climates and the free operation of the marketplace will lead to the betterment of all peoples and reduce, over-time, the unsustainable nature of consumption patterns. Business and industry see the transition to sustainability as most supported through open market economies, and the globalization of trade and commerce. 4.
IndiPenous
Indigenous Peoples consistently draw the comparison between the unsustainable gap between rich and poor globally, and the similar gap between native and non-native communities in Canada.
Projet de sociM:
Planning for a Sustainable Future
37
Chapter 4
Assessmentof Agenda 21
Indigenous Peoples and elders stated that because society is based on materialism, rather than centres on “spirituality�, industrialized societies will be on a continuous cycle of accumulation, greed and exploitation without ever finding satisfaction. All societies must reconnect with a spirituality and value system which supports sustainable development.
COMMITMENTS 1.
MADE BY CANADIANS
Legally-Bindine
Documents
None. 2.
Political Pronouncements
While no specific commitments relating to consumption were made, some political statements bear on this issue. For example, at the signing of the Biodiversity Convention, former Prime Minister Mulroney observed that it was unfair and unacceptable that developing countries transferred more money to the industrial&d world in interest on their debt than they received in aid. It is not unrelated to the topic of consumption patterns that Canada committed to the 0.7% (of GNP) target for Official Development Assistance. 3.
Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NGO Treaties
At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organization Forum (Global Forum) and the Kari-Oca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. The Treatyon Consumptionand Lifestyle, Treaty on AlternativeEcommic Models, and the Treaty on EnvironmentalEducation for Sustainable Societies and Global Responsibililyall address issues related to consumption patterns. To counteract ever expanding consumption and production, the NGOs agreed that it was essential to develop new cultural and ethical values, transform economic structure, and reorient our lifestyles. Recognizing that the quality of life is not dependent on increased consumption of non-basic material goods, NGOs made a commitment to assess individual lifestyle choices and, on a broader basis, to participate with business and industry, government, academia, voluntary and
38
Projet de so&t&
Planning for a Sustainable Future
I II I I 8 8 8 I 8 8 If 1 1 8 i I 1 I
Chapter 4
Assessment of Agenda 21
community organizations, political groups, church groups, and others to examine jointly the ways we can improve our consumption and production patterns to meet basic human needs around the world. NGOs emphasize that an alternative, ecologically sustainable economy will be required to effect environmentally sustainable production and consumption patterns. They also believe that environmental education, both individual and collective, will play a central role in shaping values and social action. Therefore they agreed to promote and participate in environmental education activities such as training for environmental conservation, preservation, and management, as part of the exercise of local and planetary citizenship. Kari-oca The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference. They developed and adopted a 109~point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter. In support of sustainable consumption, Indigenous Peoples pointed out that they ” have lived,and kept this earth as it was on the first day.” Also, “If we are going to grow crops, these crops must feed the people. It is not appropriate that the lands be used to grow crops which do not benefit the local peoples.
DEFICIENCIES.
GAPS AND CONSTRAINTS WITHIN CHAPTER
4
This chapter is weak in that it deals only peripherally with the connections between poverty, The commitments made by wealth, population pressures and the natural environment. governments are vague and fairly noncontentious. Exhortations to greater economic efficiency, the reduction of waste and the wiser utilization of renewable resources are worthwhile, but only tinker around the edges of the fundamental question of whether unlimited economic-growth is sustainable in ecological terms. Recycling is a politically neutral objective, but changing the economic order will require significantly greater political will. Given the dramatic implications of understanding the connections between the doctrine of unlimited economic growth and environmental decline and social inequity, mundane recommendations to pursue further research are hardly adequate.
Projet de so&t&: Planning for a Sustainable Future
39
Chapter 4
Assessmentof Agenda 21
The history of the negotiations on this chapter explains the innocuous nature of its recommendations. The United States strongly opposed any reference to the notion of “overIndeed, that term does not appear in any UNCBD document. The Bush. consumption”. Administration reacted defensively to the notion that U.S. consumer and industrial behaviour held any responsibility for environmental degradation around the world. In the words of former U.S. President George Bush in the discussions leading up to Rio, “(t)he American lifestyle is not on trial. ” A discussion of over-consumption would have recognized more forcefully that both the South and the North have problems which need to be dealt with. The only benefit of this chapter, and it is not inconsequential, is that the issue of unsustainable patterns of consumption and production has been put on the global agenda -- no matter how timidly. It will require significant efforts on the part of NGOs and supportive governments to flesh out the relationships that Agenda 21 has side-stepped and to confront directly the challenge of designing a sustainable economic model. That opportunity will face the international community at the 1994 session of the UN Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) when this chapter of Agenda 21 will be reviewed on their multi-year thematic program.
A COMPARISON BETWEEN CURRENT CANADIAN GOVERNMENT POLICY AND CO-S MADE AT RIO To the extent that Canada’s commitment of 0.7% of GNP to Official Development Aid (ODA) is relevant to the issue of unsustainable consumption patterns, it should be noted that Prime Minister Kim Campbell has repudiated that goal. This represents the first time in over twenty years that the 0.7% figure has not been given at least lip service by the federal government. It represents a serious back-sliding since Rio on a matter of principle and substance. In terms of reducing the quantity of resources Canadians consume, Canada has already
committed itself at both the federal and provincial levels to a number of programs that are relevant to this chapter, if not to the larger issues of changing consumption patterns in a more meaningful fashion. The federal and provincial environment ministers agreed in 1990 to a 50% target for the reduction of solid waste to be reached by the year 2000. This commitment was later enshrined in the federal Green Plan. At the time of the Green Plan, Canadians were per capita the world’s largest generators of solid waste. In 1987, the federal government launched an “Environmental Choice” program, modelled on the “Blue Angel” program in Germany, where environmentally acceptable consumer goods are identified with a special label. This program encourages Canadians to vote with their pocketbooks by choosing more environmentally sustainable products. However much of these programs address “reuse and recycle”, they do not fundamentally touch the third “r” -- “reduce”.
40
Projet de socibttf: Planning for a Sustainable Future
Chapter 4
Assessment of Agenda 21
As well, Canada’s commitments under the Climate Change Convention should be linked to changing patterns of consumption. Canada is second only to the U.S. in per capita energy use and waste generation. The Canadian government has committed itself to freeze greenhouse gas emissions at 1990 levels to the year 2000. Unfortunately, the recently released National Report on Carbon Limitation Programs confirms what many environmental groups have been saying since the commitment was made in 1990 -- in the absence of any domestic implementation program for energy efficiency and conservation Canada’s emissions of greenhouse gasses have gone up. Moreover, the wasteful burning of fossil fuels appears to have risen faster than the rate of economic recovery. Canada persists in subsidizing fossil fuel mega-projects, but leaves renewable alternatives and efficiency programs unfunded. In 1992, for instance, the Sierra Club estimated, based on government reports that $10 billion in federal subsidies went to the oil and gas production sector. When Canadians do behave in a way that reflects more appropriate levels of consumption, economic indicators report the absence of spending as a serious crisis of “consumer confidence”. Politicians and economists encourage consumers to start spending again to promote economic recovery. The entire notion of debt in Canada has focused attention on publicly held debt. It ignores the billions of dollars of privately held indebtedness at high levels of interest to banks through the virtually universal reliance on credit cards. If North American consumers behaved as their grandparents did and spent only within their means, economic growth would be significantly impacted. The role of credit and debt, both individual and national, and its relationship to environmental degradation needs to be examined.
CANADIAN ACTIVITIES
EVOLVING THROUGH THE SUSTAINABILITY
PROCESS
There is very little government-initiated activity in Canada in response to Chapter 4 of Agenda 21. In fact, government activity is directed in the opposite direction: it is an unquestioned assumption of government and the private sector that consumer activity far in excess of material needs is essential to Can&t’s economic health. Government will have to respond in some fashion Chapter 4 in its National Report to the Commission on Sustainable Development since the issue of unsustainable patterns of production and consumption will be discussed at 1994’s session. The lead agency within government for coordination of Canada’s chapter on this topic is Environment Canada. Environment Canada The Environmental Choice Program was created in 1988 in response to growing consumer demand for the credible assessment of and information on environmentally sensible products and services. The EcoLogo is the program’s symbol of certification for products and services that meet (or exceed) an established set of environmental criteria. Criteria are developed by the Environmental Choice Board and then subjected to public review.
Projet de sociktt?: Planning for a Sustainable Future
41
Chapter 4
Assessment of Ageda
21
A Canadian Code of Preferred Packaging Practices was released in November 1991. Manufacturers, marketers and distributors or packagers are encouraged to better understand and assess environmental implications of their package and bring about changes to package design and production to minimize waste. National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy (NRTEE) The federal government has supported a social marketing project initiated and promoted by the This project will be pursued in partnership with NRTEE called SustainABILITY. ParticipACTION, to promote values and attitudes that will support the radical changes necessary to make sustainable development work. Pa&a&g Association of Canada (PAC) The PAC holds a packaging competition every two years. Since 1992 it has had a special environmentally responsive category and the winner, selected by industry peers is given an Enviro-Wise award. Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) The CLC is holding its 1994 conference on the theme of “Organizing for Environmental Change”. Its environmental education program, initiated in 1991, focuses on workers as consumers and citizens and makes direct links between workers, production and consumption. It has established environmental criteria for both products and their production which exceed current standards. Canadian NGOs at the national and grassroots level are exploring economic alternatives and more sustainable patterns of production and consumption. From large institutions such as the International Institute for Sustainable Development to grassroots efforts such as the Guideposts for a Sustainable Future, there is a lively conversation in Canada about the Increasingly, the NGO community is connection between our lifestyle and sustainability. questioning the connection between quality of life and quantity of consumption. An informal dialogue occurred around this subject through the “Commons Group“, a multi-sectoral body convened under the joint auspices of the Chair of the Standing Committee on the Environment Occasional papers prepared for Commons Group and the United Church of Canada. discussions informed the dialogue. Tangible efforts to reduce conspicuous consumption in Canada are already underway at the grassroots and community levels: The Fallsbrook Centre The Fallsbrook Centre in rural New Brunswick has, in conjunction with a local ACCESS Centre, initiated a pilot trainiig and skills development program for young people. The local economy is natural-resource driven. Through placements in local organ&&ions, participants will examine the socio-economic situation alongside the environmental situation. By working in food production and processing, agriculture, forestry and waste management, participants will come to understand the need to decrease consumption of materials on all levels.
42
Projet de soc2t.k
Planning for a Sustahable
Ftiure
Assessment of Age&
Chapter 4
21
Worldwide Home Environmentalists’ Network (WHEN) WHEN, in West Vancouver, was started to educate people on how to bring about positive environmental change, such as recycling in the home, and toxin-free homes and gardens, through daily-life activities and political change. Individual Canadians have also contributed. Statistics Canada is now tracking such indicators as taking reusable bags to the store, the use of public transit and recycling. Indications are that the core group of committed people who are prepared to reduce consumption is rising in Canada. There are significant variations based on regional differences, but trends indicate increasing lifestyle changes.
OTHER RELEVANT INTERNATIONAL 0
SUSTAINABILITY-RELATED
FORA
The United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) At UNCED it was recommended that a new high-level Commissionfor Sustainable Development be created. l%e CSD will monitor the progress and problems of governments and UN agencies in implementingthe decisions of Agenda 21 and draw attention to urgent new and emerging issues in sustainable development.
SUGGESTED READINGS AND INFORMATION
SOURCES
Adbusters Ouarterlv, (Vancouver: Media Foundation, various). Daly, Herman and John Cobb. For the Common Good: Redirecting the Economv Toward Community. the Environment and a Sustainable Future, (Boston: Beacon Press, 1989). Durning, A. How Much is Enoueh? The Consumer Societv and the Future of the Earth (Washington, D.C. : Worldwatch Environmental Alert Series, W. W. Norton and Co. 1 1992). *
Poverty and the Environment: Reversing the Downward SDiral, Worldwatch Paper 92, (Washington, D.C.: 1989).
Galbraith, John Kenneth. The Culture of Contentment, (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1992). Government of Canada. Canada’s Green Plan, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1990). . .
Canada’s Green Plan and the Earth Summit, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1992). Canada’s National ReDort: United Nations Conference on Environment Development Brazil, June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991).
Projet a% so&W:
Planning for a Sustainable Future
and
43
Assessment of Agenda 21
Chapter 4
International Development Research Centre (IDRC). Agenda 21: Abstracts Reviews Commentaries, (Theodora Carroll-Foster, editor), (Ottawa: IDRC, 1993). . Agenda 21: Green Paths to the Future, @. Spurgeon, editor), (Ottawa: IDRC, 1993). . A Guide to Agenda 21: Issues. Debates, and Canadian Initiatives, (Theodora -. CarrollFoster, editor), (Ottawa: IDRC, 1993). Keating, Michael. Agenda for Change: A Plain Language Version of Agenda 21 and the Other Rio Agreements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993). Timmerman, Peter, Abraham Rotstein and Peter Harries-Jones. Nature’s Veto: UNCED Debate over the Earth, (Toronto: Science for Peace, University College, University of Toronto, 1992). World Commission on Environment and Development. Our Common Future, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987).
Information
Sources:
Canadian Labour Congress (CLC), 2841 Riverside Drive, Ottawa, Ontario, KlV 8X7 tel (613) 521-3400, fax (613) 521-4655. Fallsbrook Centre, R.R. 1, Hartland, New Brunswick, EOJ lN0, tel(506)
375-8143,
fax (506) 375-4221. National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy (NRTEE), 1 Nicholas Street,
Suite 1500, Ottawa, Ontario, KIN 7B7, tel(613) 992-7189, fax (613) 992-7385. The United Church of Canada,
85 St. Clair Avenue East, Toronto, Ontario, M4T lM8, tel (416) 935-5931, fax (416) 925-3394. NGO Forum for Sustainability, 63 Sparks Street, Room 603, Ottawa, Ontario, KlP 5A6, tel (613) 238-3811, fax (613) 594-2948. Worldwide Home Environmentalists’ Network (WHEN), West Vancouver, British
Columbia, tel/fax (604) 926-5079. United Nations Co mmission for Sustainable Development, Department of Policy
Coordination and Sustainable Development, Room S-3060, United Nations, New York, NY, 10017, USA, tel (212) 963-5959.
44
Projet de socit%t?: Planning for a Sustainable
Future
Assessment of Agenda 21
Chapter 5
CHAPTER 5 Demographic
Dynamics
and Sustainability
- Theodora Carroll-Foster THE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM
Global population growth estimates have recently been revised upwards by the United Nations Fund for Population Activities (UNFPA) from 5.7 billion in 1992 to 6.4 billion by 2001, and between 8 and 9 billion by 2020. UNFPA forecasts that population growth will not plateau until 2045, at over 11 billion. Other forecasts predict a plateauing at closer to 13 billion, a result of the sheer momentum of population growth, even at stabilized rates, and the inadequacy of family planning and social programs and policies in many countries. Ninety-five percent of this growth will occur in developing countries, making it increasingly difficult for most Third World governments to keep pace with their peoples’ growing needs for development services (health, education, potable water, sanitation, waste disposal, liveable cities, etc.) and a better quality of life. Some of the fastest growth (an average of 6% per year, or three times average world population growth rates) will occur in cities such as Mexico City, Shanghai, Cairo, and Rio de Janeiro, where infrastructure is already inadequate, where socioeconomic problems are pervasive, and where the majority of inhabitants lead qualitatively unsustainable lives. Even countries like Canada are experiencing population pressures, due to accelerating growth in urban populations in Canada’s case from 5.5 million in 1931 to 19.4 million in 1986, and over 20 million in 1992. Seventy-seven percent of Canada’s population is now urban, with the majority of people concentrated in its four largest cities. Massive migration between rural and urban areas have created further demographic‘ problems for many governments which are already faced with the formidable task of supplying food for food-deficient urban populations, while simultaneously experiencing declines in food security. This trend has diminished the quality of life in both urban and rural environments, and is contributing to such problems as local and transboundary air pollution, ozone depletion, global warming, excessive energy use, solid and hazardous waste disposal problems, deteriorating water supplies and quality, and loss of productive agricultural lands.
Theodora Carroll-Foster is the Coordinator/Advisor of the Agenda 21 Unit at the Intematkmal Development Research Centre (IDRC). The views expressed in this chapter are those of the author who received input from a number of stakehoklers, and do not necessarily represent the views of the IDRC or the Projet de societe.
Projet de so&S?:
PIanning for a Sustainable Future
45
Assessment of Agenda 21
Chapter 5
The environmental impact of people is not only based on their absolute numbers but on their prevailing consumption and production patterns. The present scale of consumption by developed countries and the rising scale of consumption among some developing or newly industrial&d countries are putting increasing pressures on both the Earth’s sources and on its sinks or its ability to absorb the waste products of growing numbers of humans. PROGRAM
AREAS AND OB.lECTIVES
Chapter 5 contains the following three program areas: (1)
developing and disseminating knowledge concerning the links demographic trends and factors and sustainable development;
between
(2)
formulating integrated national policies for environment and development, taking into account demographic trends and factors; and,
(3)
implementing integrated environment and development programs at the local level, taking into account demographic trends and factors.
The three program areas focus on the links between demographic trends and factors, the environment, the integration of demographics and population issues in the analysis of environment and development issues, and associated policies needed to deal with such issues. The suggested activities in the chapter include research on building and strengthening national databases, the development of measurements of population-related damages to the environment and sustainability, the impact of population on critical resources (water and land), and environmental factors (ecosystem health and biodiversity). The activities also deal with the analysis of demographic processes, such as the dynamics of population-age structure, the impacts on resources, and the impacts of migrations on the environment. The suggested activities recognize the need for reproductive health programs to reduce maternal and infant mortality and the need for information on family planning. Also recognixd is the need for appropriate and feasible population policies as part of broader policies that deal with such factors as eco-system health, technology, human settlements, sock-economic structures, and access to resources. These programs and policies should be aimed at simultaneously preserving a more sustainable future and coping with the present needs of people. CANADIAN POSITIONS AT RIO 1.
Official Canadian Position
Developed counties, including Canada, pointed out the importance of integrating family planning and population programs into economic development programs if sustainable development was to be achieved. The G-77 countries, supported by the Holy See (Vatican), disagreed.
46
Projet de socidtb: Planning for a Sustainable Futmz
5 I I I
Assessment of Ageda
Chapter 5
One of Canada’s objectives at UNCED was to establish clearly that overpopulation is an environmental issue, and that the resolution of population problems is a key to sustainable development. The emphasis placed on the importance of the economic status of women in dealing with population programs and the need to involve men in education programs, was a Canadian objective met in this chapter. The issues in Chapter 5 have serious political implications because many :deal with culturally and socially rooted reproductive values and behaviours and require locally developed and culturally integrated survival strategies. In many developing, rapidly growing, poorly managed societies, the delicate decision on what resources to sustain fast, human communities or the environment, is usually made, deliberately or otherwise, in favour of the former at the expense of the latter. To reverse this trend there is a need to address structural, deeply rooted patterns and dynamics which involve economic, social, political and culttual determinants associated with human reproduction.
I 1
B 1 I I I 1 I I I R
21
2.
Non-Governmental Organizations
Within the Canadian NGO community, attitudes on population varied greatly. sectors of civil society had very strong positions on population.
Some
l
Environmental organizations were concerned with the inter-linkages between population and the environment. They used the concept of carrying capacity and the Holdren-Ehrilich equation to demonstrate the need to stab&e human numbers, while recognizing the overwhelming impact on the environment and consumption patterns in the North.
0
Women’s groups insisted that the, “population problem had more to do with women’s rights to informed reproductive choice, and access to reproductive health services including safe and legal abortion.” The empowerment of women was the underlying theme, and was important in and of itself. To some, population activists seemed to perceive gender equality as a means to an end.
.a
Development NGOs saw population growth and migration as a manifestation of inequities within and between nations. The social justice\human rights ends of this approach integrated most of the women’s groups concerns and analyses. Semantics were important: “population control” was condemned, whereas reproductive, maternal and child health care strategies, including family planning information and services, were called for, within the wider framework of development, human rights and empowerment of women and communities.
Canadian NGOs largely agreed with the content of the NGO Treaty on Population, Environment and Development (see below).
I Projet de so&k: I
Planning for a Sustakable Future
47
Assessment of Aged2
Chapter 5
3.
21
8
Business and Industry
Canadian business and industry supported the official Canadian position on this chapter. The urban trends currently under way in Canada and indeed globally will have a major impact on the future development of both national and transnational industries. 4.
Iudhenous
Many Indigenous Peoples reported populations around the world are declining whereas the focus of sustainable development is fixated on the issue of expanded overpopulation in the developing world. Indigenous Peoples have called for the protection of their cultural, territorial and political rights as a means to protect their shrinking populations as well as invaluable indigenous knowledge which is vital to the future for sustainable living. CO-S
1.
MADE BY CANADIANS
Lwallv-Bindhw
Documents
Political Pronouncements
None. 3.
I I 1 I I I I 1 1
None. 2.
1
Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca 8
NGO Treaties
At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organization Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Oca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. Of these treaties, two addressed the issues discussed in Chapter 5. Global Women’s Treatyfor NWs Seeking a Just and Healthy Planet This treaty presents the population problem as an issue of women’s reproductive rights.
1 I B I 8
48
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Future
8 B
Assessment of Agenda 21
Chapter 5
Treaty on Population,Environmentand Development The position taken by this treaty is that population should be framed as an issue of women’s reproductive rights. NGOs at the Global Forum asked for women-centred, managed reproductive health care; safe and legal voluntary contraceptive and abortion facilities; sex education and information for all children; and, programs that educate men on male methods of contraception and their parental responsibilities. _ -The NGO community also advocated increased access to, and availability of, child care facilities and parental leave and care for the elderly and disabled as family support services. Further, the treaty stated that all scientific experimentation related to reproduction should be open and accountable with respect to the concerns of women. In the NGO Treaty on Population, Environment and Development, there is no acceptance of the urgency to reduce population growth, as development NGOs and Southern groups insisted that such an analysis may lead to blame the most vulnerable groups (typically the poor rural women in the South) and may call for coercive fertility control mechanisms. Kill-i-OCi3 The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference, where they also developed and adopted a 10%point Indigenous Peoples’ Farth Charter. Within the Indigenous PeopZes Earth Charter, Indigenous Peoples emphasized that they must be free from enforced population transfer. Population transfer policies by state governments in many indigenous territories are causing extreme hardship, due to traditional lands being lost or developed without regard for Indigenous Peoples’ natural and cultural heritage and with traditional livelihoods being manipulated or destroyed by outsiders. DEFICIENCIES.
GAPS AND CONSTRAINTS WITHIN CHAPTER 5
This chapter is concerned almost exclusively with research, assessment, monitoring, and information gathering and sharing. Operational recommendations are weak, and build on the smallest common denominator, with minimal compromise. The issue of abortion is not addressed. Chapter 5 barely touches on the need to learn from, or evaluate, past population policies or programs, especially given the incorporation of environment into population and economic policies and vice versa. However, it encourages governments to share their experience on the implementation of Agenda 21 at the United Nations Conference on Population and Development in September 1994 in Cairo, Egypt, although it does not specify mechanisms for collecting, comparing and analysing lessons learned. Projet de sod&t?:
Plmming for a
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Assessment of Age&k 21
Chapter 5
Chapter 5 says little about the experiences learned from or the urgent need to evaluate, previous population policies that have been implemented with minimal success over the last three decades. By adding the environment component to population policies, or adding population components to environmental policies, some policy researchers and decision-makers fear that the risk that such policies might fail is increased, hence the need to build on previous experiences is urgent and relevant. .- z Human beings, demographic dimensions, quality of life, and other terms are vaguely defined in the Chapter and give rise to contradictory interpretations depending on social, political or religious contexts. In fact religious constraints, inhibitions or dictates about population issues, family planning and contraception are barely alluded to, despite their pervasive influence on populations generally and policy-makers specifically. While Chapter 5 recommends increased research into various aspects of demographic dynamics, it may be argued that research should also be directed at ways to reduce the growth rate of the planet’s population. Indeed, terms such as “family planning” and “contraception” do not appear at all in Agenda 21. Despite this weakness, the activities suggested in this chapter are nonetheless necessary to develop appropriate policies which encourage sustainable development. As such, the merit of these activities should not be diminished. What is missing, however, is some resolution on the importance of controlling growth of the global population. If the global population is indeed a “crisis” as many believe it to be, then it should have been treated as such in Agenda 21. One of Canada’s objectives which was not met, for example, was to seek to gain national and international recognition of the importance of reproductive health service availability in developing countries. In part, the lack of attention devoted in Agenda 21 to the population problem may be attributed to the religious and political sensitivities associated with a discussion of population growth. Moreover, given that the population problem is expected to be fully addressed at the International Conference on Population and Development to be held in Cairo in 1994, there was an added incentive not to address population issues in great depth at UNCED. Hence, although serious discussion of the population issue was held in abeyance for two years, it is hoped by many countries, including Canada, that work can begin on understanding more about the demographic factors which are associated with population growth and associated environmental stresses. This work will undoubtedly be a useful input to the Conference on Population and Development. The chapter itself suggests that governments and other relevant actors could report on the status of their activities related to population at the Conference, as well as share their experiences in the implementation of Agenda 21. The chapter also states that its recommendations should in no way prejudice discussions at this forthcoming Conference. In summary, the chapter succeeds in providing a framework for future action to combat the problem of overpopulation. The question is whether governments will demonstrate the political will to commit the necessary resources to deal with the world population crisis before it is too late. Where the chapter appears weak, (largely as a result of pressure from specific interest groups), is in the provision of specific remedies to the problem of overpopulation. However,
50
Projet de sociitk
Planning for a SustainabLe Future
Assessment of Agenda 21
Chapter 5
Agenda 21 is generally lacking in specificity and so Chapter 5 does not appear unduly out of place in this regard. In general, Chapter 5 has been viewed by the international community as relatively unimportant, at least in view of the upcoming International Conference on Population and Development. The last paragraph in the Chapter states: “The recommendations contained in this chapter should in no way prejudice discussions that the International Conference on Population and Development in 1994, which will be the appropriate forum for dealing with population and development issues.. . “. COMPARI!3ON CO-S
BETWEEN MADE
CURRENT
CANADIAN
GovERlvMEmT
POLICY
AND
Because no specific commitments were made with respect to population and because no overarching population policy exists in Canada, no comparison can be made. Canada, in contrast with the majority of developing countries, does not have a comprehensive population policy and/or program as such. It has various policies and/or programs that relate to an aspect or component of population (e.g., immigration, refugee assistance, humanitarian aid, labour, etc.). Between 1985 and 1990, an estimated 17% of CIDA’s aid was used to, “support projects designed to reduce, directly and indirectly, population growth”. Approximately, C $225 million was spent on population, family planning and other demographic projects. During the period between 1971 and 1992, the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) invested over $42 million in population and development research projects, especially in the areas of fertility and family planning, population trends and problems, census methodologies and training, and the development of quantitative population databases. Since the late 198Os, IDRC retrenched in the population field, but continues to support the development of a contraceptive vaccine by India’s National Institute of Immunology and is preparing for the United Nations Population Conference in Cairo in 1994. CANADIAN ACTIVITIES
EVOLVING THROUGH THE SUSTAINABILITY
PROCESS
In order to implement the activities in this chapter, between 1993 and 2000 US $7.1 billion per year are needed, including US $3.5 billion from the international community on grant or concessional terms. Few government or non-government institutions in Canada are specifically addressing the population issue. If they are, they are only able to allocate rather limited resources (financial or otherwise) due to competing demands, pressures for scarce resources, and/or recalcitrance. A multi-se&oral non-governmental National Advisory Council (NAC) has been formed to provide NGO input into the national and international preparations for the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD). The NAC-ICPD advises the Canadian Government, through a consultative process, on the positions that it adopts relative to the objectives and issues of the ICPD as well as on the Canadian National Report on Population which is being prepared for the ICPD Secretariat. The Council is also involved in information
Projet de socih?:
Planning for a Sustainable
Future
51
Assessment of Agenda 21
Chapter 5
dissemination , awareness raising, development of NGO dialogue, consensus-building, public outreach, and cultivating political support for discussion of, and action on, these issues. OTHER RELEVANT INTERNATIONAL
SUSTAINABILITY-RELATED
F’ORA
l
Independent Commission for Population and Quality of Life
0
The Population Council
l
United Nations Commission for Sustainable Development (CSD)
l
United Nations Environmental Program &JNEP)
0
United Nations Family Planning Association (UNFPA)
a
United Nations Population Fund
0
United Nations International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD), Cairo, September 1994.
SUGGESTED READINGS AND INF’ORMATION
SOURCES
Beckett, Diane. A Survev of CIDA Programming in Sutxxnt of UNCED’s Ag-enda 21 1985/861990/91, (Ottawa: CIDA, Environment and Development Policy Division, Policy Branch, n.d.). “Blaming the Victims: Population Control in the Third World” in Third World Resurgence, No.16, (Malaysia: Third World Network, December 1991). Carroll-Foster, Theodora. Women. Religion and Develonment - The Imnact of Religion on Women Development, (Connecticut: PraegexYGreenwood Press, 1982). Centre des Nations Unies pour les etablissements humains. Population. etablissements humains, environnement et develonuement, (undated).
Clarke, John I and David W. Rhind. Population Data and Global Environmental Change, (Paris, ISSC/UNESCO series: 5, 1992). Clifford, Gordon. A Oualitative Review of the Economic Imnlications of Agenda 21, (Ottawa: Department of External Affairs and International Trade, Environment Division, March 1993).
52
Projet de socitftk Planning for a Sustainable Ftiure
Assessment of Agenda 21
Chapter 5
Government of Canada. Canada’s Green Plan, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1990). . Canada’s Green Plan and the Earth Summit, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1992).
Canada’s Development
National Re-port: United Nations Conference on Environment Brazil, June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991). --y
. Our Common Agency, 1992).
Agenda,
(Ottawa:
Canadian
International
and
Development
. The State of Canada’s Environment, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1992). Harrison, Paul. The Third Revolution: Environment. Ponulation and a Sustainable World, (London and New York: LB. Tam-is & Co./Penguin Books, 1992). Holdren, John P. “Population and the Energy Problem” in Ponulation and Environment: A Journal of Interdisciplinarv Studies, 12:3, Spring 1991. Holmberg, Johan, Koy Thomson, and Lloyd Timberlake. Facing; the Future: Beyond the Earth Summit, (London: IIED/EarthScan, 1993). International Development Research Centre QDRC). A Backgrounder on Current Activities, (Ottawa: IDRC, July 1992). . Agenda 21: Abstracts. Reviews, and Commentaries, (Theodora Carroll-Foster, editor), (Ottawa: IDRC, 1993). IUCN/UNEP/WWF. Caring; for the Earth: Switzerland: October, 199 1).
A Strategv for Sustainable Living,
(Gland,
Keating, Michael. Agenda for Change: A Plain Language Version of Agenda 21 and the Other Rio Agreements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993). Piel, Gerald. “Agenda 21: A New Magna Carta”, Earth Summit Times, September 14, 1992. Sadik, Nafis. Statement at UNCED, (Brazil: United Nations Family Planning Association, June 8, 1992). United Nations. Ponulation Pressures: A Complex Equation, Earth Summit in Focus, Number 6, February 1992. United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED). The Global Partnershin for Environment and DeveloDment: A Guide to Agenda 21, (Geneva, Switzerland: April 1992).
Projet & soci&k
Planning for a Sustainable Future
53
Assessmerot of Agenda 21
Chapter 5
United Nations Family Planning Association (UNFPA), Ponulation and the Environment: The Challenges Ahead, (New York: UNFPA. 1991). United Nations Population Fund. The State of the World Pouulation 1992. United Nations Population Fund. Ponulation Issues: Briefing Kit 1992. United Nations Population Fund. Ponulation in the 21st Centurv: UNFPA and Agenda 21. (New York, 1992). Women’s Global Forum. Women’s Action Agenda 21, (1992). World Commission on Environment and Development. Our Common Future, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987).
Information
Sources:
Canadian International Development Agency, Place du Centre, 200 Promenade du Portage, Hull, Quebec, KlA OG4, tel (819) 997-5456, fax (819) 953-5469. Independent Co mmission for Population and Quality of Lie,
1, rue Miollis, 75732, Paris,
Cedex 15, France, tel (33-l) 45.68.45.72, fax (33-l) 40.61.91.36. InternationalDevelopment
Researclh Centre, 250 Albert Street, Ottawa, Ontario, KlG 3H9,
tel (613) 236-6163, fax (613) 238-7230. United Nations Commiss’ Ion for Sustainable Development, Department of Policy Coordination
and Sustainable Development, Room S-3060, United Nations, New York, N.Y., 10017, USA, tel(212) 963-5959. UnitedNations Environment Program,
P.O. Box 30552, Nairobi, Kenya, tel(254-2) 33-39-30,
fax (254-2) 52-08-83. United Nations International Conference on Population and Development, 1994, Secretariat,
c/o United Nations Population Fund, 220 E. 42 Street, New York, N.Y., 10017, USA, tel (212) 297-5244/5245, fax (212) 297-5250.
54
Projet de socik?:
Planning for a Sustainable Fzhm
Assessment of Agenda 21
Chapter 6
CHAPTER 6 Protecting and Promoting Human Health
- Trevor Hancock THE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM
“Human beings are at the centre of concern for sustainable development. They are entitled to a healthy and productive life in harmony with nature”. This is the first principle in the preamble to the Declaration on Sustainable Development adopted at the UN Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro in 1992. It makes it clear that human health and wellbeing are intimately linked to environmental sustainability. Indeed, in its report, the World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED) echoed many of the themes and concerns that lie behind World Health Organ&&ion’s “Health For All” strategy, placing them in an environmental, economic and development context. While there is little in the report that is explicitly about health, in her presentation to the World Health Assembly in 1988, Gro Harlem Brundtland commented “Recently, I was asked why health was not one of these issues [in the Report]. My reply is: ultimately, the whole report is about health. ” Indeed, in a section on improving health, the report notes that “good health is the foundation of human welfare and hence a broad-based policy is essential for sustainable development. For its part, WHO’s input to the Rio conference was through the WHO Commission on Health and Environment (WHO, 1992). The Commission identified a set of global challenges to health and the environment, including demographic challenges resulting from population growth, the
Trevor Hancock is a public heah% consultant working in the area of health promotion in Canada, the Unifed Wes and Europe. The views expressed in this chpter are those of the author who received input from a number of stakeholders, and do not necessa@ represent the views of the Projet de socit?t&.
Projet de so&t&
Planning for a Sustainable Future
55
Assessment of Agenda 21
Chapter 6
challenge of the poverty that afflicts some 40% of the world’s population, the problem of excessive levels of resource consumption in developed countries and the macroeconomic policies that have stressed economic concerns to the neglect of social, health and environmental effects. The Commission reviewed a set of major issues where health, environment and development are closely related, including food and agriculture, water, energy use, industry, human settlements and transboundary pollution. To address these issues, the report proposed twp- principles ”. . .central to a healthier and more sustainable planet: first, more equitable access tb- resources within and between countries; second, citizen participation.” It also idenl;ified the following three main global objectives. 0
Achieving a sustainable basis for health for all. This demands a slowing down and eventual halt to population growth as soon as possible, and the promotion of lifestyles and patterns of consumption among affluent groups and developed countries that are consistent with ecological sustainability.
0
Providing an environment that promotes health. This involves reducing the risk of physical, chemical and biological hazards and ensuring that everyone has the means to acquire the resources on which health depends.
l
Making all individualsand organizationsaware of their responsibilityfor health and its environmentalbasis. Health professionals should take the lead in moves to improve the environment and to inform governments and the public about the health implications of development and the costs and benefits of different options to reduce health risks.
Health and development thus are intimately interconnected: sound development is not possible Yet, both insufficient development leading to poverty and without a healthy population. inappropriate development resulting in overconsumption, coupled with an expanding world population, can result in severe health problems in both developing and developed nations. These issues have received further attention in the 1993 World Development Report (World Bank, 1993) and in WHO’s Drat? Global Strategy for Health and Environment (WHO, 1993) which notes that “. . . .the broad links between health and environment are taken in the context of sustainable development, going beyond the health determinants of the physical environment and encompassing the health consequences of interaction between human populations and-the whole range of factors in their physical and social environments.“ The Draft Strategy calls for an enhanced program for the promotion of environmental health with three main components rural, urban and global - and an expanded program for the promotion of chemical safety. Chapter 6 addresses the primary health needs of the world’s population in the context of these reports; it is recognized that these health needs are integral to the achievement of the goals of sustainable development and primary environmental care and that the health sector cannot meet basic needs and objectives on its own; it is dependent on social, economic and spiritual development, while directly contributing to such development.
56
Projet de socibtt? Planning
for a
Sustainable F~hrre
Assessment of Aged5
Chapret 6
21
The linkage of health, environmental and so&-economic improvements requires inters&oral efforts. Such efforts, including all sectors of society, should aim to enable people to ensure health-promotion and sustainable development within their own communities. Countries ought to develop plans for priority actions which are based on cooperative planning by various levels of government, NGOs and local communities. The WHO would be an appropriate coordinating body for activities aimed at protecting and promoting human health. PROGRAM
AREAS AND OBJECTIVES
There are five main program areas in Chapter 6. These are: 1.
Rural Primary Health Care
This program area includes the following objectives: 0 to meet the basic health needs of peri-urban and urban qopulations, in particular a safe water supply, sanitation, a safe food supply and proper nutrition; 0 to provide necessary specialized environmental health services; 0 to coordinate the involvement of citizens, the health sector, health-related sectors and relevant non-health sectors (business, social, educational and religious institutions) in solutions to health problems; and, 0 to secure health service coverage, especially primary health services, for population groups in the greatest need, particularly those living in rural areas. 2.
Communicable Disease Control
Despite the development of vaccines and other medicines which control and eradicate communicable diseases, many people still suffer from such diseases as polio, cholera, tuberculosis, leprosy, diarrhoea, malaria and schistosomiasis. These communicable diseases are the result of lack of proper housing, clean water and sanitation, combined with inadequate health care. Within the overall strategy to achieve health for all by the year 2000, national governments should develop a national health plan to include a national public health system, public information and education, intersectoral cooperation and coordination, control of environmental factors that influence the spread of infectious diseases, and a primary health care system. Some major global goals are: 0 to eliminate guinea-worm disease (dracunculiasis) and polio, and control oncho-cerciasis (river blindness) and leprosy; 0 to mobilize and unify national and international efforts to control HIV infection; 0 to control tuberculosis, especially the new drug-resistant varieties; 0 to provide 95% of the world’s children with treatment for acute respiratory infections; Projet de sociktt?: Planlring for a Sustahzbb
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57
Assessmend of Ageuaiz 21
Chapter 6
0
0 0 3.
to cut childhood diarrhoea deaths in developing countries by 50% to 70%; to have anti-malaria programs in all countries where malaria presents a significant health problem; and, to reduce death due to measles by 95% by 1995.
Protection of Vulnerable Groups (infants, youth, women, and zindigenous .-L peoples)
The general objectives of protecting vulnerable groups are: 0 to ensure that all such individuals are allowed to develop to their full potential (including physical, mental and spiritual development); l to ensure that young people can develop, establish and maintain healthy lives, as agreed upon at the World Summit for Children in 1990; 0 to allow women to choose their family size and to perform their key role in society; and, 0 to support indigenous people through educational, economic and technical opportunities. 4.
Urban Health
All too often, urban development is associated with destructive effects, environmental pollution, overcrowding, and inadequate housing. These can contribute to excess morbidity and mortality. Since in urban environments, many factors that affect human health are outside the health sector, improving the health and well-being of all urban dwellers will require coordinated action by all levels of government and all sectors of society. The global objective is to achieve a 10% to 40 % improvement in health conditions by the year 2000 through: 0 the development and implementation of municipal and local health plans by intersectoral committees at the political and technical levels; 0 the assessment, where necessary, of existing health, social and environmental conditions in cities, including intra-urban differences; 0 strengthening environmental health services; and, 0 the establishment and maintenance of city networks for collaboration and exchange of models of good practice.
5.
Environmental Health Risks
In many locations around the world, the general environment, workplaces and even individual dwellings are so badly polluted that the health of hundreds of millions of people is adversely affected.
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The global objective is to minimize hazards and maintain the environment to a degree that human health and safety is not impaired or endangered and yet encourage development to proceed. Specific program objectives by the year 2000 include: 0 incorporating appropriate environmental and health safeguards as part of national development programs in all countries; 0 establishing adequate national infrastructure and programs for providing environ-mental injury and hazard surveillance as the basis for abatement in all countries; 0 establishing integrated programs for tackling pollution at the source and at the disposal site, with a focus on abatement actions in all countries; and, 0 identifying and compiling the necessary statistical information on health effects to support cost/benefit analysis, including environmental health impact assessment for pollution control, prevention, and abatement measures. CANADIAN POSITIONS AT RIO
1.
Official Canadian Position
At Rio, Canada had three main objectives concerning the protection and promotion of human health: (1) (2) (3) 2.
to seek to have health and well-being recognized as the most fundamental objective of economic development activity; to seek to have recognized the importance of including health as a fundamental criterion in all development initiatives; and, to seek support for the concept that individual awareness of health is in itself empowering.
Non-Governmental
Owanizations
Canadian NGOs with expertise on human health focused most of their energies on the Global Forum with the NGO Treaties (see below) rather than on the official UNCED process. Canadian NGOs participating in the UNCED process did advocate that: l
human health and well-being depends upon there being a clean, healthy environment, and therefore, that the protection and promotion of human health depends upon and is intricately linked with all of the sustainability issues, including those environment and development issues covered by UNCED as well as those issues, such as disarmament, which were not discussed at UNCED; and,
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l
all sectors of society need to be involved in planning, decision-making, policy implementation and management of both health-care systems as well as those issues which have effects on human health.
Canadian NGOs developed positions on a wide range of those Agenda 21 issues connected to human health, such as human settlements, population, wastes, and freshwater. Vyith regards to the Agenda 21 chapters focusing on human hea%, Women’s groups, in particular, brought forward positions favouring women-centred, womenmanaged comprehensive reproductive health care and family planning increased investments in comprehensive health services increased education and the elimination of environmental occupational health hazards. 3.
Business and Iudustrv
Canadian business and industry supported the tenets of this Chapter 6 and the Canadian Government’s position. It is recognized that there is a major role to be played by business in providing a suitable work environment as well education to further the objectives of Chapter 6. 4.
Indigenous
Indigenous Peoples identified the need for support of Indigenous Peoples’ NGOs involved in development at the international, national, and local levels to recognize traditional healing, and to support and protect intellectual property rights related to traditional medicinal knowledge and healing. In Canada and other areas, programs need to be developed to assist Indigenous Peoples in synthesizing Indigenous knowledge and western medicine. COMMITMENTS 1.
MADE BY CANADIANS
Legallv-BindmP Documents
None. 2.
Political Pronouncements
None.
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3.
Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NGO Treaties
At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organization Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Oca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. The Poverty Treaty, Treaty on Urbanization, Treaty in Defense and Protection of clzildren and Adolescents, Treatyon Population,Environmentand Development, Fresh Water Treaty, and Food Security Treaty, are all NGO Treaties which address issues concerning the protection of human health. Some of the proposals and resolutions adopted in these treaties are described below. NGOs proposed to democrat& cities, towns and villages by ensuring the fulfilment of all existing national and international rights and by creating new rights, changing the priorities for allocations of common resources locally, nationally, and internationally in They also proposed to universal& basic support of the impoverished population. sanitation services and infrastructure with equal access by all urban and rural areas. In particular, the right of children and adolescents to primary care was recognized. Each day 40,000 children die from malnutrition and common childhood illnesses; 150 million live with chronic health problems. NGOs asserted that children and adolescents have the fundamental right to primary care which includes food, shelter, basic medical attention, , and the opportunity for education and recreation. In terms of reproductive health care, NGOs emphasized the necessity of women-centred, women-managed and women-controlled comprehensive reproductive care. They also insisted that national and international communities act now to support community-based responses to the AIDS epidemic and other sexually transmitted diseases, respecting the human rights of those affected. NGOs stated that all inhabitants of the world should be guaranteed equitable access to potable water and sanitation as a fundamental right. NGOs prefer an alternative holistic approach to watershed management that encompasses both surface and groundwater. They plan to encourage the public and private sectors, water-users organizations, and local communities to use economic incentives. (e.g., pricing mechanisms, taxes, user fees, fines), and other mechanisms that will both signal the value of water resources and discourage wasteful and polluting practices.
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With respect to food security, NGOs pledged to increase sustainable agriculture production in urban, peri-urban and rural areas at the grassroots level, with emphasis on alleviating poverty and improving regional food supplies, small-scale production and self-sufficiency. They also agreed to advocate food security as a central objective in the agricultural and food priorities of local and national governments, intergovernmental agencies, and NGO and community groups, and for food security to become a central objective of trade policies. KitI+OCa The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference. They developed and adopted a log-point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter. Within the Kari-OcaDeclarationand the IndigenousPeoples’ Earth Charter, Indigenous Peoples stated that they wanted to maintain the right to their traditional and spiritual way of life. They emphasized that their health rights must include recognition and respect of traditional knowledge held by indigenous healers and stated that this traditional knowledge had enabled them to survive. Consequently, it must be recognized and protected Moreover, they want the usurping of traditional medicines and knowledge to be considered a crime against Indigenous Peoples. They also requested that the United Nations promote research into indigenous knowledge and develop a network of indigenous sciences. In the context of this chapter, the Indigenous Peoples explained their perspective on the interrelationship between human health and a healthy planet by stating: “We feel the earth as if we are within our mother. When the earth is sick and polluted, human health is impossible. To heal ourselves, we must heal the planet and to heal the planet we must heal ourselves. ” DEF’ICIENCIES. GAPS AND CONSTRAINTS WITHIN CHAPTER 6
One problem with this chapter, from a Canadian perspective, is that the five program areas, and in particular the objectives within those areas, tend to reflect a rather conventional health protection approach, rather than the health promotion approach that Canada has pursued in recent years. Moreover, the issues and objectives reflect the basic needs of developing countries, rather than the needs of a more industrialised nation such as Canada. At the same time, it is important to recognise that some of the stated objectives are still not adequately achieved in Canada (as will be discussed in the next section) and that Canada has its own “Fourth World” of Native reserves and settlements.
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The most apparent deficiency in Chapter 6 is the absence of any reference to the responsibility of the health sector as an economic sector in ensuring that its own practices are environmentally sustainable. The health sector is a significant part of any national economy. Low to middle income countries spend between 2 and 7 percent of GNP on health; established market economies spend from 6 to 10 percent (and in the case of the United States, 12 percent) of GNP on health; and the figure for Canada in 1990 was 9.1 percent (World Bank, 1993). Clearly this is an economic sector of significance, and from that viewpoint alone, the health sector should be environmentally sustainable. Yet in many ways the health sector is far from being environmentally sustainable; it uses large quantities of energy and material resources, including substantial and indeed excessive amounts of disposable products, and produces large volumes of solid and liquid wastes and air emissions, including significant amounts of hazardous wastes. A second reason for focusing on the health sector is because of its moral weight. No other sector in society should be more committed to sustainable development than the health sector. It should set an example of environmentally responsible behaviour, and take a lead role on environmental protection. Health professionals can and should play an influential role in their communities and in society at large to ensure that all development is health-promoting and environmentally sustainable.
COMPARISON BETWEEN COMMITMENTS MADE
CURRENT
CANADIAN
GOVERNMENT
POLICY
AND
The Canadian government made no formal commitments on the issue of protection and Accordingly, the assessment of its promotion of human health at the Rio Conference. performance must be based on a comparison of the gap between the commitments implicit in the three main objectives of the official Canadian position on the protection and promotion of human health and Canada’s actual actions in these areas. In addition, the government’s actions can be compared with the five main program areas in Chapter 6. The final three -- protection of vulnerable groups, urban health and environmental health risks -- are of particular importance in this respect. The first objective was ‘I... to seek to have health and well-being recognized as the most fundamental objective of economic development activity. There is little or no evidence that health and well-being is or has been - or will be - accepted as the most fundamental objective of economic development activity by the Government of Canada, or indeed by any provincial government in Canada. While it can be argued, with good reason, that economic development is beneficial to health, governments of all stripes appear to espouse and pursue economic growth as the central goal of public policy, without questioning whether such growth is environmentally and socially sustainable and whether it is beneficial to, or harmful to, health. Questions as to what type of growth in which areas is needed, and what the balance should be between economic development and other societal goals, are seldom addressed. Perhaps the closest approach to this position so far has been taken by the Premier’s Council on Economic Renewal in Ontario. A recent report of a committee of the Council has proposed the development of strategic goals for the Province based on three co-equal principles: wealth creation, social well-being, and environmental protection. Projet de soci&t!: Planning for a Sustainable Future
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The recognition of health and well-being as the most fundamental objective of economic development activity would require a serious commitment to “healthy public policy”, one of three mechanisms for health promotion identified by Health and Welfare Canada in a 1986 policy document, Achieving Health For All. But apart from commissioning a literature review (Pederson et al, 1988) and sending a delegation to the Second International Conference on Health Promotion in 1988, the Government has made no effort to further develop and implement the approach that it itself advocated. Several provincial governments, notably Ontario, Manitoba and New Brunswick, have established bodies to begin to develop this area and Ontario has published a report, Our Environment, Our Health, which explicitly addresses issues linking health and sustainable development in areas such as energy use, agriculture, forestry, urban planning, and development. The second Canadian objective was “. . . to seek to have recognized the importance of including health as a fundamental criterion in all development initiatives. Again, there is little evidence that health has been included as a fundamental criterion. In fact, until recently health has been subsumed under social impact as one of the factors in environmental assessment (EA) - itself just one factor in the decision-making process. A serious commitment to health as a fundamental criterion would require a full health impact assessment of all policies and major development proposals. This does not happen in Canada today, except as part of EA. On the positive side, the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act includes health as a distinct component in EA. (lt is noteworthy, however, that the Act, Canada’s principal legislation to protect the environment and human health, does not explicitly mention sustainable development!) In addition, a task force of the (Federal-Provincial) Committee on Environmental and Occupational Health has been working on national guidelines for including health in EA. This work should be completed in 1994. However, it appears that the emphasis will likely be on the conventional physical health measures, rather than the (admittedly harder to measure) mental and social dimensions of health that have been accepted by the federal and provincial governments for some years. The third Canadian objective that, “. . . the concept that individual awareness of health is in itself empowering”, is itself fallacious. It is not the awareness of health that is empowering; it is being able to do something about one’s health that is empowering. As the definition- of health promotion adopted by Health and Welfare Canada in 1986 states, “health promotion is the process of enabling people to increase control over and improve their health. ” In particular, this means that those who are most vulnerable and most disempowered in society must be given the opportunity and the skills to exert more control - individually and collectively - over the events and conditions that affect their health. The recession that has dramatically increased unemployment, poverty, hunger, homelessness and dependence on welfare in Canada, or, for example, the recent destruction of the east coast fishery (due, in no small part, to government failure to take effective action early enough), have had just the opposite effect, disempowering whole communities and thus harming their health.
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Chapter 6
Such economic and social policies in particular, have harmed the health of large numbers of children. The Government of Canada has failed to live up to its commitments with respect to poverty and the health of children made in Canada’s capacity as co-chair of the World Summit on Children in 1990. Coupled with the Government’s failure to address poverty, which drew criticism recently from the United Nations Committee on Social and Economic Affairs, this makes a mockery of this objective and the commitment in Chapter 6 to protect the health of vulnerable groups. A similar criticism applies to the health of indigenous peoples, another of the vulnerable groups identified in Chapter 6. Fundamentally, Canada’s indigenous peoples have been disempowered by being dispossessed and having their culture destroyed - for hundreds of years. This has led to some dreadful examples of abuse. The failure of the Government of Canada, and of the provincial governments, to expeditiously address the issues of land settlements and selfgovernment as a means to restore sovereignty, culture and self-respect, has sown the seeds of the poor health status of the indigenous peoples. Their health status - and the housing conditions, poverty, environmental despoliation and inadequate human services that are at the root of their poor health - should be unacceptable in a civilised country. In the area of urban health, the Government of Canada has also shown a lack of commitment. The World Health Organisation’s Healthy Cities Project - a major program in its “Health For All” strategy in Europe and of growing importance globally - had its origins in Canada. The Department of Health and Welfare funded a national Healthy Communities Project from 1988 until 1991, but then dropped the funding, despite the fact that the project had resulted in health being placed on the social and political agenda of hundreds of cities and towns across Canada, often coupled with environmental and sustainable development issues. Thus the most useful vehicle for addressing urban health and environmental issues - and a project in which Canada was acknowledged as a world leader - has been all but abandoned by the Canadian Government, although latterly a small amount of funding has been made available to keep the project barely ticking over at the national level. Fortunately, local action has kept the project alive in most provinces, although it only functions fully and effectively in Quebec and B.C. where the provincial government has provided funding support. In the area of environmental health risks, the federal Government, through Health and Welfare Canada, produced a comprehensive report on health and the environment - A Vital Link - in 1992 as part of its contribution to the Green Plan. An Action Plan on Health and the Environment guides funding. In addition, the Committee on Environmental and Occupational Health is working on a National Strategy on Health and the Environment, which is loosely based on the European Charter on Health and Environment (WHO Europe, 1989). However, these actions - and the environmental health work of Health Canada in general - tend to reflect a rather conventional approach to environmental health, emphasizing contaminants and the media (air, water, soil, food) in which they are found rather than the broader concepts of health and their broader links with the environment, and sustainable development. Chapter 9 of A Vital Link does address this broader perspective.
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On the positive side, some programs take the broader approach, consistent with the principles of health promotion. These combine a conventional scientific approach (which nonetheless see& to address the issues in a comprehensive and holistic manner), with community involvement and sensitivity to peoples’ needs. These programs include the Great Lakes Health Effects Program, the EAGLE Project (an assessment of contaminants and the health of Native people in the Great Lakes basin) and the Great Bear Project, a similar program for the Treaty 8 region. A broader approach is also evident in the Healthy Environments program of the Heals -tid Social Development Branch of Health Canada, although its social marketing approach places too much emphasis on the concept that individual awareness of health - or, in this case, healthy environments - is empowering (a point addressed earlier). Finally, while Canada’s performance is inadequate when judged against the broad health promotion agenda espoused by Health and Welfare Canada and exemplified by Canada’s own objectives at the Rio conference, its work in the narrower field of health protection has been internationally recognised.
CANADIAN ACTIVITIES
EVOLVING THROUGH THE SUSTAINABILITY
PROCESS
Although there has been no concerted effort to address health protection and promotion in the context of sustainable development, a number of individual initiatives have been undertaken. Assemblv of First Nations (AFN) The AFN’s EAGLE Project studies health issues of aboriginal peoples in the Great Lakes basin. Canadian Association of Phvsicians for the Environment Plans are currently being developed to establish this Association. For further details, contact Dr. Tee Guidotti, Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, University of Alberta. Canadian Healthy Communities Network (CHCN) Despite the almost total withdrawal of federal funding, the CHCN has continued to exist, linking healthy community activities in the provinces (Quebec, B.C. and recently Ontario have provincially funded initiatives) with national programs, such as the Active Living,. Safe Community and Healthy Environment programs, and with national organisations, such as the Canadian Institute of Planners (CIP), the Federation of Canadian Municipalities and the Canadian Public Health Association. CIP is the host organisation for the CHCN and has done much to link the concepts of healthy communities and sustainable communities. As a result of these activities, a growing number of municipalities and organisations are examining ways to integrate health and environmental sustainability issues into land use planning.
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Chapter 6
Canadian Medical Association (CMA) The CMA’s Environmental and Occupational Health Committee commissioned a report on the medical profession and health and sustainable development. The report, which was adopted in 1991, made a number of recommendations with respect to the profession’s role as exemplars, advocates, educators and researchers. :Canadian Public Health Association (CPHA) The CPHA established a Task Force on the Implications for Human Health of GlobalEcological Change in 1990. Their report, Human and Ecosvstem Health, was adopted by the Board of Directors in 1991 and has been widely distributed. Among its recommendations was the establishment of a National Clearing House on Health and the Environment at the CPHA. Heath Care Environment Network This Toronto-based network has been active for several years, encouraging health care facilities and professionals to become more environmentally aware and responsible. They organise regular meetings, educational sessions and publish a regular newsletter. International Institute of Concern for Public Health (IICPA) The IICPA has undertaken an initiative called Health 2000 which assesses community health, suggests interventions to promote health and evaluates the effectiveness of the intervention. The initiative is based on community participation in decision-making at all levels of the study and is modelled on the doctor-patient relationship. It is not an epidemiological survey but offers an alternative response to hazards and proposes a new level of health care for the community. The initiative is supported through a grant from the Ontario Premier’s Council on Health, Well-Being and Social Justice. National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy (NRTEE) The NRTEE is currently finalising a report on Canada’s needs and capabilities with respect to reporting on sustainable development. The framework being used incorporates human health as one of the key components of the framework. The Education Task Force of the NRTEE, in an effort to stimulate national debate on sustainable development, has undertaken a survey of professional health associations. The survey will help catalyze informal educational efforts, and position the NRTEE to promote the next step of sustainable development awareness and educational activities of the associations. Premier’s Council on Health, Well-being and Social Justice (Ontario) The Council’s report, Our Environment. Our Health, addresses three main themes: healthy ecosystems, healthy communities and healthy workplaces. For each theme, a set of objectives and targets have been established. The objectives proposed for the Province of most relevance to the Projet de so&t6 are: l healthy ecosystems - promote individual and community health and well-being by protecting, preserving and restoring healthy ecosystems; and, l healthy communities - promote individual health and well-being and reduce adverse effects on the environment by substantially improving the physical planning and design of communities. Projet de socit?tt?: Phning
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Roval Societv of Canada - Canadian Global Change Program (RSC) The RSC established a Health Research Panel in 1992. The panel has developed a draft research framework for health research on aspects of global change, covering threats to human health from industrial and agricultural pollution, from changes in the global environment, and from current and future levels and patterns of consumption, as well as health-related human behavioural responses to global change. -‘T. Universitv of British Columbia (UBC) The Department of Family Medicine at UBC is host to the Task Force on Healthy and Sustainable Communities. The Task Force has produced a number of papers on various aspects of the issue. Universitv of Victoria The Centre for Sustainable Regional Development at the University of Victoria has a Sustainable Communities Initiative which includes in its approach the healthy community concept. OTHER RELEVANT INTERNATIONAL
SUSTAINABILITY-RELATED
FORA
The most obvious international forum for linking the protection and promotion of human health to sustainable development is the World Health Organisation. Canada has strong links with the European Region, in particular, because of the shared work in health promotion and healthy cities/communities. As well, a number of Canadians have served in senior positions in WHO Europe. However, Canada’s links with the Pan-American Health Organisation (PAHO) are much weaker, despite the fact that we are members of PAHO and not the European Region. Other relevant fora are those in which Canada participates through the International Development Research Centre (IDIRC), the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), the Canadian University Consortium on Health in International Development (CUCHID), CPHA’s International Health Program and other similar bodies. For example, Health Canada has an IDRC funded project on health and environmental assessment in the Amazon basin. RECOMMENDATIONS
The recommendations fall into two categories, those concerned with putting our own house in order and those concerned with our global/international role. Domestic 1.
68
The Government of Canada should initiate public policy as called for in Achieving Health For All. This will involve developing policy structures and processes that will ensure that health and well-being are recognized as the most fundamental objectives of economic development activity and a central concern of all public policy.
Projet de socidtk
Planning for a Sustainable Future
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I
2.
Health impact assessment should be integrated into environmental assessment by the Federal and Provincial governments; it should be considered at the policy, plan, program and project levels.
3.
The Government of Canada should support the Canadian Healthy Communities Network as an effective means of putting health on the agenda of municipal governments and - -T communities and linking it to sustainable development.
4.
The NRTEE and/or the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment (CCME) and/or other suitable national bodies should convene a working group on health and sustainable development. The working group should address the two themes of health and of the health care system as they relate to sustainable development, developing both a national and an international agenda.
5.
The Government of Canada should endorse the Royal Society of Canada research framework for health-related global change research and should support research in the areas defined in the framework. Greater emphasis should be placed on health - as opposed to biomedical - research, including research into the health consequences of unsustainable development.
6.
The Government of Canada should financially support the establishment of a National Clearing House on Health and the Environment.
7.
The Government of Canada should ensure that its approach to environmental health is broadened to incorporate the wider concepts of health and the environment in the context of sustainable development.
International
1 I I I I I I
1.
The Government of Canada should play a more active role in addressing issues of health and sustainable development through the WHO, and especially through the Regional Office for the Americas (PAHO).
2.
The Government of Canada should support the Canadian Healthy Communities Network in playing an active role in the international healthy cities/communities movement and in international development projects relating to urban management for health and sustainability. One way to do this may be to ensure that the recently established International Centre for Sustainable Communities in Vancouver also includes the healthy communities perspective in its work.
3.
The Government of Canada, through IDRC and CIDA, should support health promotion, healthy public policy, healthy city/community, public health and primary care projects and should ensure that all such projects recognize the links between health and sustainable development.
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SUGGESTED READINGS AND INFORMATION
SOURCES
A Sustainable Healthv Future: Towards an Ecologv of Health, (Melbourne, Australia: Lincoln School of Health Sciences, La Trobe University, 1989). Brundtland, Gro Harlem. Presentation to 41st World Health Assemblv entitled Our; w. Common Future, (Geneva, Switzerland: 1988). Canadian Public Health Association (CPHA). Human and Ecosvstem Health, {Ottawa: CPHA, 1992). Government of Canada. Achieving Health For All: A Framework for ‘Health Promotion, Ottawa: Department of Health and Welfare, 1986). . A Vital Link: Health and the Environment in Canada, (Ottawa: Department of Health and Welfare, 1992). . Canada’s Green Plan, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1990). . Canada’s Green Plan and the Earth Summit, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1992). Canada’s National Renort: United Nations Conference on Environment Dkvelonment Brazil, June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991).
and
Hancock, Trevor. Sustaining Health: Achieving Health For All in a Secure Environment, Mimeo. (North York, Ontario: Faculty of Environmental Studies, York University, 1989). and Nigel Richardson. Creating Sustainable. Healthv Communities in Ontario, paper prepared for the Ontario Ministry of Municipal Affairs, 1991).
(A
“Health, human development and the community ecosystem: Three ecological models” m Health Promotion International, 8(l), 1993. International Development Research Centre (IDRC). Agenda 21: Abstracts. Reviews. and Commentaries, (Theodora Carroll-Foster, editor), (Ottawa: IDRC, 1993). Keating, Michael. Agenda for Change: A Plain Language Version of Agenda 21 and the Other Rio Agreements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993). Last, John. “A vision of health in the twenty-first century: Medical response to the greenhouse effect” in Canadian Medical Association Journal, 140 1989. . “Our Common Future” in Canadian Journal of Public Health, 78(6), 1987.
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Chapter 6
Pederson, Anne et al. Coordinating Healthv Public Policv: An Analytic Literature Review and Bibliogranhv, (Ottawa: Department of Health and Welfare, Health Services & Promotion Branch, 1988). Premier’s Council on Economic Renewal. Ontario 2002, (Toronto: Premier’s Council, 1993). Premier’s Council on Health, Well-being and Social Justice. Our Environment. (Toronto: Premier’s Council, 1993).
Our. Health,
Royal Society of Canada (RSC). A Framework for Health-related Global Change Research, Draft, (Ottawa: RSC, April 1993). World Bank. World DeveloDment Report 1993: Investing in University Press, 1993).
Health, (New York: Oxford
World Commission on Environment and Development. Our Common Future, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987). World Health Organization (WHO). Citv Networks For Health, Technical Discussions Working Paper, 41st World Health Assembly, (Geneva: WHO, 1991). .
Draft Global Strategv for Health and Environment, (Geneva: WHO, 1993).
. Environment and Health: The Eurooean Charter and Commentarv, (Copenhagen: WHO Europe, 1989). .
Environmental Health in Urban Development, (Geneva: WHO, 1991).
Our Planet, Our Health: Report of the WHO Commission on Health and Environment, (Geneva: WHO, 1992). Report of the Panel on Urbanisation, WHO Commission on Health and Environment, (Geneva: WHO, 1992).
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Information
Sources:
Canadian Council of Minister of the Environment (CCME), 326 Broadway Street, Suite 400, Winnipeg, Manitoba, R3C OS5, tel (204) 948-2090, fax (204) 948-2125. Canadian Healthy Communities Network (CHCN). Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), Place du Centre, 200 Promenade du
Portage, Hull, Quebec, KlA OG4, tel (819) 997-5456, fax (819) 953-5469. Canadian Medical Association (CMA), 1867 Alta Vista Drive, Ottawa, Ontario, KlG 3Y6,
tel (613) 731-9331, fax (613) 731-7314. Canadian Public Health Associatioxn (CPHA), 1565 Carling Ave, Ottawa, Ontario, KlZ 8R1,
tel (613) 725-3769, fax (613) 725-9826. Canadian University Consortium
on
Health in International Development (CUCHID)
Federal Environmental Assessment Review Office (FEARO), 200 Boulevard Sacre Coeur,
14th floor, Fontaine Building, Hull, Quebec, KlA OH3, tel(819) 997-1000, fax (819) 994-1469. Health Care Environment Network. International Development Research Centre (IDRC), 250 Albert Street, Ottawa, Ontario,
KlG 3H9, tel(613) 236-6163, fax (613) 238-7230. National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy (NRTEE), 1 Nicholas Street,
Suite 1500, Ottawa, Ontario, KlN 7B7, tel(613) 992-7189, fax (613) 992-7385. Occupational Health Program, University of Alberta, 13-103 Clinical Sciences Building, Edmonton, Alberta, T6G 2G3, tel(403) 492-6291, fax (403) 492-0364. Royal Society of Canada, 355 River Road, Ottawa, Ontario, KlG 554, tel (613) 991-6990,
fax (613) 991-6996.
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Assessment of Agenda 21
CHAPTER 7 Promoting Sustainable Human Settlement Development
- Gordon Clifford -
TRE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM Human settlements range from small rural villages to vast mega-cities. They form the living and working environment of most of the people on the Earth, and the main setting for economic and social development. Human settlement issues are central to sustainable development. They combine the following two factors: the development aspects of meeting the needs of the present generations through provision of shelter and other basic needs; and ensuring that the natural environment is maintained for future generations by effective human settlements management. By the year 2000, half the world’s population will live in cities. The urbanization of society is part of the development process; cities now generate approximately 60% of nations’ gross However, a growing number of cities are showing symptoms of national products. environmental and socioeconomic stress. Urban infrastructure often results in the loss of small traditional farming communities; the loss of greenbelts, natural eco-systems and animal habitats; the depletion of resources from, and transfer of, wastes to rural areas; the loss of land-based, indigenous cultures; overburdened, unsustainable transportation systems; increased pollution of
I .I I I I I
air, land and water; increased poverty and localized overpopulation; increased crime and drug abuse; and a decline in access to health services. Moreover, in most developing countries, a lack
of clean water and sanitation leads to widespread ill-health and many preventable. deaths each Y==
Go&m Cl&fTordis a consu&mt with Consulting and Audit Canada. The views expressed in this chapter are those of the author who received input&m a number of tieholders, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Cons&kg and Audit Ganuda or the Projet de soci&L
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Chapter 7
The environmental implications of human settlement development should be recognized and addressed in an integrated fashion by all countries, with high priority given to the needs of the urban and rural poor, the unemployed, and the growing number of people without any source of income. PROGRAM
AREAS AND OBJECTIVES
The overall objective of Chapter 7 is to improve the social, economic and environmental quality of human settlements and the living and working environments of all people, in particular the poor. Such improvement should be based on technical cooperation, partnerships amongst the public, private and community sectors, and participation in the decision-making process by community groups and special interest groups, such as women, indigenous people, the elderly and the disabled. The following eight program areas, along with their corresponding objectives, are presented in Chapter 7. (1)
Providing adequate shelter for all
(2)
Improving human settlement management l To ensure sustainable management of all urban settlements, particularly in
developing countries, in order to enhance their ability to improve the living conditions of residents. (3)
Promoting sustainable land-use planning and management l To provide for the land requirements of human settlement
through environmentally sound physical planning and land use so as to ensure access to land to all households and, where appropriate, the encouragement of communally and collectively owned land.
(4)
Promoting the integrated provision of environmental infrastructure inch$ing water, sanitation, drainage and solid-waste management l
(5)
To ensure the provision of adequate environmental infrastructure facilities in all settlements by the year 2025.
Promoting sustainable energy and transport systems in buman settlements l
To extend the provision of more energy-efficient technology and alternative/renewable energy for human settlements and to reduce negative impacts of energy production and use on human health and the environment.
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(6)
Promoting human settlement planning and management in disaster-prone areas l
To enable all countries, in particular those that are disaster-prone, to mitigate the negative impact of natural and man-made disasters on human settlements, national economies and the environment. I z.
(7)
Promoting sustainable construction industry activities;
(8)
Promoting human resource development and capacity-building settlement development l
To improve human resource development countries.
for human
and capacity-building
in all
UNCED considered human settlements issues as “cross-cutting� with links to other environment and development problems. As such, the human settlements dimension is included in other Agenda 21 chapters (e.g., atmospheric pollution, land use, accessible supplies of freshwater, waste disposal, oceans, poverty, population and health.) CANADIAN POSITIONS AT RIO 1.
Official Canadian Position
At Rio, Canada had four main objectives regarding the promotion of sustainable human settlement development: (1) (2)
(3)
(4)
2.
to underline the importance of the roles and responsibilities that all countries have in addressing this issue; to strengthen partnerships among existing international and national agencies and organizations as well as with the private sector and communities in implementing the chapter’s recommendations and activities; to strengthen the mandate of existing programs and agencies to address the proposed activities; and, to recommend that priorities be established among the eight program areas.
Non-Governmental Owanizations
Canadian NGOs advocated that sustainable human settlements depend upon there being a sustainable environment. Therefore the concept of sustainable human settlements depends upon, and is linked with, all sustainability issues including environment and development issues covered by UNCED as well as those issues, such as disarmament, which were not discussed at UNCED. In addition, NGOs at Rio held the view that all sectors of society needs to be involved in planning, decision-making, policy implementation and management of human settlements. Projet de socihtt?: Planning for a Sustainable Fulure
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3.
Business and Iudustrv
Canadian business and industry had no direct input into Chapter 7. 4.
Indbenous
Indigenous Peoples testified extensively for the need of sustainable development. However, sustainability must be social, cultural, economic and political in nature. Indigenous knowledge and values are the basis for sustainable practices as evidenced by Indigenous Peoples whom have inhabited harsh and fragile ecosystems like the desert and the Arctic for thousands of years. Inhabitants from the developed world have been only been able to survive in these eco-systems through the aid of unsustainable technologies.
COMMITMENTS 1.
MADE BY CANADIANS
Lwallv-Bmdiw
Documents
None. 2.
Political Pronouncements
None. 3.
Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NGO Treaties
At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organ&ion Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Oca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. Of these treaties, one addressed the issues discussed in Chapter 7. NW Treaty on Urbanization This treaty is based on the principle that there is a need to create a new sustainable development model for cities which focuses on humanity’s well-being. NGOs at Rio saw an opportunity to reduce dependency of countries on centres of power. They saw the need for an urban transformation based on rights to basic needs, democracy and on common interests prevailing over individual rights to property. According to this treaty, the NGOs should forge linkages between the public, private and social sectors that create participatory mechanisms for the formation of public policy. NGOs will work for a new
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balance between cities and rural areas by “eliminating the middleman” and establishing direct relations between producers and consumers. The treaty promotes the use of resources to improve public transport, housing, and employments opportunities. Priority actions should favour those who have suffered most from social exclusion imposed by the current model of development. The NGOs also agreed to work to end forced evictions and population transfers and by acting in solidarity with those facing oppression ;c or retaliation for their struggles to change the system. Kari-oca The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference. They developed and adopted a NH-point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter. In the context of this chapter, Indigenous Peoples maintain their inalienable rights to: 0 their lands, territories and resources; l their traditional way of life; l be free from population transfer policies dictated by state governments which lead to the loss of traditional lands and livelihoods; and, l decide the direction of their communities. Specifically: l parks must not be created at the expense of Indigenous Peoples; l Indigenous Peoples must not be removed from their lands in order to make it available to settlers or other forms of economic activity; and, l the problem of decreasing numbers of Indigenous Peoples due to encroachment by non-indigenous peoples must be avoided.
DEFICIENCIES.
GAPS AND CONSTRAINTS WITHIN CHAPTER 7
The following weaknesses and constraints to the achievement of this chapter’s objectives have been identified. 0
0
The objectives under each program area are not easily linked with the means through which they are to be achieved. Without this linkage, implementation of the chapter will be both more difficult and more open to interpretation. The high funding requirements outlined for this chapter need further rationalization. Without a better explanation, the high costs of implementation will lead to scepticism and criticism.
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l
l
l
0
A number of concepts which are used are ill-defined or vague. For example, it is unclear what is meant by “adequate” shelter, a “participatory approach” to sustainable urban development, or “an integrated approach to the provision of environmentally sound infrastructure in human settlements”. By emphasizing the generic rather than the specific, or by using terms which are unclear, the chapter may be open to too much interpretation. The chapter would have been stronger, and its credibility enhanced, if some of the underlying causes of the problems identified in the chapter were discussed. .For the chapter to propose such large expenditures without providing a pro.per analysis of the problem is inappropriate. The inequality in the distribution of existing resources in most developing countries may go far in explaining many of the problems cited in this chapter. It may also represent the main obstacle to their solution, and yet it is not addressed in this chapter. The chapter inappropriately focuses mainly on developing countries. Human settlements and the crisis in housing for the poor is a global problem found in nearly all nations.
COMPARISON BETWEEN COMMITMENTSMADE
CURRENT
CANADIAN
GOVERNMENT
POLICY
AND
It should be noted that this chapter is directed mainly (and often explicitly) to the needs of developing countries. Nevertheless, with some 1.2 million Canadian households considered by Canadian standards to have substandard housing in terms of quality, affordability and suitability, there is still much to be done to meet the objectives of this chapter in the Canadian context. The housing of some Canadian groups, such as the rural poor and Indigenous Peoples, is often inadequate by any standards. To date, government policies have not enabled all Canadians to have access to “adequate shelter”. Notwithstanding the need for improvement, it is clear that Canada is considerably further ahead of other countries in meeting this chapter’s objectives. CANADIAN ACTIVITIES EVOLVING THROUGH THE SUSTAINABILITY
PROCESS
International Develonment Research Centre (IDRC) Canada has endorsed and funded many international activities related to human settlements. For example, the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) has supported a major South American network to evaluate ways of improving drinking water distribution and solid waste collection and disposalin 14 cities in seven countries. In Africa, the IDRC funded research to assess the privatization of municipal functions and better cost recovery of service delivery. Research has been undertaken on how to improve the poor’s access to safe and reliable food supplies, including urban agriculture. IDRC, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) and Environment Canada have provided funding for the Local Agenda 21 Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI). This project will build local government capacity to address environmental problems in twenty-one municipalities around the world.
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Canadian Tntemational DeveloDment Agency (CIDA) CIDA is a facilitator for and is providing financial support to the following programs: Open China Cities Project and Africa 2000 (both managed by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities); the creation of two urban-oriented Centres of Excellence at Canadian Universities; Management Development Program (Sub-S&ran Africa); and the SACDEL program (the Regional Training System for Local Urban Development and Improvement of ;z Municipal Administration in Latin America). Canada Mortgage and Housing Cooneration (CMHC) CMHC’s “Healthy Housing” initiative deals with community, housing and indoor air quality issues. This initiative involved a design competition in which partnerships were encouraged to propose innovative and integrated solutions to a broad range of design criteria, including occupant health and safety, energy and resource efficiency, environmental responsibility, and affordability. The two winning designs are being built in Toronto and Vancouver. Supported by CMHC and the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, the Canadian Urban Research on the Environment Project (CURE) is directed at tracking municipal policies, technologies and environmental indicators. CURE is a database and information source on the environmental initiatives of a wide range of municipalities in every province and region of Canada. The project will publish a directory of municipal environmental contacts and a compendium of environmental initiatives for Canadian municipalities. National Round Table on the Environment and Economy (NRTEE) The NRTEE, in partnership with the Canadian Construction Association, has published a report on waste reduction for the construction industry. The report includes sections on rules and regulations, waste stream analysis, recycling potential, codes of practice and a directory. TowardSustainableCommunities: A Resource Bookfor Municipal and Local Decision Makers, discusses the application of sustainable development concepts in local communities. It reviews topics such as air quality, transport, land use, energy conservation, waste management, water and sewage, and economic and community development. Other publications of the NRTEE with reference to human settlements include: The National Waste Reduction Handbook; Discussions on Decision-Making Practices for- Sustainable Development; SustainableDevelopment: A Manager’s Handbook; and, Reporting on Sustainable Development at the Municipal and Household Level. Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) FCM is undertaking a survey of Canadian municipal resources, expertise, and policy and program innovations in sustainable development and documenting those that could be of use to developing countries. The project is creating a database that will facilitate cooperative international partnerships and exchanges between local governments in Canada and developing country counterparts on issues of sustainable development.
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Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment (CCME) The CCME is producing, in partnership with the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM), a Municipal Primer on UNCED. The Primer is intended to communicate the accomplishments of the Earth Summit to municipalities and to promote action plans for local sustainable development. ;.=zz Environmental Planninp; Institute of Canada (EPIC) EPIC is a not-for-profit initiative of the private sector with the aim of establishing and promoting environmental standards for the construction and management of industrial, commercial, institutional (K&I) as well as real estate across Canada. The primary goals of EPIC are to establish and update design, engineering and management guidelines for environmental planning, and to communicate information about IC&I buildings to owners, tenants, industry suppliers, governments, and the public. New Brunswick Commission on Land Use and the Rural Environment WBCLURE) The NBCLURE has recommended policies to encourage compatible rural development, environmental protection and the preservation of high-value agricultural land. Mount Allison Universitv The Rural and Small Town Research and Studies Program of Mount Allison University has developed a pilot project designed to help smaller communities explore their own potential and develop and implement sustainable development strategies. National Research Council (NRC) The NRC’s Institute for Research in Construction (IRC) recently transferred a heat pump technology to the private sector for application in cold climates. This technology is expected to revolutionize foundation construction saving local governments millions of dollars annually. The Council also developed and promoted the R-2000 energy efficient home program, which provides performance standards for designing, constructing and equipping a home to high standards of energy efficiency, comfort and control. [Global Forum. Manchester. 24 June - 3 Julv 1994 The major theme of Global Forum ‘94 will be Cities and Sustainable Development.. Citizens groups, local authorities, the business community and others will be brought together to forge practical action plans for the sustainable management and development of urban areas across the globe. Participants will examine sustainable development issues in urban areas and the interrelationship between urban and rural areas. Local and Provincial Round Tables Several of the Provincial Round Tables on Environment and Economy have in place programs and publications which are intended to support initiatives to establish local Round Tables. These may be instrumental in promoting local efforts directed at sustainable development.
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Most municipalities, particularly the larger ones, have undertaken strategies to improve energy and transportation efficiency by employing various transportation-related policies, energy audits, and district energy systems. Canadian NGOs continue to be involved in settlement issues either through advocacy on affordable housing, child welfare, air quality, increased green belts and parks, or through direct action, such as non-profit housing and food cooperatives, membership on urban transportation and zoning committees, Earth Day festivals, and education and product fairs on appropriate technologies and lifestyles. NGOs also continue to promote community participation in all settlements issues as well as integrated approaches to urban policies at the municipal, provincial and federal levels, recognizing that such integration demands full consideration of creating a sustainable hinterland upon which sustainable settlements depend.
OTHER RELEVANT INTERNATIONAL
SUSTAINABILITY-RELATED
FORA
Canada is party to various international events, programs and organizations relevant to this chapter which include: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Group on Urban Affairs and the Development Assistance Committee International Union of Local Authorities (HULA) Urban Management Program (United Nations Development Program, United Nations Centre for Human Settlements, Habitat, World Bank) biennial meetings World Cities and their Environment Congress of Municipal Leaders World Congress of Local Governments for a Sustainable Future Montreal Council for Local Environmental
Initiatives
Federation of Canadian Municipalities (Ottawa) International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI) International New Towns Association United Nations Centre for Human Settlements and its Global Strategy for Shelter to the year 2001 (HABITAT) Global Forum ‘94 - “Cities and Sustainable Development”, Manchester, England. United Nations Committee on Economic, Scientific and Cultural Bights
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0
United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development
SUGGESTED READINGS AND INJ?ORMATION SOURCES
Cook, P. (ed.). Social Structures for Sustainabilitv, Fundamental Questions Paper No. 11.) Australia National Centre for Resource and Environmental Studies (Canberra: University, 1990). Gordon, D. (ed.). Green Cities: Ecologicallv Sound Approaches to Urban Space, (Montreal: Black Rose Books, 1990). Government of Canada. Canada’s Green Plan, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1990). . Canada’s Green Plan and the Earth Summit, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1992). Canada’s National Renort: United Nations Conference on Environment and Develonment Brazil. June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991). . CIDA Activities Re: Municipal Training, (Ottawa: Canadian International Development Agency, 1992). An Urban Problematic: The Challenge of Urbanization for Develonment Assistance, (Ottawa: Canadian International Development Agency, 1992). . The State of Canada’s Environment, (Ottawa: Environment Cana.da, 1991). HABITAT.
People. Settlements. Environment and Development, 1990.
Hardoy, Jorge and David Satterthwaite, Sauatter Citizens, (Buenos Aires: International Institute for Environment and Development - Latin America, 1988). International Development Research Centre (IDRC). Agenda 21: Abstracts. Reviews. and Commentaries, (Thcodora Carroll-Foster, editor), (Ottawa: IDRC, 1993). Keating, Michael. Agenda for Chance: A Plain Language Version of Agenda 21 and the Other Rio Agreements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993). Lowe, M.D. “Shaping Cities: The Environmental and Human Dimensions”, Paper 105 (Washington D.C. : Worldwatch Institute, 1991). Morehouse, Ware (ed). Building; Sustainable Communities, (New York: The Bootstrap Press, 1989).
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Grganization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Environmental Policies for Cities in the 199Os, (Paris: OECD, 1990). Report on the Meeting of International Associations of Cities and Local Authorities. Janeiro, January 1992.
Rio de
Roseland, Mark. Towards Sustainable Communities, (Ottawa: National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy, 1992). Stren, Richard, Rodney White and Joseph Whitney. Sustainable Cities. Urbanization and the Environment in International Perspective, (San Francisco: Westview Press, 1992). White, R. and J. Whitney. “Human Settlements and Sustainable Development: An Overview” Draft prepared for the Colloquium on Human Settlements and Sustainable Development, June 21-23, 1990, (Toronto: University of Toronto Centre for Urban and Community Studies, 1990). World Commission on Environment and Development. Our Common Future, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987).
Information
Sources:
Canadian International Development Agency (UDA), Place du Centre, 200 Promenade du Portage, Hull, Quebec, KlA OG4, tel (819) 997-5456, fax (819) 953-5469. Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, 1565 Carling Avenue, Suite 300, Ottawa, Ontario, KlZ 8R1, tel (613) 728-6884, fax (613) 748-5130. Environmental Plan&g
Institute of Canada (EPIC).
Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM), 24 Clarence St., 2nd floor, Ottawa, Ontario,
KlN 5P3, tel (613) 237-5221, fax (613) 237-2965. Global Forum ‘94, Eastgate, Castle Street, Castlefield, Manchester, M3 4LZ, U.K., tel (44-61) 234-3741, fax (44-61) 234-3743. International Development Research Centre, 250 Albert Street, Ottawa, Ontario, KlG 3H9,
tel (613) 236-6163, fax (613) 567-7749. Mount
Allison University, The Rural and Small Town Research and Studies Program, Sackville, New Brunswick, EOA 3C0, tel (506) 364-2398, fax (506) 364-2601.
National Research Council, Headquarters, Building M-58, Montreal Road, Ottawa, Ontario,
KlA OR6, tel (613) 993-9101, fax (613) 952-7928.
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New Brunswick Commission on Land Use and the Rural Environment, c/o N.B. Department
I
I
of the Environment, P.O. Box 6000, Fredericton, N.B., tel(506) 453-3095, fax (506) 453-3377. United Nations Co mmission for Sustainable Development, Department of Policy Coordination
and Sustainable Development, Room S-3060, United Nation, New York, N.Y., 10017, USA, tel (212) 963-5959. ;.a
1
1
University of British Columbia Centre for Human Settlements, 2206 E&t Mall, Vancouver,
British Columbia, V6T 123, tel (604) 822-5856, fax (604) 822-6164. University of Toronto Centre for Urban and Community Studies,
I 455 Spadina Avenue,
Toronto, Ontario, M5S 2G8, tel (416) 978-2072, fax (416) 978-7162.
I
I
1
E
1
Y
1
1
I
I
I
1
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Chapter 8
CHAPTER 8 Integrating
Environment and Development in Decision-Making
-- Franfois Bregha -
THE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM
Most decisions are made through a process that separates socioeconomic and environmental factors. This is true in government, business, or in cases of individuals making decisions. It is necessary to understand the links between environment and development in order to make development choices that will be economically efficient, socially responsible, and environmentally sound. Governments should create global cross-se&oral sustainable development strategies and integrate socioeconomic and environmental policies in all ministries and at all levels. The strategies should aim for environmentally responsible economic development. The strategies should be developed through the widest possible societal participation.
PROGRAM
AREAS AND OBJECTIVES
There are four main program areas in Chapter 8:
(1)
integrating environment and development at the policy, planning and management levels;
(2)
providing an effective legal and regulatory framework;
Fmn$ois Bregha is the President of Resource Futures International (Urn). The views expressed in this assessment are those of the author who received input from a number of sfakeholders, and do not necessarily represent the views of RF1 or the Projet de soci&b.
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21
(3)
making effective use of economic instruments and market/other incentives; and,
(4)
establishing systems for Integrated Environmental
and Economic Accounting
PEA).
In essence, the Chapter 6 argues that integrating environmental concerns with other aspects of development policy, planning and management is essential; and that doing so r%?quiresthe strengthening of a) data and information systems, b) institutions and mechanisms at all levels, c) policies, laws, regulations and economic instruments, as well as increased participation, awareness, information dissemination and requisite training.
CANADIAN POSITIONS AT RIO
1.
Official Canadian Position
At Rio, Canada had the following six main objectives pertaining to the integration of environment and development in decision-making.
(1)
to seek to support actions that deal with the dissemination of public information and access to information in the public domain;
(2)
to seek to ensure a coordinated approach between all proposals in Agenda 21 which propose information activities;
(3)
to focus on priority areas already agreed to by 38 countries at the International Forum on Environmental Information held in Montreal in may 1991; to avoid mention of specific targets in favour of wording which commits to progress but not to unrealistic timetables;
86
(5)
to avoid proposals to implement specific economic instruments or to shift the taxation base away from income taxes and towards resource taxes; and,
(6)
to avoid discussion off questions relating to information/data otherwise protected.
Projet de socibtk
that is private or
Planning for a SusfainableFuture
u 1
I 1 I ,I I 1 I 8 1 I I .I 1 I 0 1 e
2.
Business and Industry
This chapter is primarily fashioned around the needs of government to integrate environment and development into decision-making. Business and industry did not input material directly related to this chapter. However, the subject matter is as relevant for business as for others. Without integrating environmental management systems into daily business decision-making, it continues to be an add-on and therefore does not-provide the strong emphasis required to continue the evolution towards sustainability. 3.
Non-Governmental
Owanizations
One of them main objectives of Canadian NGOs at Rio was that the Chapter 6 include strong wording with regards to active participation of non-governmental groups in all decision-making. With regards to the focus of the chapter being on integrating environment and development in decision-making, NGOs were generally interested as it was one of the few chapters which straight-forwardly tackled the issue of integrating environmental and developmental concerns rather than discussing first the environmental issue(s) and then the developmental issue(s). In general, NGOs felt that, while the chapter did discuss the main substantive points around the issue, the chapter reflected (but did not resolve) a widespread lack of clarity about why environmental concerns are presently not well integrated into development decision-making, and how they could be in the future. 4.
Indipenous
Indigenous Peoples recommended models of development that are holistic approaches whereby their decision-making reflects their culture, political, economic and social values which are so intimately intertwined and integrated with the environment. Indigenous Peoples are recommending that Agenda 21 be implemented in a manner in which they are informed, consulted and allowed to participate at the national level for decision-making. Support is required from all levels of government, industry and other NGOs to assist Indigenous Peoples to maintain their own NGOs.
COMMITMENTS 1.
MADE BY CANADIANS
Leeallv-Bindinp Documents
None.
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ALssessment of Agenda 21
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2.
Political Pronouncements During his disclosure of the National Statement of Canada on June 11 1992 at UNCED, Minister of the Environment Jean Charest stated, “this UN conference has brought two separate public policy tracks irrevocably together.” Minister Charest also stated that, in Canada, ” environment and development have become one in the course of our ;>?atwo-year dialogue.. . ”
3.
Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NW
Treaties
At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organization Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Oca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. Of these treaties, one addressed the issues discussed in Chapter 8. Rio Framework Treaty on NW GlobalDecision-Making Within the Rio Framework Treaty on NGO Global Decision-Making, 0
l l
a 0
NGOs agreed to:
strengthen existing networks and global alliances; work towards the recognition of all NGOs; secure NGOs participation in decision-making processes at all levels; enhance and promote participatory democracy; and, seek the empowerment of all oppresses peoples, especially those who are socially and ecologically marginal&d.
Within this treaty, NGOs agree to reinforce the recognition of all NGOs, at both national, regional and international levels as one of the key agents of sustainable development. Moreover, as NGOs have a specific and responsibility towards the North-South relationship, they will work to build on the gains achieved in the UNCED process for NGO participation. NGOs also intend to strengthen their rights and means of influencing the decision-making processes at international, national and local levels.
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Kari-oca
The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events, during the conference. They developed and adopted a 109~point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter. Within the Kari-Oca Declaration and Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter, Indigenous Peoples stated that they are victims of development and that in many cases they have been exterminated in the name of development programs. As such, Indigenous Peoples insist that they must consent to all projects in their territories, and that they must be involved, fully and entirely, in any decision-making processes. Failure to do so should be considered a crime.
DEF’ICIENCIE23, GAPS AND CONSTRAINTS WITHIN CHAPTER 8 Chapter 8 suffers from several weaknesses for which the authors can hardly be blamed (given the extensive process of negotiation which shaped the chapter) but which do however limit its value. The chapter fails to take into account the political world in which the changes it recommends would take place. Yet, vested interests will oppose some of these changes making it difficult for governments to follow-up on such recommendations. In other words, implementing sustainable development is not just a matter of knowing what to do; it is also a matter of translating it into politically viable actions. Adopting, for instance, a “national strategy for sustainable development” as recommended in Chapter 8, may be a complex process involving pursuing societal consensus on values and life styles as well as the formulation of broad national sectoral strategies such as industrial strategies, energy strategies or agricultural strategies. It would also involve in the case of Canada, a significant element of negotiation between the two orders of government. Many of the recommendations in Chapter 8 could not be acted-upon until such a national sustainable development strategy is put together. Chapter 8 is written as though everything were equally important and all reforms could be undertaken at once. This is clearly untrue.
COMPARISON BETWEEN CURRENT GoMADE
POLICY AND co
The integration of environmental concerns at the policy, planning and management levels will require attention to the following:
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Obiectives. Which integrate environmental concerns into departmental mandates provide essential criteria against which policies and programs can be developed and assessed. Have government departments formulated such objectives? CoveraPe. Are environmental factors to be considered in all programs or just a few? What analytical tools do departments now use (e.g., ?&t-benefit Methodologv. analysis)? Which ones do they need? Skills. Policy assessment can be a complex process involving a variety of conceptual, analytical, organisational and consultative skills. Do these skills exist or do they have to be developed? Resources.
What resources are allocated to environmental policy assessment?
Institutional arrangements. How is the consideration of environmental factors integrated into existing legal frameworks and mandates of institutions and into their decision-making processes? Are there jurisdictional overlaps which undermine formal integration of Who is responsible for environmental factors into developmental activities? environmental policy assessment? What incentives exist to perform such policy assessments? Do departments have access to the environmental information they need from other agencies? Accountabilitv. Is the integration of environmental factors into departmental policy part of the reward and accountability system of public sector management? Evaluation. How do decision-makers know that environmental policy assessment is making a difference? Do they have the information on which to gauge the effectiveness of their policy assessments? The integration of environmental considerations into sectoral Public consultation. program and policies entails weighing and trading off various values which, in a democratic society, should be negotiated rather than imposed. How do departments solicit views from the public? How do they factor these views into policy formulation? Federal departments are making slow progress against most of these issues but the list above shows that the task is greater than usually recognised. It is important to note the importance of the fast item on the list: the definition of objectives. This is an absolutely crucial step and one which is often overlooked. But without a statement of the environmental objectives which departments can use as criteria to make the inevitable trade-offs among competing demands, they would be unable to integrate environmental considerations into their planning and programs effectively.
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In 1990 with its Green Plan, the Federal Government made a first attempt to formal& global national environmental objectives. The Plan, however, was criticized as not providing adequate benchmarks for effective integration of environmental factors in the mainstream of departmental policy. Ontario is taking a significant step in formalizing its environmental objectives in its Environmental Bill of Rights through which each ministry will have to develop a @atement of Environmental Values within nine months of the proclamation of the Bill. Currently, most provincial\territorial governments have adopted, or are in the process of adopting, environmental objectives as part of their sustainable development strategies. These will eventually guide provincial\territorial departmental integration of environmental concerns into policy. It should be noted that in most cases the formulation of such objectives has been achieved through a consensus-building process provided by provincial and territorial Round Tables on Environment and Economy. A
priority: Defining objectives
Governments and their departments need to define their own environmental objectives against which they can be held publicly accountable, so must they improve the quality of information on environmental effects. In particular, better information about eco-systems is needed. As they do with respect to financial management, human resource management, and communications, departments should develop five-year action plans to reach these objectives and report annually on their progress. The inclusion of a requirement in the legislation which created Forestry Canada that the department report back annually on the sustainability of Canada’s forests is a good example of how this practice might work. Instih4tionalarrangements The definition of environmental objectives, of course, provides no guarantee that these will be pursued. Ministers will continue to be subject to competing pressures in making policy. It will be important, therefore, to ensure that the integration of environmental factors in the consideration of a policy’s purpose and its alternatives is obligatory, and to provide the means of monitoring and enforcing compliance with this obligation. One possible mechanism to strengthen ministerial accountability is the creation of an office of an Environmental Auditor or Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment. Models from which Canada could gain inspiration include the New Zealand Parliamentary Commissioner and, to a lesser extent, the U.S. Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ).
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The power of these agencies lies principally in their ability to disclose information. This power can have considerable impact on public policy: the disclosure that the United States had released 22 billion pounds of toxic chemicals into the environment in 1988 was the main factor which broke a long regulatory logjam to control these chemicals. In the long run, Canada will need to develop broadly accepted principles of environmental assessment and accountability. These principles may eventually have to be con~tutionally entrenched as a charter of environmental rights. In the interim: 0
areas where broad agreement already exists or binding commitments have been made should be listed to serve as guides to policy-makers;
0
every government department should be asked to develop its own environmental objectives and an action plan to achieve them;
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a method to build up a body of “environmental assessment case law” within the new federal environmental assessment process needs to be developed; and,
0
sufficient information upon which to hold decision-makers accountable must be made available. Independent disclosure and standard criteria will facilitate public understanding of the environmental implications of a given policy.
One of the main reasons for ensuring greater openness would be to reveal societal trade-offs made in policy decisions and the value base underlying these tradeoffs. The public will want to be reassured that environmental issues are well and honestly handled. All relevant environmental analysis used in making decisions should therefore be made available. Environmentalstewardship An important element in integrating environment and development at the policy, planning and management levels is “getting the Federal Government house in order”. Through its significant purchasing decisions (the thousands of buildings it owns or leases, its investments, etc.) the Federal Government exerts pervasive environmental impacts. Although it has taken steps to reduce that impact (e.g., Part IV of the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, the Code of Environmental Stewardship), these steps have been largely ineffective because of a failure of political will and the high costs involved in upgrading the environmental standards of pelfOlXU.Il~.
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Providing an efective legal and regulatory@mework for sustainabledevelopment. Three matters need to be noted here. The first is that the federal government committed itself in the Green Plan to begin in 1991 “a comprehensive review of the environmental implications of existing statutes, policies, programs and regulations, and will propose modifications as necessary.” This initiative has been abandoned, making it much more difficult to ensure that government programs promote sustainable development. The second is that the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act is not yet proclaimed. The Act and the regulations to be made under it are extremely important to reforming federal decisionmaking. Delays in proclaiming the Act weaken the government’s ability to integrate environmental considerations into project planning. Finally, the government committed itself in 1990 to require environmental impact assessments of all proposals going to Cabinet for decision. In addition, the Governor in Council was to release a public statement regarding Cabinet’s own environmental assessment of major policies. Very little has happened in this regard and only a handful of assessments have been completed. Departments argue that they do not have the resources or do not know how to implement this requirement and as a result, this commitment has been honoured more in the breach than otherwise. Making
effective use of economic instrunents
and market and other incentives
Canada lags considerably behind the Nordic countries and the United States in applying economic instruments to environmental ends and has preferred to rely to date on a regulatory approach to environmental protection. The economic instrument most used in Canada is the deposit-refund system which is widely used for beverage containers. Surveys by the Department of the Environment (DOE) and the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment (CCME) reveal little else of substance. The Prime Minister’s commitment not to introduce new taxes places a question mark on the application of economic instruments at the federal level in Canada. The current tax system could however be altered (tax substitution) to reflect such needs without adding new taxes. The Government should also move towards “greening” its own budget. In most ‘industrial economies, public expenditures now amount to about 40 per cent of gross domestic product. Government spending affects the environment in many ways. Governments affect environmental quality directly when they protect natural resources and clean up pollution. Because of their size, governments are very large consumers of goods and services: governments purchase supplies and equipment and lease buildings. These procurement decisions also have an environmental impact. Only recently have some governments begun to consider how they could reduce these impacts. Through incentives (subsidies, taxes, regulations, etc.) the government can also have a tremendous impact on the country’s environmental performance.
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The indirect impact of government spending is much larger still. The budget is the most important tool the government uses to achieve its policy objectives. Through a combination of tax and spending measures, the government pursues a variety of objectives, chiefly related to the promotion of economic growth and the redistribution of income. It has become recognised that many of these measures, particularly those related to natural resources, impose unintended environmental costs. Thus, subsidies to agriculture may also degrade soils; incentives to the energy industry may increase environmental risks; transportation programs may f&our options that are not environmentally desirable. In essence, through its incentive policies the government can have a tremendous impact on the country’s environmental performance. Taken together, these measures are contributing to environmental degradation even when they meet their social or economic objectives. The result is a degradation of Canada’s natural assets (natural capital) and an accumulating “environmental debt” similar in many ways to the financial debt which preoccupies so many decision-makers today. Scientists warn that this environmental debt is evident in a continuing deterioration in environmental quality and in unsustainable forestry, fishery and agriculture practices which deplete productive resources faster than they can be replenished. A painfful example of this constraint is the almost complete closure of the East Coast fishery with the resulting loss of tens of thousands of jobs. Just as Canadians are passing on a high level of financial indebtedness to future generations by living beyond their means, so are they leaving a degraded natural environment to their children by polluting it and over-exploiting its renewable resources. In both instances, future generations will face more restricted development choices. One of the ways of remedying the causes behind Canada’s mounting environmental debt is by ensuring that the federal budget not promote unsustainable practices. Jim MacNeill, the former Secretary General to the Brundtland Commission and former member of the National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy, has described the annual federal budget as the most important environmental policy statement that the government issues from year to year. This is because the decisions the government makes about how it raises money and spends it have a greater potential to do environmental harm or good than any other single policy. The government should therefore identify how its revenue-raising and spending practices affect the environment, gradually reduce fiscal measures which are environmentally harmful, and explicitly take environmental considerations into account in the design of fiscal instruments and programs. The steps that Canada has taken to date (e.g., Environmental Choice, the publication of a discussion paper on economic instruments, the work of the Economic Instruments Collaborative) are all worthwhile but insufficient.
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Establishing systemsfor integmted environmental and economic accounting. Agenda 21 stresses the importance of improving information systems in developing countries but the same point applies to a lesser extent in Canada as well. The material below is extracted from work which Resource Futures International (RFI) has done on sustainable development indicators for the National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy (NRTEE). The report is -‘-= available from the NRTEE. Information, presented in a comprehensible, balanced, accurate and timely manner, is the indispensable base upon which sound policy-making rests. In the mid-1980s, the federal government spent three quarters of a billion dollars annually and employed over 10,000 people to collect basic information about Canada, its population, its economy, its natural resources and its environment. It was estimated that the provinces spent a further $125 to $150 million per year at that time.
1 I 1
There is a striking difference between the ways in which the economic surveys and the environmental and natural resource surveys are organized, how they receive their policy direction, and how they set priorities. Statistics Canada is the lead agency in collecting socioeconomic information. Its mandate is clear, in part because the federal government’s responsibilities over economic policy are clear. The responsibility for collecting information on the environment and natural resources, however, is shared among many government agencies. This institutional arrangement has militated against the integration of environmental information concerning the environment and natural resources. Furthermore, the absence of widely-accepted indicators of environmental health have made it more difficult to determine what and how much to survey. The concept of sustainable development redefines the policy questions which governments need to answer and, hence, their information needs. The governments’ “standard agenda” applies a sectoral approach to policy-making. Institutional arrangements parallel and reinforce this division of responsibilities: thus, the department of energy is responsible for energy policy (typically, increasing energy supply), the department of fisheries manages fish stocks, the department of environment controls pollution, and so on. Policy-makers have traditionally defined their information needs to reflect these mandates. The information they have accumulated has been similarly compartmentalised. As we have come to understand better the many links between environmental quality, human health,. social well-being and economic prosperity, we have become aware of the need to pursue an “alternative agenda”, one which explicitly integrates all of these dimensions of development. Not surprisingly, governments are finding that many of the information systems which served them well in meeting the needs of the standard agenda are deficient in helping them address this “alternative agenda”.
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Thus, governments have accumulated considerable information on soil degradation, nitrate pollution of groundwater and the eutrophication of surface waters in order to resolve each of these problems. They have collected far less of the information needed to anticipate and prevent these problems by reformulating the agricultural policies which cause them. Governments have been collecting information on the effects of environmental problems rather than on their root causes. They have collected economic, social and environmental information in isolation. .y As the World Commission on Environment and Development put it, “the ability to choose policy paths that are sustainable requires the ecological dimensions of policy to be considered at the same time as the economic, trade, energy, agricultural, industrial and other dimensions -- on the same agendas and in the same national and international institutions. This is the chief institutional challenge of the 1990s�. The way in which governments collect information leads to the paradox described by Brown (1991) of mutually incompatible descriptions of wellbeing: while economists point to increasing standards of material welfare, ecologists document the dangers to the planet’s life-support systems posed by rising affluence and increasing population. The way in which policy-makers define sustainable development will determine their requirements for information. Sustainable development is a normative concept implying tradeoffs among economic, environmental, social, cultural, ethical and other values. Decision makers are likely to require different information if they emphasise achieving intergenerational equity as opposed to, say, improving the efficiency of the market in a sustainable development strategy. Human wellbeing Ideally, the Canadian government would have access to information on this wide spectrum of indicators. Individual data sets, focused on health, economics, demographics, etc. should be linked to enable a study of the actual relationship between economic development, human well being and the state of the environment. For instance, at least four developments are required to improve health information. First, the institutional constraints must be reduced. In this regard the new health information institute currently being established by Statistics Canada and the Department of Health and Welfare Canada (HWC) will be very important. Second, a new conceptual framework for health information is required. Health information should reflect the more comprehensive understanding of the determinants of well being described by the Ottawa Charter, and, as mentioned above, should emphasize the links between health, economics and the environment. In addition, both the Manitoba Centre for Health Policy and Evaluation at the University of Manitoba and CCHI have attempted to develop systems of health statistics based upon the determinants of health. Third, administrative and household data should be merged. A number of provinces, including Quebec, Manitoba, Saskatchewan and B.C., are now developing systems to link records of hospital visits to individuals. These initiatives should improve tracking of the individual use of medica.l resources. Finally, an overall health outcomes index is required to link benefits and treatments.
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Like health data, economic data should be linked to overall measures of ecosystem and social well being. These links should reflect environmental and social impacts, as well as measures of economic performance. Problems With Current Information Traditional economic indicators ignore the state of the environmental resource on which the economy is built, and provide only limited reference to social dimensions of we&being. Income accounting measures economic activity for which exchange occurs in monetary terms in a given time period. It can indicate the level of economic activity, its variations from year to year, the size of savings and investment, factor productivity, industrial structure, and comparable performance. These indicators are important, but do not present a complete measure of sustainable development. Traditional income accounting is deficient in several important respects, three of which are briefly outlined below. Traditional measures of productivity, such as output per person-hour, inaccurately reflect the value of research and development. For example, public expenditures on health research which lower the incidence of morbidity have little impact on national income figures. At first approximation, a decrease in morbidity would raise both Gross National Product (GNP) and hours worked, leaving output per person-hour largely unchanged. Aggregated economic indicators fail to account for a wide range of activities that have social value, including leisure, unpaid work and subsistence activities. In particular, the Standard National Accounts (SNA), as currently constructed, do not account for the value of environmental amenities, let alone for ecological values. Finally, current national accounting procedures primarily reflect rates of consumption, and are therefore blind as to whether that consumption has been produced by the sustainable use of resources, or whether it has occurred at the expense of present or future environmental capital. The SNA therefore fail to account adequately for natural resource depletion, degradation, and protection. For example, man-made assets are valued as productive assets, and are written off against the value of production as they depreciate. However, the depletion of natural resource assets is not so accounted for, and this loss produces no charge in the national accounts against current income to reflect the decrease in potential future production. The SNA also misrepresent the costs and benefits of For example, these indicators treat expenses by environmental protection. governments on environmental protection as outputs rather than as inputs. On the other hand, commercial expenditures on environmental protection are included in the SNA, but the corresponding benefits of a cleaner environment are not. Conversely, where environmental protection expenses are not made, the resulting environmental damage is not counted as a cost.
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Existing economic indicators thus measure only a limited portion of economic activity, and fail to reflect social welfare fully. They reflect the value system implicit in the macroeconomic conceptual framework that is rejected by sustainable development (Victor, Kay and Ruitenbeek, 1991). There are several schools of thought about the best way to resolve this accounting problem (UNEP-World Bank, 1989). To its credit, the Canadian Government is actively engaged in attempts to resolve the issue. For example, a number of countries, including Canada are in the process of establishing satellite environmental accounts, not explicitly &&ed to the SNA. The object is to use indicators of physical change to influence public opinion and environmental policies. Thus, Statistics Canada is developing a set of four i&r-related accounts on natural resources and the environment: (i) natural resource stock accounts (quantities and values of natural resources); (ii) natural resource flow accounts (supply and disposition of natural resources in quantity and value); (iii) waste and pollutant output accounts (generation of unwanted byproducts by sector); and, (iv) environmental expenditure accounts (expenditures on environmental protection by sector). A number of prominent economists argue that environmental accounting will not have an adequate effect unless the accounts are monetized and integrated into the SNA. The argument is that the SNA are and will continue to be widely relied upon, and therefore it is imperative to To this end, Statistics Canada produce an adjusted national income that is more sustainable. is in the process of incorporating the monetary values of the natural resource stocks into the Canadian National Balance Sheet Accounts. One of the most promising initiatives is being undertaken by the Environmental Statistics Section of the National Accounts and Environment Division. This Section prepared 1978, 1986 and 1991 versions of Human Activity and the Environment. The 1991 version contains an analysis of the environmental impacts of economic activity. As many economic activities as possible are classified based on the categories used in the input output tables of the Statistics Canada SNA. These tables provide information about the commodity transactions involved in each type of economic activities, including the cost of primary inputs, a measure of the value added by sector, and the flow of commodities to end users. This information is used to estimate the total value of inputs and outputs for each industry category - leading to calculation of the GDP. This information also permits estimates of the proportion of inputs constituted by “energy”, “raw resource”, “potential contaminant”, or “other”. Estimates are then made about the -impact of each input of each category:. e.g., the poultry products industry had $1.5 bi?Jion of total inputs, comprised of 56.5% raw resources, 1.2% energy, 0% potential contaminants, and 42.3% “other”; and was rated as high impact in terms of raw resources, but low impact in terms of energy, potential contaminants, and water. Environmental well-being There is more information now available about Canada’s environment than ever before. Unfortunately, information often exists for some parts of the country, or for some components of the environment, and not others; data exist for limited periods of time, thereby precluding analysis of environmental trends; ancl regional data cannot be compared because measurements are not standardised (Environment Canada, 1991).
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The 1987 report of the stakeholder group on environmental barriers to environmental information in Canada: -
no comprehensive network of information sources;
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no comprehensive framework describing the scope or extent of interactions between human actions and the environment;
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little knowledge of, and often no means of obtaining, data collected by industry, hospitals, universities and research institutions for their own specific purposes;
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insufficient data to permit understanding of linkages between economic activity and resource activity or to permit effective risk analysis or epidemiological studies;
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no independent institution or agency capable of assembling environmental data and assisting in interpretation;
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inadequate ongoing national monitoring program to determine levels of toxic substances in human, fish and wildlife populations; and,
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significant regional variations in the availability of data.
CANADIAN ACTIVITIES
EVOLVING THROUGH THE SUSTAINABILITY
PROCESS
Among other Canadian initiatives, the National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy’s Consensus Decision-Making Task Force has written and published Guiding Principles For A SustainableFuture outlining principles for the use of consensus to tackle some of the problems of sustainable development. These principles have been signed onto by all provinces and territories. Currently, the Task Force is preparing a training module for workshops to be given to senior government officials throughout Canada explaining the consensus process. As well, an inventory of case studies where the consensus model has been used is being assembled for future publication.
OTHER RELEVANT INTERNATIONAL
SUSTAINABILITY-RELATED
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Social Development Summit
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United Nations Commission for Sustainable Development
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reporting noted the following
FORA
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SUGGESTED READINGS AND INFORMATION Ahmad,
Y.J.,
Sustainable
S.
El
Serafy,
DeveloDment,
and
E.
Lutz
A UNEP-World
SOURCES (eds.).
Environmental
Bank Symposium,
International Bank for Reconstruction and Development/World An Initiative Undertaken by Canadian Round Tables. Sustainable Future: Guiding Princi&s, (August, 1993).
Accounting
(Washington,
for
D.C:
Bank, 1989). Building
consen;==
F r
The Integration and Weick. Gamble, Shillington Benidickson, Bregha, Environmental Considerations in Government Policv, (Ottawa: Canadian Environmental Assessment Research Council, 1990).
of
A Manager’s and Watson.Sustainable Development: Conklin, Hodgson Handbook, (Ottawa: National Round Table on Environment and Economy, 1991). Government of Canada. Canada’s Green Plan, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1990). . Canada’s Green Plan and the Earth Summit, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1992). Canada’s
National
Renort:
United
Nations
Conference
on
Environment
and DeveloDment Brazil. June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991).
International Development Research Centre (IDRC). Agenda 21: Abstracts. Reviews. and Commentaries, (Theodora CarrollFoster, editor), (Ottawa: IDRC, 1993). Keating, Michael. Agenda for Change: A Plain Language Version of Agenda and the Other Rio Agreements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993).
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and Environmental Assessment: Sustainable Develonment Jacobs and Saddler. Perspectives on Planning; for a Common Future, (Ottawa: Canadian Environmental Assessment Research Centre). National Task Force on Environment and Economy. Report, (Toronto: Canadian Council of Resource and Environment Ministers, 1987). Repetto, R., W. Magrath, M. Wells, C. Beer, and F. Rossini. Wasting Assets: Natural Resources in the National Income Accounts, (Washington, D . C. : World Resources Institute, 1989). World Commission on Environment and (Toronto: Oxford University Press, 1987).
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Development.
Our
Common
Future,
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Information Sources: National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy (NRTEE), 1 Nicholas Street, Suite 1500, Ottawa, Ontario, KlN 7B7, tel (613) 992-7189, fax (613) 992-7385. United Nations Commiss ion for Sustainable Development, Department of Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development, Room S-3060, United Nations New York, N.Y. 10047, USA, tel (212) 963-5959.
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CHAPTER 9 Protection of the Atmosphere
-- Environment Canada THE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM The earth’s atmosphere is vital to the survival of life on the planet. Not only does it provide many of the elements necessary for human, animal, and plant survival, the atmosphere also serves to regulate temperatures on the earth’s surface and in its oceans, as well as protecting it from the sun’s harmful ultraviolet rays. The exponential growth of human population and wealth in the last century has put tremendous pressure on the earth’s atmosphere. Industrialization, technological change, energy dependence, striving for economic growth and the multitude of other ways in which humans try to improve their quality of life have led to serious atmospheric problems: climate change, ozone depletion, and long-range transboundary air pollution. Climate Change Climate is the result of a series of complex interactions between the atmosphere, bodies of water and land. The earth’s atmosphere is largely transparent to short-wave energy from the sun. Some of this energy is reflected back into space, but some is absorbed by the earth’s surface and clouds and re-radiated as heat. Several gases absorb this heat, and in turn, warm the atmosphere. This warming, or “greenhouse effect”, is essential for life on earth. Without it, the earth’s surface would be about 35 degrees Celsius cooler and life as we know it would be impossible. Several of the “greenhouse gases” that contribute most to the heat-trapping ability of the atmosphere have been increasing rapidly as a result of human activities. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), an independent scientific body that assesses
The views expressed in this chapter reflect the input of a number of stakeholders, and do not necessarily represent the views of tlze Government of Canada or the Projet de socitW.
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the scientific and socioeconomic impacts of climate change, higher concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere would increase the average temperature of the earth. Accordmg to present estimates, a continuing swift rise in carbon dioxide (COJ concentrations would lead to increases in average temperatures of 0.2 to 0.5 degrees Celsius per decade. Increases of such magnitude could result in major disruptions of weather patterns, living conditions, and economic activities around the world.
Ozone Depletion The consequences of atmospheric ozone thinning are substantial and global in nature. Ozone depleting substances such as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and other gases - used in the production of certain foams, solvents and pesticides, and as refrigerants -- have proven destructive to the stratospheric ozone layer which prevents harmful ultraviolet rays from reaching the Earth’s surface. A thinner ozone layer would result in an increase in UVl3 radiation reaching the earth’s surface. The consequences of increased UVB include greater incidences of skin cancer and eye cataracts, suppression of the body’s immune system, reduced crop yields, and increased threats to marine life because of the sensitivity of phytoplankton to ultraviolet rays. Long-range Transboundaq
Aii Pollution
Another threat to the earth’s atmosphere, which knows no national boundaries or regional constraints, is air pollution. Air pollutants are killing trees, lakes, damaging buildings and cultural treasures, sometimes thousands of miles from their sources. Acid rain has been a point of controversy between Canada and the United States for several years. It is also a serious problem in Europe, causing particular devastation to forests. Fifty million hectares or 35% of Europe’s forests are estimated to be damaged, dead or dying, mostly due to acid precipitation. The central dilemma surrounding air pollution is that increased economic activity is essential to socioeconomic development and improved human welfare, yet current fuel and technology choices are causing unprecedented and potentially irreversible changes to the life-supporting characteristics of the planet’s atmosphere.
PROGRAM AREAS AND OB.TECTIVES Chapter 9 contains the following four main program areas: 1.
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Address the uncertainties associated with climate change by improving: a the scientific basis for decision-making; l understanding of the processes (eg. physical, chemical, geological, biological, economic and social) that influence the Earth’s atmosphere on a global, regional and local scale;
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capacity-building and international cooperation; and, the understanding of the economic and social consequences of atmospheric changes and of mitigation and response measures addressing such changes.
2.
Promote sustainable development in: 0 energy development, efficiency and consumption, through the use of environmentally safe and cost effective energy systems, particularly new and renewable ones, and through less polluting and more efficient energy production, transmission, distribution and use; 0 transportation, by developing and promoting cost-effective policies and programs which limit, reduce or control harmful emissions into the atmosphere; 0 industrial development, by encouraging increased efficiency in the production and consumption by industry of all resources and materials, by improving pollution-abatement technologies, and by developing new environmentally sound technologies; 0 terrestrial and marine resource development and land use, in order to: reduce atmospheric pollution and limit anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases; conserve sinks for greenhouse gases; conserve and encourage sustainable use of natural and environmental resources; and, ensure that actual and potential atmospheric changes and their socioeconomic and ecological impacts are fully taken into account in planning and implementing policies and programs concerning terrestrial and marine resources utilization and land-use practices.
3.
Prevent stratospheric ozone depletion to: l realize the objectives defined in the Vienna Convention and the Montreal Protocol and its 1990 and future amendments, including consideration in those instruments of the special needs and conditions of the developing countries and the availability to them of the alternatives to substances that deplete the ozone layer; and, l develop strategies aimed at mitigating the adverse effects of ultraviolet radiation reaching the earth’s surface as a consequence of depletion and modification of the stratospheric ozone layer.
4.
Transboundary atmospheric pollution: l develop and apply pollution control and measurement technologies for stationary and mobile sources of air pollution and to develop alternative environmentally sound technologies; l observe and assess systematically the sources and extent of transboundary air pollution resulting from natural processes and anthropogenic activities; 0 strengthen the capabilities, particularly of developing countries, to measure, model and assess the fate and impacts of transboundary air pollution through exchange of information and training of experts;
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develop the capabilities to assess and mitigate transboundary air pollution resulting form industrial and nuclear accidents, natural disasters and the deliberate and/or accidental destruction of natural resources; encourage the establishment of new and the implementation of existing regional agreements for limiting transboundary air pollution; and, develop strategies aimed at the reduction of emissions causing transboundary air pollution and their effects.
CANADIAN POSITIONS AT RIO. 1.
Official Canadian Position Canada had three main objectives at UNCED regarding the protection of the atmosphere: l to ensure that this chapter addressed the full range of factors contributing to atmospheric degradation, and the linkages among atmospheric, environmental and development issues; 0 to ensure enough flexibility was provided for all nations to work towards implementation of agreed objectives and activities in a manner that is consistent with each nation’s particular environmental, social and economic circumstances; ad, l to ensure that this chapter was fully consistent with the elements of the Framework Convention on Climate Change. From Canada’s point of view, this chapter is considered a success, for all the Canadian objectives were met. With regards to the Climate Change Convention, the official Canadian position was that Canada intended to sign the convention despite its weak targets. Moreover, Canada viewed the Convention as a compromise, and the beginning of a process that will be geared towards achieving a longer-term consensus on the reduction of net emissions of CO, and other greenhouse gases not covered in the Montreal Protocol by the year 2000 at 1990 levels.
2.
Non-Governmental OrPanizations In general, NGOs agreed with the official Canadian position on Chapter 9, given its breadth. NGOs held a different position however, on the specifics of how to implement Canadian objectives. They believed that Canadian efforts should be focused on limiting emissions of CO, through the reduction of our dependence on fossil fuels, and expressed concern that the government’s promotion of the all-gas, comprehensive approach would simply lead to inaction on CO, reduction. NGOs also felt that Canada was too accepting of the U.S. rejection of targets and schedules, since it made Canada’s “timid and inadequate” stabilization commitment look good. In addition, NGOs were not convinced
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that Canada’s domestic plan could achieve our international commitment to stabilize greenhouse gas emissions at 1990 levels by the year 2000. With regard to the Climate Change Convention, NGOs felt that the Canadian Government’s position on energy was reactive and regressive. Although the idea of stabilization of CO, emissions was entertained, the Canadian Government argued that reduction was not possible because dependence on fossil fuels will continue to dominate energy needs for decades to come. Noting that Northern countries contributed 82% of energy-related emissions between 1950 and 1985 and that Canada is the largest consumer of energy per capita basis, NGOs advocated a more progressive and proactive stance for Canada. Such a position would go beyond energy efficiency programs to encompass “demand-side“ reduction of energy consumption. Canadian NGOs agreed upon a minimal 20% reduction of CO2 emissions between 1988 and 2005, and the NGO Agenda Ya Wanachi called for a 75% cut in global greenhouse gas emissions between 1990 and 2030. Finally, although Canada is seen as more forthcoming in CFC discussions, NGOs urged for a rapid phase-out in line with the 1995 deadline for banning CFC production. 3.
Business and Industrv Business and industry strongly endorsed Canada’s desire to improve its scientific base for decision-making. They viewed this objective as a major opportunity for Canadian Geographic Information Systems (GE) and Earth observation technology development, as well as a good prospect for international sales. The promotion of sustainable development in energy development, efficiency, consumption, transportation and industrial development, received agreement from business and industry in directional rather than literal terms. They expressed concern these objectives could potentially lead to intervention, trade distortion and protectionism, and that consumers may be reticent to absorb extra costs involved. As to the objective of promoting sustainable development in terrestrial and marine resource development and land use, business and industry viewed this as a significant opportunity for the development of GIS applications in the service industry, and expressed a belief that the judicious use of pesticides would enhance the expansion of agricultural and forest activities, as well as enhancing carbon sink capabilities of land. The objective of preventing stratospheric ozone depletion was seen as being beneficial to the Canadian service industry, because Earth observation technologies could be used to monitor ozone depletion. However, it was underlined that proper risk analysis was essential in working toward this objective, for in some cases, alternatives to the use of ozone depleting substances pose an acute hazard.
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Indipenous Threats to the atmosphere, such as climate change, ozone depletion and transboundary pollution are affecting and will continue to endanger the traditional way-of-life of Indigenous Peoples. Indigenous Peoples need to be involved in monitoring, evaluating and managing the impact of these encroachments of their way of life. This is particularly the case for remote regions where Indigenous Peoples are the primary inhabitants. Indigenous Peoples have warned Canada that the threats to the atmosphere, such as climate change, ozone depletion and transboundary pollution are affecting, and will continue to endanger, the tradition way-of-life of Indigenous Peoples. Indigenous Peoples need to be involved in monitoring, evaluating and managing the impacts of these encroachments of their way of life. This is particularly the case for remote regions where Indigenous Peoples are the primary inhabitants.
COMMITMENTS MADE BY CmADIANS 1.
Lepallv-Bindiw Documents Canada, along with more than 150 other countries, signed the United INations Framework Convention on Climate Change (FCCC) during UNCED. The ultimate objective of the Convention is to stabilize greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that prevents dangerous human-induced interference with the climate system. Prime Minister Brian Mulroney committed Canada to ratifying the Climate Change Convention by the end of 1992. On December 4, 1992 the instrumen.t of ratification was signed.
2.
Political Pronouncements In his address prior to UNCED at the Museum of Civilization in Hull, Quebec on June 1st 1992, Prime Minister Brian Mulroney announced that on acid rain, Canada has reached agreement with the United States for fifty percent reductions in the level of emissions; and on ozone depletion, Canada will phase out all CFCs within the next three years. Canada has committed itself to contribute $25 million to the pilot phase of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and to contribute our fair share in the 1994-1996 GEF replenishment.
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Also, in his address prior to UNCED at the Museum of Civilization in Hull, Quebec on June 1st 1992, Prime Minister Brian Mulroney announced that the agreement on preventing climate change, which Canada would sign, will require urgent and constructive follow-up. On behalf of Canada, the Prime Minister suggested that the countries at Rio establish a quick-start agenda for action, including arrangements for funding projects to prevent climate change in developing countries. In addition, the Prime Minister stated that this agreement must be ratified as soon as possible and that Canada would undertake to ratify it within the calendar year. Canada’s “Quick-Start Agenda” on climate change, includes: hosting an international meeting to discuss the relationship between the GEF and the Convention (October 1992); promoting a scientific work program for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) (accepted in November 1992); providing bilateral funding to developing countries to carry out studies of greenhouse gas emissions; preparing Canada’s National Report on Climate Change by June 1993; and, hosting international discussions on implementing the Convention’s comprehensive approach to limiting greenhouse gas emissions (1994).
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During his disclosure of the National Statement of Canada at UNCED, the Minister of the Environment, Jean Charest, announced that emissions of greenhouse gases not subject to the Montreal Protocol would be stabilized at 1990 levels by the year 2000; the manufacture of CFCs would cease at the latest by the year 1995; and, Canada would reduce its emissions of sulphur dioxide in Eastern Canada by 50% by the year 1994.
3.
Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NGO Treaties At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organization Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Oca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. Of these treaties, two addressed the issues discussed in Chapter 9. NGO Treaty on Climate The NGO Treaty on Climate states that industrial countries need to reduce their emissions drastically because the South needs to raise its levels at least minimally, and that every country must be supported in building up environmentally-friendly and culturally-appropriate technological alternatives.
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Its commitments include: the elimination of CFCs by 1995 at the latest, with a timetable by 1992 for the elimination of organo-halogens as agreed to in the Bergen Conference; a 30% reduction of CO, by the year 2000 and development of a comprehensive policy strategy to implement reduction; the development of total energy accounting systems to ensure real and fair comparative pricing among all energy alternatives before any future investment. NW
Treaty on Energy
The NGO Treaty on Energy includes the following principles: production, distribution and usage of energy with maximum efficiency and minimum impact on people and nature; all peoples, communities and nations have equal access to goods and services that energy provides; energy commitments must be democratic and participatory. Its commitments include: working for renewable, decentraliied energy production, such as solar, wind, biomass and small-scale hydro; opposition to all mega-energy projects and solidarity with peoples dislocated because of them; a moratorium on all nuclear powerrelated activities; pressuring governments for full reviews of their energy policies and a minimum energy efficiency standard; campaigning for consumers and producers to conserve energy.
The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference. They developed and adopted a 109~point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter. Indigenous Peoples maintain their inalienable rights to their lands and territories, to all their resources - above and below - and to their waters. They assert their right to demarcate their traditional territories, including space (air), land and sea.
DEF’ICIENClES. GAPS AND CONSTRAINTS WITHIN CHAPTER 9 While Chapter 9 is divided into three distinct issues - climate change, ozone depletion and longrange transboundary air pollution - it is important to note that there are many synergies between the issues. It is more effective to deal with them in a holistic fashion. The following represents a summary of the comments received from the various sectors of Canadian society. While the comments were addressed to Agenda 21 as a whole, they are applicable to Chapter 9.
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Economic restraint is presenting one of the greatest obstacles to being able to meet objectives. Government support to science and technology is under constant downward pressure due to diminishing budgets. Some attribute this to a lack of political will. Individuals and groups will resist the imposition of environmental protection regulations and plans because of their social and economic costs. The UNCED goals are too broad, and have been poorly conveyed. The many UNCED recommendations should be reduced to those that were in fact tangible calls for action. There is also still a need to define sustainable development in a way that can be agreed to by all stakeholders. It must be brought to a practical level. Communication has in general been poor. The lack of communication among various “actors” has resulted in a duplication of efforts - a sharing of knowledge about activities elsewhere could help to reduce such overlap. Accomplishments should be communicated worldwide. Public interest is waning as Rio recedes into the past. Federal and provincial regulations and activities are not coordinated - a significant obstacle to individuals. Adding to the confusion, citizens don’t understand how to approach or influence all the levels of governments and organizations. UNCED goals are not focused on community based activities (local levels were marginalized during UNCED and continue to be so).
COMPARISON BETWEEN CURRENT CANADIAN GOVERNMENT POLICY AND COMMITMENTS MADE Global Warming Canada remains committed to stabilizing emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases, not controlled under the Montreal Protocol, at 1990 levels by the year 2000. Canada’s draft National Report on Actions to Meet Commitments Under The Framework Convention on Climate Change was released on September 22, 1993 by Environment Minister Pierre Vincent. According to the initial assessments included in the Report, in the absence of any additional measures to reduce emissions, greenhouse gases could rise 10.6% above 1990 levels by the year 2000. The final version of the Report will be released by-the end of 1993. The federal, provincial and territorial governments have established a multi-stakeholder process, the National Air Issues Mechanism, which will guide, in close consultation with non-government stakeholders, the development of recommendations on additional measures to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases. Recent reports, lie the Canadian Options for Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction Report (COGGER), prepared by an independent panel of the Royal Society of Canada, are important contributions to this process.
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The COGGER report offers suggestions for ways and means of meeting Canada’s commitment. COGGER states that, “it appears feasible and cost-effective to achieve Canada’s interim target of stabilization of GHG gases at 1990 levels by 2000 and to achieve an absolute reduction of about 20% by 2010.” It further states that the stabilization target can be reached entirely through measures that are “worth doing anyway” for reasons unrelated to global warming. COGGER says that, “few provincial or federal government agencies or energy industries in Canada either have in place, or intend to implement, substantial energy efficiency policies that go beyond the provision of information to consumers. ” Ozone Depletion Canada has a comprehensive program to phase out CFCs and other ozone-depleting substances. The Canadian Ozone Protection Program currently requires a 75 % reduction of CFC production and import by January 1, 1994 and a total phase-out by January 1, 1996. Canada fully expects to meet this commitment. The Canadian Program is consistent with what was agreed to in Copenhagen in November 1992 by the parties to the Montreal Protocol. As of June 1992, the Canadian annual consumption of CFCs had been reduced by 58% from. 1986 levels, the base year for the Montreal Protocol. In some applications, Canada will be using HCFCs in place of CFCs. The terms of the most recent amendments to the Montreal Protocol call for a 99.5 % reduction of HCFC consumption by the year 2020 and a total phase-out by 2030. Canada will totally phase out HCFCs by 2020. T.ransboundary Atmospheric Pollution Canada continues to participate in the development of the second Protocol to control the transboundary flow of sulphur dioxide (the first was the Helsinki Protocol). The concept of critical loads, which Canada has been promoting within the Economic Commission for Europe (ECE) for more than a decade, has been established as the basis for the Protocol. Canada’s national objective is to reduce sulphur dioxide emissions from its 1980 level of 4.6 million tonnes to 3.2 million tonnes 0y the year 2000. The first progress report on the Acid Rain Control Program was released on June 1992. By the end of 1990,70% of the national goal had been achieved. In the coming year, a new system for allocating sulphur dioxide emissions targets under the national cap will be reviewed with the provinces and territories.
CANADIAN ACTIVITIES EVOLVING THROUGH THE SUSTAINABILITY PROCESS Recognizing that atmospheric issues must be addressed holistically, Canada’s environment and energy ministers from the federal, provincial and territorial governments have created an national air issues mechanism. This mechanism, which has representation from all levels of government, industry and the private sector, and other non-governmental agencies, will develop coordinated management plans and strategies for all air issues. The preparation of Canada’s National Report
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on Actions to Meet Commitments Under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change is but one example of an initiative that is being guided by the air issues mechanisms.
OTHER RELEVANT INTERNATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY-RELATED FORA Canada is an active participant in all major international fora dealing with atmospheric issues. Delegations to such meetings and conferences are routinely comprised of representatives from Canadian governments, industry and the private sector, and non-governmental organizations. To ensure an integrated and holistic approach, the national air issues mechanism will assist in the development of the positions taken by Canada at such meetings. Canada participates in the atmospheric-related activities of the following organisations: 0
Intergovernmental
Negotiating Committee on Climate Change
0
Intergovernmental
Panel on Climate Change
0
Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)
0
Economic Commission for Europe
0
The Parties to the Montreal Protocol
l
The Conference of the Parties to the Vienna Convention
0
Global Environmental Facility
0
United Nations Commission for Sustainable Development
SUGGESTED READINGS AND INFORMATION SOURCES Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment (CCME). Detailed Report of the UNCED Follow-~ Task Group, (Ottawa: CCME, March 1993). Government of Canada. Canada’s Green Plan, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1990). . Canada’s Green Plan and the Earth Summit, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1992). Canada’s National Renort: United Nations Conference on Environment ad Develoument Brazil. June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991). . Overview of Potential Economic Imnacts of Pronosed UNCED Commitments (Aeenda 21): Industrv Response as at Februarv 16. 1992, (Ottawa: Department of Industry, Science and Technology, February 1992).
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The State of Canada’s Environment, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991).
International Development Research Council (IDRC). Agenda 21: Abstrdcts. Reviews. and Commentaries, (Theodora Carroll-Foster, editor), (Ottawa: IDRC, 1993). Keating, Michael. Agenda for Change: A Plain Language Version of APenda 21 and the Other Rio Agreements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993). United National Association of Canada (UNAC). Protecting the Atmosphere, (Ottawa: UNAC, 1992). World Commission on Environment and Development. Our Common Future, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987).
Information Sources: Interim Secretariat for the Climate Change Convention, Palais des Nations, 1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland, tel (41-22) 798-5850, fax (41-22) 788-3823. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change @PCC) Canadian Options for Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction report (COGGER) Global Environmental Facility, World Bank, 1818 H Street, Washington D.C., 20433, USA, tel(202) 473-1053. fax (202) 477-055 1. Organ&&ion for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), 2, rue Andre-Pascal, 75775, Paris, Cedex 16, France, tel (33) 1-45-24-93-14. United Nations Commiss’ion for Sustainable Development, Department of Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development, Room S-3060, United Nations, New York, N.Y. 10017, USA, tel (212) 963-5959.
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CHAPTER 10 Integrated Approach to the Planning and Management of Land Resources
- Nigel Richardson -
THE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM Economic activities are placing ever increasing pressures on land and its natural resources, creating competition and conflicts. These result in sub-optimal use of land and resources. If we are going to meet human requirements in a sustainable manner, we must resolve these conflicts, and find more effective and efficient ways of planning the use of land and its natural resources. This will require improved tools, notably ecologically-based mapping and Geographic Information Systems (GIS). Above all, it will entail clarification of sustainability-based goals both for individual resource sectors and for integrated-resource-use planning.
PROGRAM AREAS AND OB.JECTIVES The broad objective of Chapter 10 is to facilitate allocation of land to the uses that provide the greatest sustainable benefits and to promote the transition to a sustainable and integrated management of land resources, taking into consideration environmental, social and economic issues. In more specific terms, the objectives are:
1 I I I I I
(1)
to review and develop policies to support the best possible use of land and the sustainable management of land resources, by no later than 1996;
Nigel Richardson is a consuibnt in land use and environmenfal policy phning, with a special interest in sustahble development as applied to laud resources. The views expressed in this chapter are those of the author who received input from a number of stakeholders, and do not necessarily represent the views of the Projet de sociktk.
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(2)
to improve and strengthen planning, management and evaluation systems for land and land resources, by no later than 2CKKI;
(3)
to strengthen institutions and coordinating resources, by no later than 1998; and,
(4)
to create mechanisms to facilitate the active involvement and participation of all concerned, particularly communities and people at the local level, in decisionmaking on land use and management, by no later than 1996.
mechanisms for land and land
CANADIAN POSITIONS AT RIO 1. Official Canadian Position There were five main Canadian abjectives at Rio:
(1)
to support the ecosystem approach to the management of land resources, covering all aspects -- air, water, land and living species;
@I
to promote wider recognition of the fact that environmental management cuts across all levels of government;
(3
to emphasize that integrated planning at the international and national levels is a necessary but not sufficient condition for linkage of environment and development issues;
(4)
to remind other nations that effective management of land resources is impossible without the full, active and informed participation of those whose
livelihoods are at stake, and that successful national development programs can build upon sustainable land management practices of indigenous people; and,
(5)
to seek acceptance of the concept that integrated planning includes identifying and setting aside areas of land for protection of biological diversity and essential ecological services.
2. Non-Governmental Owanizations The “Group of Eight� national conservation and environmental NGOs, including the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), Friends of the Earth, Wildlife Habitat Canada and others, in annual submissions to the Minister of the Environment and elsewhere have taken clear positions in favour of a more integrated, ecosystem-based approach to the management of land and water resources. However, the huge number of NGOs in total, and the range of particular
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interests represented, do not favour a clearly defined position on integrated planning and Moreover, the fact that many NGOs are committed management of land resources. defenders of particular land use causes (e.g., protection of old-growth forests, farmland preservation) militates against balanced positions on land and resource use practice. 3. Business and Industry Business and industry endorsed the official Canadian position that policies and policy instruments should support optimal land-use and sustainable management of land resources. They stated that all levels of government within Canada must have the same policy, and that agreement on positive, clear defmitions was needed. However, they also underlined their view that a Canadian position must reflect provincial jurisdictional primacy over natural resources. The promotion of government collaboration with national and international organizations was viewed as having significant potential industrial benefits and tremendous market growth potential for the Canadian geomatics industry. Canadian Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and Earth observation technologies provide effective tools for managing and analysing data, and modelling impacts of alternative land and natural resource development options. Business and industry expressed concern that the objective of applying economic instruments to encourage appropriate land-use and the protection and management of resources was dangerous, because it could lead to intervention, trade distortion and/or protectionism. 4. IndiPenous There is no formal collective Canadian Indigenous position on integrated land and resource planning and management. As far as one can generalise, the Kari-Oca Declaration (see below) represents the Indigenous position fairly accurately. Since the Indigenous Peoples see humanity as a part of a single natural system, which includes the earth and all living things, the principle of integrated land and resource planning and management could be said to be built into their cultures. Putting the principle into practice through appropriate institutional mechanisms and processes is of crucial importance to the Indigenous Peoples, both economically and culturally. They have to find ways of reconciling industrial and related development (forestry, mining, oil and gas extraction, pipelines, etc.), from which they wish to benefit, with their traditional renewable resource-based economy and way of life (hunting, trapping, fishing, gathering). Recent agreements between governments and Indigenous Peoples, such as the James Bay and Northern Qudbec Agreement, the Inuvialuit (Western Arctic) Final Agreement, and the Eastern Arctic (Inuit) Agreement, have established extensive areas in which title is conveyed to Indigenous Peoples, and in which land and resource management is shared between government and Indigenous Peoples through joint boards and committees. The principle of integrated planning and management is not fully realised, however, because these bodies reflect standard Euro-Canadian bureaucratic structures, for example, separating, wildlife management from land use planning and that, in turn, from environmental assessment. Projet de sod&&
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Indigenous Peoples recommend that nation states recognize, protect and support the rights of Indigenous Peoples, including cultural, territorial and human rights as a central priority. Moreover the ownership of land enables Indigenous Peoples to have greater say and involvement in the planning an management of land resources as opposed to the situation that exists in the world now. Indigenous Peoples recommend new policies for environmental and resource management programs. They advise that implementation would be more successful with grassroots involvement, making, they believe, a strong argument for involving Indigenous Peoples in environmental projects that affect them. This gives support to asserting Indigenous Peoples’ rights to their lands and thus better protection from outside interests. Plus, the participation of Indigenous Peoples in initiatal planning stages might mitigate some of the environmental degradation associated with development.
CO-S
MADE BY CANADIANS
1. LegaUv-Bindiw Documents None. 2. Political Pronouncements In his address to the Earth Summit on June 12, 1992, Prime Minister Mulroney stated that “Canada supports the extension of international environmental law to cover the world’s forests.” He also noted that, “countries have a right to manage their forest resources”, while “humanity has a right to expect that those management decisions will be ecologically wise.” He announced that, in 1992, Canada was contributing $115 million to forest management in developing countries, and noted a $170 million Green Plan program on sustainable agriculture. The subsequent Canadian Government statement Canada’s Green Plan and the Earth Summit developed the forest management theme: The Government of Canada believes that it is important that the sustainable development and conservation of forests be pursued on a global basis. . . . Canada strongly believes that more needs to be done to put the development of the world’s forests on a sustainable footing. In particular, Canada will continue to build on the forest principles agreed upon at Rio to develop scientifically based and internationally agreed upon criteria for forest management
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The same document also alluded to the sustainables agriculture initiative, described as addressing, among other matters, soil conservation and wildlife habitat. It noted the Green Plan’s Coastal Action’ Program of integrated coastal management. There is no political pronouncement regarding integrated land and resource planning and management in general, which lies to a great extent outside the jurisdiction of the federal government. 3. Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NGO Tre-gties At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organ&&ion Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Oca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. Of these treaties, one addressed the issues discussed in Chapter 10. NW Sustahble Agriculture Treaty This treaty sets out a number of policies and activities to promote sustainable agriculture. The emphasis is on broad participation of peoples’ movements, social and farming groups, and NGOs, to create new rural social and economic structures (including land tenure and redistribution), and to collaborate in communication, education and advocacy programs. All have the aim of restoring and conserving agricultural land and promoting and supporting sustainable agricultural practices. The Treaty also advocates broad participation in decisionmaking by governments and public agencies affecting rural land use and agricultural practices, and promotes legislation to preserve agricultural and natural areas. Other objectives include the preservation of genetic resources and biodiversity and their retention in the public realm, and legislation to regulate biotechnology research; reduced use and tighter control of -pesticides and chemical fertilisers; research and dissemination of information on the agricultural implications of climate change; and international action to support the development of sustainable agriculture, while giving priority to food security, health, and adequate nutrition. Women The Women’s Action Agenda 21 (World Women’s Congress for a Healthy Planet, Miami, Florida, Nov. 12 1991) draws attention to the increasing concentration of land ownership and control, and the socially, culturally and .environmentally destructive consequences of “gross inequities in land tenure and ownership” and of current agricultural policies in both the North and the South. It advocates that womens’ access to land tenure and ownership be regarded as a basic human right, and calls for the end of discriminatory practices which limit Projet a% so&W:
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such access. It also advocates increased awareness of the environmental impacts of land use technologies oriented to short-term profitability, at the cost of long-term sustainability and productivity.
The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference. They developed and adopted a lO%point Indigenous Peoples’ Farth Charter. The Kari-Oca Declaration and ibdigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter includes a section on “Lands and Territories”. This is based on the fundamental belief on the part of the Indigenous Peoples that they were placed on the earth by the Creator as part of Nature and are inseparable from the natural system. Therefore, their relationship to the lands and waters they occupy is integral, inherent, and inalienable. Stewardship of the land is claimed to be integral to Indigenous cultures, while the European concept of land ownership is alien to them. From these premises, it follows that the Indigenous Peoples have the right to define their own traditional territories, and that this should be supported in law; that these territories should not be intruded upon or diminished without consent; that non-indigenous laws should not be imposed on indigenous lands; and that the use of Indigenous lands by others, including “environmental groups”, should be only by agreement, and subject to conditions and appropriate compensation. In addition, “recognizing Indigenous Peoples’ harmonious relationship with nature, indigenous sustainable development models, development strategies, and cultural values must be respected as distinct and vital sources of knowledge. ” The Declaration advocates the cultivation of traditional agricultural products, and asserts that the growing of crops by Indigenous Peoples should be to supply the people themselves. It strongly opposes the use of indigenous lands for military or nuclear-related purposes or for toxic waste disposal, and the commercial destruction of forests. It advocates a very cautious attitude towards industrial and related development, and to agricultural chemicals and pesticides.
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DEFICIENCIES. GAPS AND CONSTRAINTS WITHIN CHAPTER 10 The analysis and recommendations in this chapter are generally sound. There are problems in separating integrated land and resource planning and management from the chapters dealing with individual sectors (forestry, agriculture etc.) and with the broader question of policies for sustainability; on the other hand, the subject is important enough to sustainable development that there is also merit in giving it a chapter to itself, if only to emphasise the need to see integrated land and resource management as a key issue distinct from (though of course closely related to) the sustainable management of individual resources. Chapter 10 should, however, be read in conjunction with the relevant other chapters; perhaps the organisation of Agenda 21 as a whole needs to be reconsidered.
COMPARISON BETWEEN CURRENT CANADIAN GOD COMMITMENTS MADE
POLICY AND
The Canadian Government appears to have made no commitments regarding integrated land and resource planning and management as such, as distinct from the management of specific resources. Indeed, constitutionally it could hardly do so. In general, land use and natural resource management are under provincial jurisdiction. In this field, therefore, the federal government is not really in a position to speak for Canada. While for many years the federal government played a leading and extremely important role in the field (examples include the Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Act, the Agricultural and Rural Development Act, the Canada Land Inventory), in recent years it has been generally withdrawing. Examples of this trend are the dissolution of the Lands Directorate of the Department of the Environment, the termination of the very valuable Canada Land Use Monitoring Program, and the termination of the Northern Land Use Planning Program. Nevertheless, the federal government maintains a commitment to the sustainable management of Canada’s land resources. This is reflected, for example, in sustainable agriculture and soil conservation programs of the Department of Agriculture. The federal government continues to participate in the Federal-Provincial Committee on Land Use, which among other matters is currently examining the concept of a “national perspective on land”. This could reinvigorate the idea of integrated land and resource planning at the national level. On the other hand, international trade agreements such as the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), the Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agreement (FTA) and the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), tend to restrict Canada’s freedom to manage its resources. Reduced subsidies to agriculture and forestry are an example; these need to be offset by support for conservation, which is not restricted.
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CANADIAN ACTIVITIES EVOLVING THROUGH THE SUSTAINABILXTY PROCESS In Canada, the western provinces have taken the lead in the field of integrated land and resource planning and management. The following examples are provided. The Government of Manitoba has a set of “Provincial Land Use Policies”, adopted by Order in Council, which govern land use throughout the province except for the City of Winnipeg. An interdepartmental structure extending up to Cabinet level coordinates the land use policies with such related activities as municipal planning and environmental assessment. The Government of Alberta has both a set of regional planning commissions covering the settled part of the province, and an Integrated Resource Planning System which is interdepartmental to Cabinet level. The British Columbia Commission on Resources and Environment is responsible for working with both local bodies and ministries to develop regional land use and resource management plans, and for preparing a provincial land use strategy. The Fraser River Estuary Management Program is an outstanding example of coordinated land and water management involving three levels of government and many different agencies. Several provinces and territories have made varying amounts of progress towards provincial “conservation strategies” or “sustainable development strategies” which would, in theory, provide a governing framework for all land use and resource development activities. There is a great variety of other relevant programs and activities across the country, varying from province to province: Ontario’s conservation authorities are one example. In general, in recent years there has been a substantial shift by provincial governments away from single-use resource management primarily oriented to short-term markets, to a more balanced, system-based approach oriented to sustainable use and the maintenance of eco-system integrity. Examples include forest rnanagement in Ontario and water management in Alberta and British Columbia. At the local level, most municipalities carry out land use planning to some degree. Some provinces, such as Alberta, Ontario and Quebec, have extended the geographical range of municipal planning by the creation of regional or inter-municipal planning agencies, (in Quebec, the provincial government also participates). In general, however, the effectiveness of municipal planning as an instrument of integrated land and resource planning and management is greatly limited by the lack of both adequate legal powers and suitable territorial scope.
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On the other hand, the constraints of municipal planning are increasingly -- though far from universally -- being offset by cooperation between municipalities and among municipalities, provincial (and in some cases federal) government departments, other public agencies, and even private landowners. Several Canadian universities have relevant programs, such as resource management at Simon Fraser and Manitoba, rural development at Guelph and Mount Allison, and urban and regional planning at more than a dozen institutions. In Canada, there is a clear trend towards cooperative, coordinated, ecosystem- and sustainabilitybased resource management. However, the origins of this trend can be traced back at least as far as the 1961 “Resources for Tomorrow” Conference in Montreal, and have little to do with Rio.
OTHER RELEVANT INTERNATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY-RELATED FORA Because in political, bureaucratic and academic terms the field is fragmented into a diversity of aspects and activities, there is little in the way of continuing international fora on integrated land planning and management as such, but many such fora that are relevant. Some examples are: 0 United Nations Man and the Biosphere Program (MAB) l
International Geographical Union Program on Rural Development and Planning
l
Organization for Economic Cooperation Planning and Development
l
International Institute for Applied supply/demand relationships.
and
Development (OECD) Forum on Rural
Systems Analysis program
on modelling
of land
In addition, there are dozens if not hundreds of “one-off” international meetings and seminars annually that deal with aspects of the field. The International Federation for Housing and Planning brings together mainly urban planners. The Commonwealth Association of Planners brings together professional land use planning institutes. An International Association for Environmental Management has recently been established, but is still in the formative stages. There are many international organisations dealing with the management of specific resources such as forests, farmlands, water and minerals.
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SUGGESTED READINGS AND INFORMATION SOURCES
Adams, Thomas. Rural Planninp. and Development, (Ottawa: Commission of Conservation, 1917). Berger, Thomas R. Northern Frontier, Northern Homeland: The Reuort of the Mackenzie Valley Pipeline Inauiry (2 vols.), (Ottawa: 1977). Borczon, E.L. Evergreen Challenge: The Aareement Forest Storv, (Ontario: Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, 1982). Canadian Council of Resource and Environment Ministers. Reuort of the National Task Force on Environment and Economv, (Ottawa: 1988). Canadian Environmental 1991).
Advisory Council. A Protected Areas Vision for Canada, (Ottawa:
Canadian Society of Environmental Biologists. “Conservation Strategies in Canada”, Newsletter 44.2, July 1987. Cullingworth, J.B. Urban and Regional Planning in Canada, (Transaction Books, 1987). Dykeman, Floyd W. (ed). Integrated Rural Planning and Development, (New Brunswick: Rural and Small Town Research and Studies Program, Mount Allison University, 1988). Fenge, Terry, and W.E. Rees (eds). Hinterland or Homeland: Land Use Planning in Northern Canada, (Ottawa: Canadian Arctic Resources Committee, 1987). Government of British Columbia. Report on a Land Use Strategv for British Columbia, (Victoria, B.C.: Commission on Resources and Environment, 1992). Government of Canada. Canada’s Green Plan, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1990). . Canada’s Green Plan and the Earth Summit, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1992). Canada’s National Reuort: United Nations Conference on Environment Develoument Brazil. June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991).
and
. The State of Canada’s Environment, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991). Government of Manitoba. Provincial Land Use Policies, Order in Council 217/80. Government of Prince Edward Island. A Conservation Strategv for Prince Edward Island, (Charlottetown: Co-ordinating Committee for Conservation, 1987).
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Hildebrand, Lawrence P. Canada’s Exoerience With Coastal Zone Management, (Halifax: The Oceans Institute of Canada, 1989). International Development Research Centre (IDRC). Agenda 21: Abstracts. Reviews. and Commentaries, (Theodora Carroll-Foster, editor), (Ottawa: IDRC, 1993). Keating, Michael. Agenda for Change: A Plain LanauaPe Version of Agenda 21 and the Other Rio Agreements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993). Lang, Reg (ed). Integrated Anproaches to Resource Planning and Management, (The Banff Centre/University of Calgary Press, 1990). Manning, E.W. Resource Planning and Management: Seeking Sustainable Solutions, (Sweden: Sweden-Canada Seminar on the Integration of Land Use Planning and Environmental Impact Assessment, 199 1). Perks, W.T., and P.J. Smith. “Urban and Regional Planning” in The Canadian Encvclopedia, 2nd edn., vol. 4, (Edmonton: Hurtig Publishers, 1988). Petch, Arthur R. Planning Intearated Resource Management in Alberta, Working Paper #43, (Ottawa: Lands Directorate, Department of the Environment, 1985). Richardson, Nigel H. Land Use PlanninE and Sustainable Development in Canada, (Canadian Environmental Advisory Council, 1989). “Land Use Planning and Sustainable Development in the Canadian North” in plan &nada, March 1989. Roseland, Mark. Towards Sustainable Communities, (Ottawa: National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy, 1992). Royal Commission on the Future of the Toronto Waterfront. Regeneration: Toronto’s Waterfront and the Sustainable City: Final Report, (Ottawa: Ministry of Supply and Services Canada, 1992). Royal Commission on the Land (Prince Edward Island). Everything Before Us, Final Report, (Charlottetown: 1990). Task Force on Northern Conservation. Northern Development, 1984).
Report, (Ottawa: Department of Indian Affairs and
Thompson, Andrew R. “Resource Management” in The Canadian Encvclonedia, 2nd edn., vol. 3, (Edmonton: Hurtig Publishers, 1988). Wolfe, L.D.S., et al. “Methods of Achieving Cooperation in Estuary Management”, Proceedings, (Seattle: Coastal Zone ‘87 Conference, 1987). Projet de sod&t!: Planning for a Sustainable Future
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World Commission on Environment and Development. Oxford University Press, 1987).
Our
Common Future,
(Oxford:
Information Sources: Canadian Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Earth Observation Technologies Friends of the Earth, #701, 251 Laurier Ave. West, Ottawa, Ontario, KlP 5J6, tel (613) 230-3352, fax (613) 232-4354. General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), Centre William Rappard, Rue Lausanne 154, CH - 1211, Gen&ve 21, tel (022) 739-51-11, fax (022) 731-42-06. Wildlife Habitat Canada, #301, 1704 Carling Ave., Ottawa, Ontario, K2A lC7, tel (613) 722-2090, fax (613) 722-3318. World Wildlife Fund (WWF’), #‘504, 90 Eglinton Ave. East, Toronto, Ontario, M4P 2Y3, tel (416) 489-8800, fax (416) 489-3611. The Centre for Our Common Future, Palais Wilson, 52 Rue des Paquis, CH-1201, Geneva, Switzerland, tel (41 22) 732-7171, fax (41 22) 738-5046. United Nations Commiss’Ion for Sustainable Development, Department of Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development, Room S-3060, United Nations, New York, N-Y., 10017, USA, tel(212) 963-5959.
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CHAPTER 11 Combatting Deforestation
-- Steve Thompson -
THE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM Forests play an important role in soil and water conservation, maintaining a healthy atmosphere and the biological diversity of plants and animals. They are sources of timber, firewood and have many other attributes. Forests are renewable and, when managed in a way that is compatible with environmental conservation, can produce goods and services to assist in development. Now, forests world-wide are threatened by degradation and conversion to other uses because of In many parts of the world there is agricultural expansion, increasing human pressure. overgrazing, unsustainable logging and damage from air pollution. Damage to and loss of forests causes soil erosion, reduces biological diversity and wildlife habitat, degrades watersheds and reduces the stock of fuel-wood, timber and other products available for human development. It also reduces the number of trees that can retain carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas. The survival of the forests depends on our recognizing and protecting their ecological, climatecontrol, social and economic values. These values should be included in national economic accounting systems used to weigh development options. There is an urgent need to conserve and plant forests in developed and developing countries, to National maintain or restore the ecological balance, and to provide for human needs. governments need to work with business, non-governmental organizations, scientists, technologists, local community groups, indigenous people, local governments and the public to create long-term forest conservation and management policies for every forest region and watershed.
Steve Thompson is the Senior Fellow at the National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy (NRTEE). The views expressed in this chapter are those of the author who received input from a number of stixkehahiers, and a%not necessarily represent the views of the NRTEE, the Governmenl of Canada or the Prajet de sock%&.
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It is vitally important to ensure a rational and holistic approach to the sustainable and environmentally ,sound management and development of forests worldwide.
PROGRAM AREAS AND OBJECTIVES The four main program areas in Chapter 11 of Agenda 21 are: 1.
Institutional/Human Resource Strengthening related to the development of “rational and holistic approaches” to sustainable forest development, including the development of programs, plans, policies and projects on management, conservation and sustainable development;
2.
Rehabilitation Forestry or “Greening Activities” - mainly concerned with the promotion of planting activities (including urban forestry and industrial/nonindustrial plantations) although some mention is made of establishing protected areas, buffer and transition zones, the conservation of genetic resources and the need to improve planning and management of existing forests for multiple benefits;
3.
Capturing Forest Vah..m - developing methods to determine social, cultural, economic and biological values, promoting improved and efficient utilization of industries and secondary processing, recognizing and promoting non-timber products, promoting the efficient utilization of fuelwood and energy and, promoting “ecotourism”; and,
4.
Global Information - increasing the capacities for planning, assessment and systematic observations for integrated forest planning, including improving economic information on forest and land resources.
CANADIAN POSITIONS AT RIO 1.
Official Canadian Position At Rio, Canada had four main objectives with regard to combatting deforestation. were to seek commitment to: 0 l l l
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negotiate an International Convention on Forests; develop internationally accepted criteria for sustainable forest management; establish targets for forest cover and protected natural forests; and, establish a clear institutional focus to continue dialogue, provide leadership and to coordinate international forest-related activities.
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Non-Governmental Owanizations Canadian NGOs articulated diverse views on preferred outcomes, but most agreed that forests and forestry should be seen in a larger North-South context. NGOs urged Canada to concentrate on domestic forest issues as a precursor to making international commitments or seeking commitments from others. In general, NGOs argued for the following:
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halting deforestation; protecting natural forest ecosystems; promoting reforestation of degraded forest lands; actively addressing the root causes of deforestation to ensure sustainable trade and forest practices; guaranteeing the rights of indigenous and local communities; forest management policies based on strong scientific foundations public access to information and decision-making; increased financial support for sustainable forest practices; no net reduction in forest biomass; and, ecologically sustainable forest practices.
Business and Industrv Among the program areas identified as important by business and industry were:
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4.
securing the multiple role of trees, forests and forest lands; protecting forests through the promotion of afforestation and reforestation; promoting a better utilization and value of trees, forests and forest lands; assessment and monitoring of forest related programs and processes; and, international and regional cooperation.
Indkenous Indigenous Peoples were generally alarmed by the absence of representation of their views in government positions. The National Aboriginal Forestry Association had developed five major points in its strategy: l
0 l l l
a new First Nations Forest Lands and Resources Act, to be drafted by Indigenous Peoples; funding made available to restore Aboriginal forests to sustainable development; education and training to raise forest management and skills levels; business development programs; and, policy development and advocacy programs.
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Indigenous Peoples recommended that development plans should involve Indigenous Peoples to protect, restore and manage their forests and traditional territories. In addition, restoration of existing clear-cut areas are essential to mitigating the spread of this practice and restoring areas to productive and sustaining environments.
CO-S 1.
MADE BY CANADIANS Lwallv-Bindixw Documents No legal texts or agreements concerning forests resulted from the Rio conference. A document on forest principles was agreed, although it was weakened by negotiation. It did not foreclose the possibility of a future forest agreement, but did enable G-77 countries to report that they had successfully withstood the pressure from Northern countries for a legally binding instrument. Northern countries may equally claim that the door is still open, and that a small step was taken towards it.
2.
Political Pronouncements In his address prior to UNCED at the Museum of Civilization in Hull, Quebec on June 1st 1992, Prime Minister Brian Mulroney announced that, “international standards are needed for forest management so we can all use our forests and save them, too.” Also, in his address at UNCED on June 12 1992, the Prime Minister announced that he was proud to sign both conventions on behalf of Canada and that Canada supports the extension of international environmental law to cover the world’s forests. The Prime Minister stated that the Government of Canada has decided to extend Canada’s own model forest program abroad to support forest management practices in developing countries. In 1992, Canada would contribute $115 million in assistance to developing countries for forest management. In addition, Prime Minister Mulroney reported that the Government of Canada had decided to eliminate the $145 million Official Development Assistance (ODA) debt of Latin American countries by exchanging it for sustainable development projects. Canada would also be contributing to the Rain Forest Pilot project initiated by Brazil and the Group of Seven industrialized countries (G-7), and to work on the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) Institute for Forest Management.
3.
Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NGO Treaties At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organization Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Oca Conferencd. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO
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Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. Of these treaties, one addressed the issues discussed in Chapter 11. NW Forest Treaty A number of international NGOs have subsequently designed their own forest treaty, which includes 14 principles and 20 specific actions. In summary the principles follow. Forests are essential to life on earth. l They must be protected to supply the social, economic, ecological, cultural and spiritual needs of present and future generations. l Policies shall include permanent protection, restoration, and sustainable management. l Policy must be developed with maximum public participation, and a public right to appeal and enforce forest decisions. l Indigenous territories must be legally recognized, demarcated and guaranteed. l Traditional knowledge and practices should be maintained, and indigenous rights guaranteed. l Forest conservation cannot be separated from agrarian reform, democratization, social justice, and sustainable development as a whole. 0 Traditional rights to non-destructive extraction (eg rubber tapping and nut picking) should be legally guaranteed in traditional areas. 8 Existing plantations should be harvested, and generally converted to mixed plantations of native species. l Plantations can be used for renewable energy, local employment and development if they occupy areas currently not forested, no longer able to support natural regeneration, and not suitable for food crops. Chemicals, biological control, and nonorganic fertilizers should not be used. l Logging must take account of habitat destruction, soil erosion, loss of biomass, cultural, economic and ecological damage. l Environmental costs and benefits should be incorporated into “green” accounting at the market and national accounts levels. Based on these accounts, governments should not sell or allocate forest products at a loss. l Recycling should play a significant part in protecting environmental values. l
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Km-i-oca The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference. They developed and adopted a log-point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter.
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l%e Kari-Oca Declaration and the IndigenousPeoples’ Earth Charter refers directly to the need to combat deforestation. Indigenous Peoples object to the fact #at the world’s forests are not being used for their intended purposes, but rather, are used to make money. They strongly denounce the destruction of forests in the name of development and economical gains without consideration being given to the destruction which this wreaks on the planet’s ecological balance. They suggest that all concessions and incentives provided to industries which affect the eco-systems and natural resources should be cancelled.
DEFICIENCIES. GAPS AND CONSTRAINTS WITHIN CHAPTER 11 Most commentators agree that Chapter 11 leans more to reforestation than to conservation of existing forest, and therefore does not reflect the chapter’s title of “Combatting Deforestation”. The title itself is limiting in this respect, and the chapter might more suitably be called “Sustaining Forests on Earth”. This would allow a broader discussion of such topics as agroforestry - the planting of trees by private farmers (public agro-forestry schemes appear generally to have failed). Thus the chapter could be widened to deal more completely with: l l l
the conservation of existing forests; the potential for increased agro-forestry, and the question of land tenure; and, the way in which forestry questions fit into the North-South dialogue as a whole.
COMPARISON BETWEEN CURRENT CANADIAN GOCOMMITMENTS MADE
POLICY AND
Canadian government policy has recently undergone review, and the federal and provincial governments have consulted with interest groups and the public to produce a new Forest Strategy. The document updates a similar initiative taken five years ago, While the former initiative has been characterized as dealing with sustainable production of fibre, this agreement deals with sustainable development of the forest as a whole. Work is now underway to establish a set of indicators against which progress in Canadian forests can be measured. In conjunction with Canada’s Green Plan, the government has also introduced a “Model Forest” program which will allocate $100 million to partnership groups on ten sites in Canada for the management of a working forest in a way which satisfies the ecological, social and economic demands placed on it. This agreement will involve a wide range of participants from government, industry, Aboriginal groups, academia, local communities, private forest owners and NGOs. Canada will also support three international model forests. With these measures, Canadian government policy remains true to its own objectives, and may also respond to international concerns that Canada put its own house in order first. While Forestry Canada has newly been subsumed into a new Department of Natural Resources, it is hoped that mechanisms will remain in place to carry out the programs already launched.
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CANADIAN ACTIVITIES EVOLVING THROUGH THE SUSTAINABILITY PROCESS Canadians have been exceptionally active on the domestic forest front during recent years. As well as the government’s forest strategy, a number of national stakeholder groups have developed a unanimous set of forest principles under the auspices of the National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy. Each stakeholder has undertaken to produce an action plan for what it will do in support of those principles. The Canadian Pulp and Paper Association has developed guiding principles for forest management in Canada. Similarly, through the Canadian Federation of Professional Foresters Associations, the Canadian Institute of Forestry has written a Code of Ethics. Forestrv Princinles and Standards of Practise which have been given wide support by the majority of professional foresters’ associations. In addition to these national initiatives, several regional initiatives are in place. A Council on Resources and Environment has been established in British Columbia. In New Brunswick a regional round table on forestry has been set-up. Codes of forest practice have been developed in Ontario, British Columbia and Alberta and have had significant impact on forest management practices. In the field of education, Prince Edward Island has incorporated a Forestry Module into the high school science curriculum. Territorial and provincial governments have also adapted Ontario’s Focus on Forests Program to teach students about sustainable forestry. In Nova Scotia more than 7,500 woodlot owners have completed management plans covering an area of over 500,000 hectares. The public is becoming increasingly involved in sustainable forestry practices in Ontario through community forest projects and in British Columbia through the increased opportunity for firsthand viewing of the forest industry’s operations. In Quebec public participation is being encouraged with the new access to forest management plans and public consultations on the forest protection strategy. Continuing protests against zoning on Vancouver Island illustrate another type of public participation. At the same time industry is moving to improve its environmental reputation in Europe.
OTHER RELEVANT INTERNATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY-RELATED F’ORA 0
Discussions are underway with Mexico, Russia and Malaysia as the first international model forest sites.
0
Canada recently hosted a CSCE conference on Boreal and Temperate Forests.
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Natural Resources Canada, Canadian Forest Service, will be implementing forests-related UNCED outputs through the Canadian Council of Forest Ministers (CCFM) and National Forest Strategy (NFS) Action Plans.
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Canada’s International Development Research Centre (IDRC) is proposing use of support and influence with the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) centres around the world to promote their work on forestry and agro-forestry.
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Several NGOs are supporting sustainable forest projects in a number of tropical countries.
SUGGESTED READINGS AND INFORMATION SOURCES Canadian Council for International Cooperation (CCIC). “Towards a Bioregionally based International Instrument on Forests and a Citizen’s Global Forest Treaty”, (Ottawa: CCIC, 1991). Forest Round Table on Sustainable Development. Progress Renort, (Ottawa: National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy, March 1993). Government of Canada. Canada’s Green Plan, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1990). .
Canada’s Green Plan and the Earth Summit, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1992).
. Canada’s National Report: United Nations Conference on Environment and DeveloDment Brazil, June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991). .
The State of Canada’s Environment, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991).
.
The State of Canada’s Forests, (Ottawa: Department of Forestry, 1992).
International Development Research Centre (IDRC). Agenda 21: Abstracts. Reviews. and Commentaries, (Theodora Carroll-Foster, editor), (Ottawa: IDRC, 1993). Keating, Michael. Agenda for Change: A Plain Language Version of Agenda 21 and the Other Rio Agreements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993). World Commission on Environment and Development. Our Common Future, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987).
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Information Sources: Association of University Forestry Schools of Canada (AUFSC), c/o School of Forestry, Lakehead University, 955 Oliver Road, Thunder Bay, Ontario, P7B 5E1, tel(807) 343-8511, fax (807) 343-8116. Canadian Council of Forest Ministers (CO, 351 St. Joseph Blvd., 21st floor, Hull, Qu&ec, KlA lG5, tel(819) 997-1107, fax (819) 953-3642. Canadian Federation of Woodlot Owners, 88 Prospect Street West, Fredericton, Brunswick, E3B 5P8, tel (506) 459-2990, fax (506) 459-3515.
New
Canadian Forestry Association (CFA), 185 Somerset Street West, Suite 203, Ottawa, Ontario, K2P OJ2, tel (613) 232-1815, fax (613) 232-4210. Canadian Institute of Forestry, 151 Slater Street, Suite 1005, Ottawa, Ontario, KlP 5H3, tel (613) 234-2242, fax (613) 234-6181. Canadian Pulp and Paper Association (CPPA), Sun Life Building, 19th Floor, 1155 Metcalfe Street, Montreal, Quebec, H2B 4T6, tel(514) 866-6621, fax (514) 8663035. Canadian Silviculture Association, 151 Slater Street, Suite 1005, Ottawa, Ontario, KlP 5H3, tel (613) 234-2242, fax (613) 234-6181. Canadian Nature Federation (CNF), 1 Nicholas Street, Suite 520, Ottawa, Ontario, KlN 7B7, tel (613) 562-3447, fax (613) 562-3371. Canadian Wildlife Federation (CWF), 2740 Queensview Drive, Ottawa, Ontario, K2B X2, tel (613) 721-2286, fax (613) 721-2902. Council of Forest Industries (COF‘I), 555 Burrard Street, Suite 1200, Vancouver, British Columbia, V7X lS7, tel (604) 684-0211, fax (604) 687-4930. Department of Natural Resources Canada - Canadian Forestry Service, Place Vincent Massey, 351 St. Joseph Boulevard, Hull, Quebec, KlA lG5, tel(819) 997-1107, fax (819) 9533642. Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations - Forestry Department, Via Terme di Caracalla, I-00100 Rome, Italy, tel (39 6) 57971, fax (39 6) 5797-3152. IWA - Canada, 500 - 1255 West Pender Street, Vancouver, British Columbia, V6E 4B2, tel (604) 683-1117, fax (604) 688-6416. Industry, Science and Technology (ISC) - Forest Industries Branch, 235 Queen Street, Ottawa, Ontario, KlA OH5, tel (613) 954-3082, fax (613) 954-3079.
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InternationalDevelopment Research Centre (IDRC), 250 Albert Street, Ottawa, Ontario, KlG 3H9, tel (613) 236-6163, fax (613) 238-7230. National Aboriginal Forestry Association, 875 Bank Street, Ottawa, Ontario, KlS 3W4, tel (613) 233-5563, fax (613) 233-4329. National Forest Strategy Coalition Secretariat, Place Vincent Massey, 351 St. Joseph Boulevard, Hull, Quebec, KlA lG5, tel (819) 997-1107, fax (819) 953-7048. National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy, 1 Nicholas Street, Suite 1500, Ottawa, Ontario, KlN 7B7, tel(613) 992-7189, fax (613) 992-7385. Wildlife Habitat Canada, 7 Hinton Avenue North, Suite 200, Ottawa, Ontario, KlY 4P1, tel (613) 722-2090, fax (613) 722-3318.
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CHAPTER 12 Managing Fragile Ecosystems: Combatting Desertification and Drought
-- Steve T45ompson-
‘ITIE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM Desertification describes land degradation in arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid areas. degradation results from climatic variations and human activities.
This
One quarter of the total land area of the world is affected by desertification. The most obvious impact of such desertification are degraded rangelands and declines in food production. Over 70% of rangelands, almost 50% of dryland areas where rained crops are grown, and 30% of irrigated croplands are degraded as a result of desertification. Such land degradation leads in many cases to poverty and starvation. If such degradation is to be controlled, land use practices around farming and grazing must be made environmentally sound, socially acceptable and economically feasible. In Canada, drought and desertification is a sub-regional issue. Its affects are limited primarily to parts of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba.
Steve Thompson is the Senior Fellow at the National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy (NRTEE). The views expressed in this chapter are those of the author who received input from a number of shkehoi?lers, and do not necessan?y represent the views of the NRTEE, the Govemmenf of Canada, or the Projet & sociktk.
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PROGRAM AREAS AND OBJECTIVES Chapter 12 identifies six major program areas, each with a number of ob-jectives. These are briefly outlined below.
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1.
Strengthen knowledge base and information and monitoring systems. a Promote the establishment of national environmental information coordination centres on desertification and drought; l strengthen the regional and global systematic observation networks in order to identify priority areas for action; and, a establish permanent systems both nationally and internationally to monitor desertification and land degradation.
2.
Combat land degradation. 0 Ensure appropriate management of existing natural formations (including forests) in areas not yet affected by desertification for the conservation of biodiversity, watershed protections, sustainability of their productions, agricultural development, etc.; 0 rehabilitate moderately desert&xi drylands for productive use for agropastora.l/agroforestry purposes through soil and water conservation; 0 increase vegetation cover and biotic resources management practices in regions prone to desertification through afforestation/reforestation, agroforestry, community forestry etc.; and, l reduce woodfuel consumption through more efficient utilization, conservation and use of other sources of energy including alternative sources.
3.
Develop integrated development programs. 0 Improve the capacity of communities to take charge of the development and management of their land resources on a socially equitable and ecologically sound basis; 0 achieve greater productivity within an approved program for conservation and use based on an integrated approach to rural development; and, 0 provide opportunities for alternative livelihoods.
4.
Integrate anti-desertification programs into national development plans. 0 Develop and integrate into national development plans strategic planning frameworks for the development and protection of natural resources in dryland areas; 0 initiate a long-term process for implementing and monitoring natural resource management strategies; and, a strengthen regional and international cooperation for combatting desertification.
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5.
Develop drought preparedness and drought-relief schemes. l Develop national strategies for drought preparedness for the short and long tC!IXl; l improve the flow of early-warning information about drought to decision makers and land users; and, 0 integrate drought-relief schemes into national and regional development planning.
6.
Promote popular participation and environmental education in matters related to desertifxation. 0 Increase public awareness and knowledge concerning desertification and drought; 0 promote true partnerships between governments, NGOs and land users in the planning and execution of development projects; 0 ensure partners understand one another’s views and needs through the use of training, open dialogue etc.; and, 0 support local communities in their own efforts to combat desertification, drawing on local knowledge, and ensure participation of women and indigenous populations.
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This chapter also refers to a need for a Convention on Desertification. Such a Convention, originally proposed by the African nations, would be a legally-binding international document. It should be noted that, post-UNCED, initial negotiations for such a convention have proceeded through the International Negotiating Committee on a Desertification Convention.
CANADIAN POSITIONS AT RIO
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Official Canadian Position Canadian objectives at UNCED for Chapter 12 included:
(1)
to help translate international policies and programmes into action to achieve world-wide sustainable and ecologically sound agriculture;
(2)
to improve quantitative desertification;
(3)
to support and encourage an integrated approach to land management including secure land tenure and the active participation of local farmers, foresters, and indigenous peoples.
and qualitative
information
about
soil loss and
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to work to build a consensus among African countries concerned with desert&z&on and donor nations at the UNCED conference which will lead to more effective action m combatting desertification and drought, particularly in Africa; and,
(5)
2.
to ensure that any recommendation for action within a call for a desertification convention given priority to combatting desertification in Africa.
Non-Governmental Organizations Canadian NGOs expressed the following views. l
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Desertification must be set in the larger North-South context of trade, debt and Northern consumption. Deserts are formed largely by land abuse -- something which is influenced in large measure by current unsustainable land tenure systems in Africa, Asia and South America. However, moves toward a sustainable agriculture in these Such financial regions can only be implemented with financial resources. assistance must be adequately addressed. Canadian NGOs proposed, amongst other ideas, that these financial resources could be debt forgiveness; peace dividends from demilitarization; and restructuring of the current flow of international financial resources into more effective and sustainable ways. Northern patterns of food consumption and pricing need review, with fair pricing for agricultural commodities, which would include components for environmental and social costs. Current international trade policies destabilize agricultural production systems in arid and semi-arid regions. In addition, international trade can have a negative impact on the quality of land where high potential land is taken from indigenous peoples and local communities in favour of usage by export-producing countries. Governments should ensure that all land tenure systems are well defined and should include equitable rights to small-scale farmers, women and indigenous groups. Accommodations need to be made for diverse land tenure systems within the legal structures of concerned states. There needs to be commitment by governments to implement national participatory action research programmes to determine the relationship(s) between land tenure systems and the desertification process.
In particular, Canadian NGOs noted that measures to combat desertification are ineffective given that the governments of affected countries cannot generate the financial means to alleviate desertification problems due to the burden of international debt and the deteriorating terms of trade for agricultural commodities.
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Business and Industrv
Canadian business and industry’s position on this chapter supported the official Canadian position with the concern expressed for expanded time frames to integrate. 4.
Indipenous Indigenous Peoples recommend that the involvement of Indigenous Peoples and Indigenous knowledge is essential to mitigating and/or maintaining areas that have been exposed to unsustainable land use, in particular the expansion of livestock grazing. In areas affected by drought Nation states and NGOs should support Indigenous Peoples in resettling while maintaining ties with traditional homelands. As well Indigenous knowledge should be consulted and employed to promote water and soil conservation for the alleviation of problems associated with drought.
CO-S 1.
MADE BY CANADIANS Lepallv-BindmP Documents No legally binding documents were forthcoming out of UNCED. However, the UNCED process has resulted in international negotiations for a Convention on Desertification. Such a Convention will be legally-binding once it is negotiated, approved, and signed by countries.
2.
Political Pronouncements On June 12, 1992, at the Earth Summit, Prime Minister Brian Mulroney announced that Canada would provide a total of $50 million in humanitarian assistance to the victims of the drought in southern Africa, (Canada had pledged an interim amount of $30 million the month before).
3.
Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NGO Treaties At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organization Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Oca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. Of these treaties, one addressed the issues discussed in Chapter 12.
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TreatyRegarding Arid and Semi-AridZones In this treaty, arid and semi-arid zones are described as having considerable potential. They have suffered an accelerated process of social and environmental degradation principally because of: 0 the adoption of the “Green Revolution� technology package, especially irrigated agriculture; 0 the construction of large dams, resulting in permanent flooding of land and relocation of people; 0 the refusal of emergent social and economic powers to accept traditional systems of production; 0 population growth causing over exploitation of natural resources; and, 0 unequal access to natural resources. A number of principles are adopted in the treaty, along with a plan of action. Some of the principles include: 0 if approaches to development are socially just, ecologically sustainable, culturally appropriate and based on a holistic vision of science and nature, then arid and semi-arid zones can provide a good quality of life to those living there; 0 the effective participation of NGOs, of social movements and of the populations directly involved is indispensable in all stages of sustainable development; 0 to support sustainable development,the economic incorporation of arid and semiarid zones should: seek food self-sufficiency on a regional scale give priority to the exchange of local products avoid the flight of resources that continues to reproduce the same social, economic and environmental conditions; and, 0 a redefinition of economic indicators is required to redirect the political economy of these zones towards food production destined for the needs of the poor populations. NGOs committed themselves to striving to make governments adopt some of the following measures: 0 the development of public education; 0 the democratization of government information on the realities of the social and environmental situation; 0 the democratization of government programs to facilitate access, use and conservation of natural resources to favour peasants and traditional indigenous communities; 0 the achievement of agrarian reform in countries where land ownership is in the hands of the few; 0 the adoption of the principal that genetic resources are the cultural inheritance of the peasants and the traditional, indigenous and tribal communities; l the reorientation of agro-industrial politics in order to support small-scale production generated by the popular sectors; and,
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the creation of a fund to support the restoration of natural resources in degraded areas in order to make the activities of local populations viable.
KiWi-OCa The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference. They developed and adopted a 109point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter. A number of statements are made within this Declaration which relate to “Lands and Territories”. Many of these would have an impact on problems of soil erosion and desertifkation. For example under Article 35, it its stated that: “where Indigenous territories have been degraded, resources must be made available to restore them. The recuperation of those affected territories is the duty of the respective jurisdiction in all
nation states which can not be delayed. Within this process of recuperation the compensation for the historical ecological debt must be taken into account. Nation states must revise in depth their agrarian, mining and forestry policies”. As another example Article 44 states that “Indigenous Peoples should encourage their Peoples to cultivate their own traditional forms of products rather than to use imported exotic crops which do not benefit local Peoples”.
I Ic It I I
DEF‘ICIENCIES. GAPS AND CONSTRAINTS WITHIN CHAPTER 12 A number of commentators note that the Chapter 12 definition of desertification is very broad, thus making the range of possible solutions very broad too - to the point of being unfocused. The extent of the world’s fragile land systems is indeed very broad, and this chapter might more profitably concentrate on those cases in Africa, the Middle East, Asia and South America where the end result of land abuse will be deserts. A recurring phrase in Chapter 12 invites
“governments at the appropriate level and with the support of the relevant international and regional organizations” to act. This should be widened to recognize the contributions made by many NGOs already operating in the area. Lastly, the emphasis of the chapter is heavily on cure rather than prevention, while in fact much research is still needed as to underlying causes and prevention.
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The Canadian government has recently cut back some of its Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) funding to the poorer countries of Africa - and a number of these countries fall within the world’s drought zones. The government has, however, agreed to African calls for a global convention on desert&&ion. The government views new funding from developed countries as unnecessary, as sufficient resources are available in developing countries. The first substantive session of the negotiating committee was held in Nairobi at the end of May, 1993. By the end of the session delegates felt that desertification and drought were global problems. Most countries agreed that socioeconomic factors were related to desertification, but developed countries argued that issues such as trade and debt would be well discussed in other fora.
CANADIAN ACTIVITIES EVOLVING THROUGH THE SUSTAINABILITY PROCESS The Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) has, over the years, supported a number of projects to improve agriculture in the drier parts of the world. Its recently concluded project to develop a research capability in the barani (rain fed) areas of Pakistan is one good example. The Manitoba Marquis project is a similar example of the work of several Canadian NGOs in drought stricken areas. Two other organizations involved in the field of desertification are the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD), publisher of Earth Negotiation Bulletin, and the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) currently planning a desertification conference in January 1994. The Marquis Project in Manitoba is one example of the work of Canadian NGOs who arc interested in the issues of desertification and sustainable agriculture. The Marquis Project has developed several educational programs, including annual agricultural conferences, speaking tours, development of a resource centre and other public community projects. Recently the Agricultural Institute of Canada (AK) has debated a proposal that it offer expertise as part of an international consortium on drought preparedness. The AIC is one of about 50 Canadian voluntary agencies working on agricultural development projects.
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The Centre for Our Common Future (CCF) The CCF was initiatedas a focal pointfor follow-up activitieson Our CommonFuture, the report of the World Commissionon Environmentand Development. One of the issues of concern for this organizationis desertificationwhich is given fill coverage in their newsletter, The Network.
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UN Commission for Sustainable Development (CSD) Among other contributions to the sustainable development discussion, a Can&an initiativeis preparing materi& on tr+e and susta&ble developmentto enhance the North-Southdialogue on deserticfication.
0
United Nations Conference on Desertification (INCD) l%ere is ongoing work on an IntergovernmentalCommitteefor a Conventionto Combat Desertiicm*on. This conference, will use Chapter 12 of Agenda 21 as a point of departure. &first conference was held May 24-June 3 in Nairobi, Kenya andfollowed up by a second meeting in Geneva in September. Withseveral more meetings scheduled, thefinal conventionof INCD is slated to be ready in June 1994.
0
United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) UNEP coordinatesand stimulatesenvironmentalactionwithinthe UnitedNationssystem.
SUGGESTED READINGS AND INFORMATION SOURCES Dumanski, J, D.R. Coote. G. Luciuk and C Lok. “Soil Conservation in Canada”, in Journal of Soil and Water Conservation, 41, pages 204-210. Government of Canada. Canada’s Green Plan, (Ottawa: Environment .
Canada, 1990).
Canada’s Green Plan and the Earth Summit, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1992).
. Canada’s National Report: United Nations Conference on Environment and Development Brazil, June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991). .
The State of Canada’s Environment, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991).
International Development Research Centre (IDRC). Agenda 21: Abstracts. Reviews. and Commentaries, (Theodora Carroll-Foster, editor), (Ottawa: IDRC, 1993). Keating, Michael. Agenda for Change: A Plain Languaee Version of Agenda 21 and the Other Rio Agreements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993). World Commission on Environment and Development. Our Common Future, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987).
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Information Sources: Agricultural Institute of Canada (AK), #907, 151 Slater Street, Ottawa, Ontario, KlP 5H4, tel (613) 232-9459, fax (613) 594-5190. Centre for our Common Future, Palais Wilson, 52 Rue des Paquis, CH-1201, Geneva, Switzerland, tel (41 22) 737-7171 fax (41 22) 738-5046. Intergovernmental Committee for a Convention to Combat Desertification Secretariat, BP 76, CH-1219, Chatelaine, Geneva, Switzerland, tel (41 22) 797-5641, fax (41 22) 797-5693. International Development Research Centre (IDRC) ,250 Albert Street, Ottawa, Ontario, KlP 6M1, tel (613) 236-6163, fax (613) 238-7230. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 161 Portage Avenue East, Winnipeg, Manitoba, R3B OY4, tel (204) 958-7716, fax (204) 958-7710. United Nations - Centre for Science and Technology for Development (CSTD), One United Nations Plaza, New York, New York, 10017, USA, tel (212) 963-8600, fax (212) 963-4116. United Nations Commiss ion for Sustainable Development, Department of Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development, Room S-3060, United Nations, New York, N.Y. 10017, USA, tel (212) 963-5959. United Nations - Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), United Nations Building, Rajdamnern Avenue, Bangkok, 10200, Thailand, tel(66 2) 2829161200, fax (66 2) 2829602. United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), P-0. Box 30552, Nairobi, Kenya, tel(254 2) 333930, fax (254 2) 520711. United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization, Via Terme di Caracalla, I-00100, Rome, Italy, tel (39 6) 57971, fax (39 6) 57 97 3153.
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CHAPTER 13 Managing Fragile Ecosystems:
Sustainable Mountain Development
- Theodora Carroll-Foster and Hugo Li Pun -THE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM
This chapter is focused on mountain environments as one of the major eco-systems on the planet which is essential to the survival of the global eco-system, and which, like deserts, polar caps and coral reefs, are one of the most fragile planetary eco-systems. Mountain eeo-systems are rapidly changing due to their susceptibility to soil erosion and landslides, rapid loss of habitat and genetic diversity, increasing human populations, increasing human recreational/tourism use and deteriorating air quality shown by the pollution now found in the ice on the highest mountain tops. On a global scale there is considerable poverty among mountain inhabitants, which contributes to this environmental degradation. About 10% of the global population relies on the resources of higher mountain slopes for survival, while some 40% occupy and rely on resources from the adjacent medium and lower watershed areas. Over 50% of the world’s population is affected by mountain ecology and the degradation of its watershed areas, but relatively little attention has been paid to this fact. Mountain ecosystems contain considerable biodiversity and are home to many endangered species. Because of their vertical dimension, they include a rich variety of ecological systems. A mountain may include a number of different climatic systems, representing microcosms of larger habitat diversity. Mountain eco-systems are also very sensitive to climatic changes.
Theodom GrroU-Foster is the Coonz’itiorlAdvi&or of the Agenda 21 Unit at the Intematbuzl Development Research Centre (IDRC). Hugo Li Pun is a Program Officer at the IDRC. The views expressed in this chapter are those of the authars, who received input from a number of stakeholders, and do not necessarily reflect the views of either the IDRC or the proiet de soci&&
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Chapter 13 focuses on the need for more information about mountain ecology, resource potential and socioeconomic activities in these eco-systems. The serious problem of ecological deterioration in watershed areas (inchtding soil erosion, deforestation, loss of biomass cover, excessive livestock grazing, cultivation of marginal lands etc.) is also highlighted as an important problem and the need for integrated watershed development programs is proposed.
PROGRAM AREAS AND OBJECTIVE-S Chapter 13 identifies two major program areas, each with a number of objectives. briefly outlined below.
These are
1.
Improving the knowledge of ecology and sustainable development of mountain ecosystems by: l surveying the different forms of soils, forest, water use, crop, plant and animal resources; 0 developing database and information systems for the integrated management and environmental assessment of mountain ecosystems; 0 improving the ecological knowledge base with the participation of local communities; 0 strengthening the communications network for those concerned about mountain issues; 0 improving coordination of regional efforts to protect fragile mountain ecosystems; and, l improving information for evaluation of environmental risks and natural disasters in mountain eco-systems.
2.
Promoting integrated watershed development and alternative opportunities through: l developing appropriate land-use planning and managem.ent in mountain-fed watershed areas by the year 2000; 0 promoting sustainable income-generating activities and improving infrastructure and services to protect livelihoods of local communities and indigenous people; and, e developing the technical and institutional arrangements needed in countries to mitigate the effects of natural disasters.
The Chapter recognizes the need for using an integrated approach for conserving, upgrading and using the natural resource base of land, water, plant, animal and human resources. The objectives are sound for the first program: diagnosis, maintenance and generation of databases to facilitate integrated management of resources, participatory research on sustainable technologies and agricultural practices, networking for communications, and clearing-house coordination.
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The objectives for the second program are more ambitious: development of appropriate land-use planning by the year 2CKKI to prevent soil erosion; increasing biomass production and maintaining ecological balance; promoting income-generating activities and improving infrastructure and social services especially for local/indigenous communities; and developing arrangements to mitigate effects of natural disasters.
CANADIAN POSITIONS AT RIO 1.
Offkial Canadian Position Sustainable mountain development was not a major issue for Canada, though the government did support the general thrust of this chapter. Canada thought it was well placed to ensure sustainable mountain land use through its Green Plan, the Canada Land Inventory and the Forest Inventories.
2.
Non-Governmental Owanizations Canadian NGOs continue to maintain that mountain eco-systems are among the most fragile and essential to the well-being of the planet. Beyond their watershed potential, they are home to considerable biodiversity and to many endangered species, and so require the highest degree of conservation and protection. More information is needed about these eco-systems, but it ought not to be used as an excuse for increasing tourism and recreational development. Many NGOs, specializing in wilderness issues, continue to lobby for endangered spaces or habitat as well as endangered species. However, neither these groups not the Indigenous Peoples who were stewards of the mountain regions, are given adequate attention, input or responsibility in continuing to maintain these areas.
3.
Business and Industry Canadian business and industry supported the official Canadian position on this chapter. In particular, the concept of developing and strengthening national and regional centres for watershed management was encouraged.
4.
Indipenous Indigenous Peoples often live in and rely upon mountain eco-systems, but, due to their often impoverished and disempowered status, their needs and wants have often been ignored to their detriment that of their fragile eco-systems.
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Indigenous Peoples recommend the need Indigenous knowledge institutions and development. Indigenous rights must be language which inevitable will preserve regimes and their sustainable cultures.
for support in establishing Indigenous NGOs, financial institutions to support sustainable recognized to protect their lands, culture and their sustainable economic and environment
COMMITMENTS MADE BY CANADIANS
1.
Lwallv-Bindiw
Documents _
None. 2.
Political Pronouncements None.
3.
Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NGO Treaties At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organization Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Oca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significan role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. While an NGO Treaty focusing on sustainable mountain development was not written at the NGO Global Forum in Rio, several Canadian NGOs are considering the possibility of preparing such a treaty and then circulating it globally.
The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference. They developed and adopted a 109point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter.
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Many of the articles agreed to under the heading of “Lands and Territories” would be of relevance to mountain areas, just as they are to any other lands inhabited by Indigenous Peoples. For example, Article 33 claims that “Indigenozu Peoples’ inalienable rights to land and resources confirm thatwe have alwayshad ownershipand stewardrhipover our traditionalterritories. We demand thatthis be respected”. These and other issues of rights over traditional lands reflected in the Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter are relevant to this chapter on mountain eco-systems.
DEFICIENCIES, GAPS AND CONSTRAINTS WITHIN CHAPTER 13 The two stated programs need to be closely interrelated. In the document the process of generation of knowledge is viewed separately from that of diffusion and application of knowledge. A systems approach is needed to look at both processes, so generated knowledge could be used for development programs, and to learn from on-going development experiences. Also research is needed to assess the impact of changes in one eco-system or watershed on neighbouring ones (downstream effects). 0
A more holistic concept is required. In Chapter 13 environmental issues are separated from socioeconomic ones. Sustainable development needs to consider the promotion of economic sustainability, the equitable distribution of costs and benefits, and the rational use of natural resources and the preservation of the environment and its overall diversity. If these factors are not interrelated developing countries will not be inclined to protect the environment, and poverty and inequity will prevail. The last two factors provide a potentially explosive mixture for social unrest and political instability.
0
Human resource development is given a very restricted focus: on environmental issues and for indigenous mountain populations. But, environmental concerns should be promoted at all levels (decision-makers, researchers, development agents, managers/users of resources) and on a holistic basis.
0
Insufficient attention is paid to the creation of awareness among developing country populations, among research managers in international organizations and researchers in developing countries.
0
A strategy is needed to incorporate environmental concerns into existing research and development organizations, and translate them into specific programs. The creation of new, separate institutions will dilute the use of present resources or isolate environmental efforts from other development activities.
0
Inadequate definition of methodologies exists, including the actual implementation of specific cases using holistic approaches, and the documentation of experience.
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Lack of attention is given to the diffusion of experiences, which could create further commitments, give credibility to different approaches, and have wider impacts on managers and decision-makers.
0
The approach noted for strengthening restrictive since it mainly emphasizes sciences and plant sciences, but leaves ecology, animal sciences, and systems development in mountain areas.
the scientific research capacity is too meteorology, hydrology, forestry, soil out issues such as the social sciences, analysis that are critical for sustainable
Alternative approaches to handling the various gaps in the Chapter could include: 0
a more holistic perspective for research;
0
better linkages between research and development efforts;
0
increased capacity for the application of policies and technologies that contribute to preserving/enhancing the environment through specific research studies;
0
building environmental concerns into on-going research, training and development efforts, including existing institutions and networks;
l
better focusing of programs targeted to specific mountain/eco-regions;
0
developing specific cases or lessons learned for those eco-regions.
COMJ?ARISON BETWEEN CURRENT CANADIAN GoCO-SMADE
and,
POLICY AND
The Canadian government’s view appears to be largely that maintaining or expanding “inventories” gives an adequate picture of the eco-system. Although, Canada is expanding the park system, it is also expanding tourism traffic and commercial ventures within the parks. Moreover, logging is still permitted in such parks and eco-systems. These initiatives cause concern for many who are worried that further intrusions into the remaining uninhabited mountain eco-systems will be highly disruptive to their sustainability and the future of their species.
CANADIAN ACTMTIE23 EVOLVING THROUGH THE SUSTAINABILITY PROCESS In Canada a number of programs related to mountain regions have been undertaken by Canadian institutions. Some examples follow.
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Forestry and Highlands: Laval, Lakehead, York, University of Toronto.
l
Semi-arid lands, soils and pastures: McGill, UBC, Saskatchewan, Alberta.
0
Common property, tenure, indigenous minorities: Simon Fraser, York, St. Mary’s, Manitoba, Queens.
0
Food processing: Manitoba.
l
Agricultural systems: Guelph, Manitoba.
Three major initiatives undertaken by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) were supported to promote eco-regional approaches to natural resource management in the Andes and the tropical hill sides of Latin America. Roth of them involve the formation of Consortia of a wide range of institutions to address policy and technology interventions. They are supported by several other donors including the SDC, GTZ and the government of the Netherlands in the case of the Andean initiative and SDC and Ford in the case of the Hillsides program. The main characteristics of the Sustainable Andean Development Network are: 0 the pursuit of entrepreneurial approaches, and sharing of costs and benefits among participants; a open and flexible participation according to interests and comparative advantages for agreed tasks; l the intensive use of electronic means to increase the cost-effectively exchange of information, provide technical back-up and promote the benefit of meetings; 0 support to a core group of highly qualified researchers from different institutions and sectors (agricultural production, marketing and processing, social and economic policies, environment and management of natural resources) while pursuing a systems/interdisciplinary approach to identify main constraints and support the development of viable alternatives; 0 the use of funding mechanisms to promote creativity, competitiveness, and efficiency; 0 the establishment of linkages between R&D, including the participation of bilateral development projects to amplify network efforts and create spill-over effects; 0 institution-building by promotion of the development of human resources in sustainable development issues, methods and techniques; 0 the promotion of inter-institutional concertation; and, 0 the promotion of multidisciplinary research approaches on issues of sustainable development. The Sustainable Agriculture in the Hiiides is allowing the operation of a Consortium of international organizations (CIAT, ICRAF, IPPRI, CATIE, and IICA), NGOs and national institutions to address watershed management problems in three locations in Central and South America by a highly integrated effort involving policy and technology research. Projet de socidtt5 Planning for a Sustainable Fufure
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A global initiative on Sustainable Wighland Resource Management was initi$.ed with a meeting in the Philippines. It involved the participation of social and biological scientists from NGOs, national and international organizations working on that topic. A second meeting will take place in Nairobi in December 1993.
OTHER RELEVANT INTERNATI0NAL SUSTAINABILITY-RELATED F’ORA Other countries in which Canadian institutions have played a role in mountain eco-systems are: Asia: ICIMOD, IRRI, IBSRAM. Latin America: CIP, CATIE, CIAT. Peru: FUNDEAGRO, IEP, Bartolome de las Casas, GRADE. Bolivia: IBTA, CEBIAE, ILDIS Colombia: U. de 10s Andes, FEDESARROLLO. Ecuador: FUNDAGRO, INSOTEC, CAAP Africa: ILCA, CIMMYT, ICRAF.
SUGGESTED READINGS AND INFORMATION SOURCES Banskota, M., N.S. Jodha and T. Partap (editors), Sustainable Mountain Agriculture: Persuectives and Issues, (New Delhi: Oxford and IBH Publishing, 1992). Government of Canada. Canada’s Green Plan, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1990). . Canada’s Green Plan and the Earth Summit, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1992). . Canada’s National Reuort: United Nations Conference on Environment DeveloDment Brazil, June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991).
and
. The State of Canada’s Environment, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991). International Development Research Centre (IDRC). Agenda 21: Abstracts. Reviews. and Commentaries, (Theodora Carroll-Foster, editor), (Ottawa: IDRC, 1993). Keating, Michael. Agenda for Change: A Plain Language Version of Aeenda 21 and the Other Rio Agreements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993). World Commission on Environment and Development. Our Common Future, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987).
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Information Sources: InternationalDevelopment Research Centre (IDRC), 250 Albert Street, Ottawa, Ontario, KlG 3H9, tel(613) 236-6168, fax (613) 238-7230. United Nations Commis’ IOIIfor Sustainable Development, Department of Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development, Room S-3060, United Nations, New York, N.Y. 10017, USA, tel(212) 963-5959. LIST OF ACRONYMS Asia:
ICIMOD - International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development IRRI - International Rice Research Institute IBSRAM - International Board for Soil Research and Management
Latin: CJP - Centro International de la Papa CATIE - entro Agronomic0 Tropical de Investigation y Ensenanza CIAT - Centro Intemacional de Agricultura Tropical Peru:
FUNDEAGRO - Fundacion para el Desarrollo de1 Agro IEP - Instituto de Estudios Peruanos Bartolome de las Casas, GRADE
Bolivia: IBTA - Instituto Boliviano de Tecnologia Agropecuaria CEBIAE - Centro BNoliviano de Investigation y Action Educativas ILDIS - Instituto Latinoamericano de Investigaciones Sociales Colombia: U. de los Andes FEDESARROLLO - Fundacion para la Education Superior y el Desarrollo Ecuador: FUNDAGRO - Fundacion para el Desarrollo Agropecuario INSOTEC - Instituto de Investigaciones Socio-economicas y Tecnologicas CAAP - Centro Andino de Action Popular Africa: ILCA - International Livestock Centre for Africa CIMMYT - Centro Intemacional de Mejoramiento de Maiz y Trig0 ICRAF - International Council for Research in Agroforestry
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SDC - Sahel Documentation Centre or System Development Corporation GTZ - Deutsche Gesellschaft f$ Technische Zusammenarbeit IFPRI - International Food Policy Research Institute IICA - Inslituto Interamericano de Ciencias Agricolas
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CHAPTER 14 Promoting Sustainable Agriculture and Rural Development - Depariment of Agriculture -
TFIE NATURE OF THEI PROBLEM By the year 2025, it has been projected that global population will reach 8.5 billion, 83% of which will be in developing countries. However, the capacity of available resources and technologies to satisfy the food and other agricultural commodity demands of this growing population remains uncertain. Concurrently, over the last decade, there has been a growing concern about the environmental consequences of some agricultural practices and policies. Environmental impacts, may include ground and surface water pollution, soil erosion and compaction, drainage of wetlands, air pollution from intensive manure production and crop spraying, loss of landscape amenity and habitat diversity, and clearance of marginal land. Agriculture needs to meet the challenge of increased demand while creating and maintaining conditions of sustainability. The main objective of sustainable agriculture and rural development (SARD) is to increase food production in a sustainable way and enhance food security. Priority must be given to maintaining and improving the capacity of higher potential and existing agricultural lands to support an expanding population, while at the same time avoiding further encroachment on land that is only marginally suitable for cultivation. Chapter 14 recognizes the importance of SARD and equates its success to the support and participation of rural people, national governments, the private sector and international cooperation, including that of a technical and scientific exchanges. Concurrent with the developments under UNCED, international agencies, such as the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) have recognized, and are addressing, the interdependence between
The views expressed in this chapter reflects the input of a number of stakeholders and do not necessarily represent the views of the Government of Cimaak or the Projet de sock%?.
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agriculture and the environment, and national governments, including Canada are developing policies and programs which meet SARD objectives. A 1993 OECD publication, AgricuZmraZ and Environmental Policy Integration: Recent Progress and New Directions, notes that sustainability of the natural resource base is critical to the agriculture sector. Four aspects to this sustainability are noted; an on-going economically viable agricultural production system, maintenance or enhancement of the farm’s natural resources base, maintenance or enhancement of other ecosystems affected by agricultural activities, and the provision of natural amenity and aesthetic qualities. PROGRAM AREAS AND OBJECTIVES The chapter identifies twelve major program areas, each with a number of objectives. are outlined below.
158
These
1.
Review agricultural policy a By 1995, to review and, where appropriate, establish a program to integrate environmental and sustainable development with policy analysis. l By 1998, to maintain and develop operational multisectoral plans, programs and policy measures to enhance sustainable food production and food security. 0 By 2005, to maintain and enhance the ability of developing countries, particularly the least developed ones, to themselves manage policy, programming and planning activities.
2.
Ensure people’s participation a To promote greater public awareness of the role of peoples’ participation and peoples’ organizations, especially women’s groups, youth, indigenous people and people under occupation, local communities and small farmers, in sustainable agriculture and rural development. 0 To ensure equitable access of rural people, particularly women, small farmers, landless and indigenous people and people under occupation, to land, water and forest resources and to technologies, financing, marketing, processing and distribution. a To strengthen and develop the management and internal capacities of rural people’s organizations and extension services and to decentralize decision-making to the lowest community level.
3.
Improve farm production and farming systems 0 To improve farm productivity in a sustainable manner and increase diversification, efficiency, food security and rural incomes, while minimizing risks to the eco-system
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To enhance self-reliance of farms in developing and improving rural infrastructure, and to facilitate the transfer of environmentally sound technologies for integrated production and farming systems, including indigenous technologies and the sustainable use of biological and ecological process, including agroforestry, sustainable wildlife conservation and management, aquaculture, inland fisheries and animal husbandry. To create farm and non-farm employment opportunities.
4.
Land resource planning, information and education 0 To harmonize planning procedures, involve farmers in the planning process, collect land-resource data, design and establish databases, identify resource problems and values. 0 To establish national and local agricultural planning bodies to decide priorities, channel resources and implement programs.
5.
Land conservation and rehabilitation 0 By year 2000, to review and initiate national land-resource surveys. i To prepare and implement comprehensive policies and programs leading to the reclamation of degraded lands and the conservation of areas at risk, and to improve the general planning, management and utilization of land resources and preserve soil fertility.
6.
Water for sustainable food production and rural development 0 Objectives included in Chapter 18.
7.
Conservation and sustainable utilization of plant genetic resources a To complete the first regeneration and safe duplication of existing ex situ collections on a world-wide basis. 0 To collect and study plants useful for increasing food production through joint network activities. 0 By year 2000, to adopt policies and programs for in situ on-farm and ex situ conservation and sustainable use of plant genetic resources. l To take appropriate measures for the fair and equitable sharing of benefits and results of research and development in plant breeding between the sources and users of plant genetic resources.
8.
Conservation and sustainable utilization of animal genetic resources 0 To enumerate and describe all breeds of livestock and begin a lo-year program of action. l To establish and implement action programs to identify breeds at risk, with the nature of the risk and appropriate preservation measures. 0 To establish and implement development programs for indigenous breeds to guarantee their survival.
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9.
Integrated pest management and control 0 By year 2000, to improve and implement plant protection and animal health services, including mechanisms to control the distribution and use of pesticides, and to implement the International Code of Conduct on the Distribution and Use of Pesticides. 0 To improve and implement programs to put integrated pest-management practices within the reach of farmers. l By year 1998, to establish operational and interactive networks among farmers, researchers and extension services to promote and develop integrated pest management.
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Sustainable plant nutrition 0 By year 2000, to develop and maintain integrated plant nutrition approach, and to optirnize availability of fertilizer and other plant nutrient sources. 0 By year 2000, to establish and maintain institutional and human infrastructure to enhance effective decision-making on soil productivity. a To develop and make available national and international know-how to farmers, extension agents, planners and policy makers on environmentally sound new and existing technologies and soil-fertility management strategies for application in promoting sustainable agriculture.
11.
Rural energy transition 0 By year 2000, to initiate and encourage a process of environmentally sound energy transition in rural communities. 0 To increase the energy inputs available for rural household and agro-industrial needs through planning and technology transfer and development. 0 To implement self-reliant rural programs favouring sustainable development of renewable energy sources and improved energy efficiency.
12.
Evaluation of the effects of ultraviolet radiation on plants and auimah 0 To undertake research to determine effects of increased W radiation on Barth’s surface, plant and animal life, and its impact on agriculture, and to develop strategies aimed at mitigating its adverse effects.
CANADIAN POSITIONS AT RIO 1.
Official Canadian Position Canadian objectives at UNCED included:
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to seek to promote food security and local self-sufficiency as a goal for all nations, rather than focusing on the more narrow goal of increasing food production per se;
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to seek to link human settlements to rural sustainability with a view toward addressing the optimal carrying capacity of a limited resource base; to seek to promote an understanding that in the near future some unsustainable practices may have to be tolerated in order to achieve a level of agricultural production that will feed the world;
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to seek to encourage the use of alternative fuels over expanded fossil fuel consumption, including renewable energy sources in rural areas of developing countries, and for a transition to renewable energy use in developed countries;
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to seek to strengthen international standards regarding the use of pesticides;
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to seek recognition that policies and practices of multi-national business corporations are relevant to this topic and that they must be incorporated in discussion; and, to seek to ensure that this topic does not become equated with Low Input Sustainable Agriculture (LISA) exclusively (LISA could be part of a global sustainable agriculture program but should not be the whole program).
In general, this chapter can be considered a success from Canada’s point of view, as all the Canadian objectives were met. 2.
Non-Governmental Orzzanizations Given that NGOs are highly critical of the continuation and promotion of the current models of industrial, chemical-intensive agricultural production, NGOs lobbied for research, sharing of information and the promotion of new patterns of agricultural production which are equitable, sustainable and participatory. The following are some of the key concerns which NGOs had with Agenda 21. 0
The role of social and community organizations should be given more recognition and support in the documents. Governments and international organ&ions should recognize that one of their key roles should be to support and encourage “bottom up� change processes.
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It was noted that the role of transnational corporations is almost ignored. There should be stated recognition that some policies and practices of multi-national business have a direct negative impact on potential for transition to sustainable development (particularly in agriculture).
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International trade in the context of sustainable agriculture must be addressed. For example, the liberalization of agricultural trade, as proposed by GATT, strengthens the monopoly of the present agro-economic system and uniformity of production systems, thereby undermining local food security systems throughout the world.
Business and Industry Generally, business regards Chapter 14 as representing an opportunity for Canadian industry and science. Specifically, the dissemination of integrated farm management know-how, methods of efficient reduction in use of agricultural chemicals, expertise in reclamation of degraded lands and expertise in plant and genetic resources management are of importance. The pesticide industry supports safe use ‘of pesticides and integrated pest management where feasible but believes education rather than pricing policy is required for implementation.
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IndiPenous Indigenous Peoples recommend the need for support in establishing Indigenous NGOs, Indigenous knowledge institutions and financial institution. Indigenous rights must be recognized to protect their lands, culture, and language which inevitable will preserve their sustainable economic and environment regimes and their sustainable cultures. The use of Indigenous knowledge should be heavily consulted as they pertain to sustainable agriculture such as through more holistically oriented water and soil conservation techniques and agriculture.
CO-S 1.
MADE BY CANADIANS Lepallv-Binding Documents Reference should be made to the Convention on Biodiversity to the extent it relates to agriculture.
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Political Pronouncements In his address June 12, 1992 at UNCED, Prime Minister Brian Mulroney cited a $170 million program on sustainable agriculture as one of the range of projects that are part of Canada’s Green Plan.
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Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NGO Treaties At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organization Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Oca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. Of these treaties, three addressed the issues discussed in Chapter 14. SustainableAgriculture Treaty The NGOs in Rio agreed that it is necessary to break the “predatory model� in agriculture in favour of new patterns of sustainability. These must be equitable and participatory. They must put the control of natural resources and means of production into the hands of the people who work the land. Sustainable agriculture respects ecological principles of diversity and interdependence, producing diverse forms of foods, fibres and medicines. It maintains ecological balance -- including the self sufficiency and stability of rural communities. Key to attaining this model is the cooperation of peasant, farmer, rural community and social groups in restoring, maintaining and developing sustainable farming systems. International networks can further strengthen and support local ones. Specific actions would then include preservation of genetic resources and biodiversity, and advocating democratic and equitable redistribution of land based on control of the land by workers. Increased agriculture production should aim at improving regional food supplies and alleviating poverty. Food Security Treaty The NGOs in Rio agreed that access to safe, high quality food is a basic human right. Instead of relying on international trade and imports, food security should be based on local self reliance. Working together, NGOs in Rio advocated that food security be a central objective of local and national government, international agencies and trade policies (especially GATT). However, the right to trade in order to supplement national food security should not include over production and export dumping. In&a-regional trade should be encouraged in order to increase diversification. Within communities work can be done to reduce the distance between producer and consumer. Viable small and family farms and the establishment of buffer stocks of seed and food will increase security, as will promoting the development of transportation, storage and other facilities. Structural adjustment policies which undermine food security should not be supported.
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Citizens Commitmenton Biodiversity The Citizen’s Commitment on Biodiversity includes the following principles for conservation: that we respect all living things and that our activities cause suffering to none; that the integrity of ecosystems be respected; that the basic structure of genetic resources is not to be depleted; that all members of present and future generations receive socially equal access to the benefits of natural resources; and, that indigenous and traditional communities receive recognition and benefit for sharing their knowledge about the uses of their natural resources.
The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference, where they also developed and adopted a log-point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter. Within Kari-Oca, Indigenous Peoples’ commitment to sustainable and bioregional agricultural practices is made clear. In the section titled “Lands and Territories” it states, “Indigenous Peoples should encourage their peoples to cultivate their own forms of products rather than to use imported exotic crops which do not benefit local peoples. ” Additionally, in the section titled “Biodiversity and Conservation“ it states, “If we are going to grow crops, these crops must feed the people. It is not appropriate that the lands be used to grow crops which do not benefit the local peoples.”
DEFXXENCIES, GAPS AND CONSTRAINTS WITHIN CHAPTER 14 The Canadian agricultural sector examined the issues of sustainability in 1990, through a federalprovincial ministerial format. At that time, eight major sustainability issues were identified and agreed upon by the sector. All of these are covered in Chapter 14, with the exception of water quality which has been included under Chapter 18. In addition, air and climate issues are encompassed under the Conventionfor Climate Change, while genetic diversity issues are incorporated into the Conventionon Biodiversity,both conventions have been ratified by Canada. As these identified Canadian issues have been incorporated within Chapter 14, there appear to be no deficiencies, gaps or constraints.
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COMPARISON BETWEEN CURRENT CANADIAN GOVERNMENT POLICY AND COMMITMENTSMADE As noted below, the recommendations in the 1990 report to Ministers of Agriculture have raised awareness of environmental sustainability issues in the Canadian agri-food sector. These recommendations have also influenced the development of Canadian agri-food programs and policies to move the sector towards greater environmental sustainability. Concurrently, government programs have been designed to specifically address sustainability. For instance, the agricultural component of the Green Plan, which has been effected through cost-shared Federal-Provincial-Territorial Agreement, (ten of which have been signed), and national initiatives, primarily research in nature, address Chapter 14 program areas. Programs include residue management, wildlife and wetland conservation, genetic resources, soil conservation efforts, manure management, green house gases, low level ozone, genetic resources, alternative pest management, and may others directly related to sustainability. Further, Land Management Assistance Programs, Canadian Agreements on Agri-Food Development, the Great Lakes Action Plan, the Canadian Pesticide Regulatory Regime and ongoing research activities are designed to research and implement programs related to sustainable agriculture and rural development.
CANADIAN ACTIVITIES EVOLVING THROUGH THE SUSTAINABILITY PROCESS Many of the concepts of sustainability reported in this Chapter were incorporated in the June 30, 1990 report to Ministers of Agriculture, Growing Together. The report was initiated by the Federal-Provincial Agriculture Committee on Environmental Sustainability, whose task was “to develop an a action plan to address natural resource base and environmental quality issues facing Canada’s agri-food sector”. It identified eight main issues for Canada: preservation of soil resources; surface and ground water quality; water quality management; sustainable management of wildlife habitat; air and climate change adaptation; energy efficiency; pollution and waste management; and promoting diversity in genetic resources. To move the agri-food sector in these directions, Growing Together recommended adjustments to agricultural practices, enhanced research and information into best management practices compatible with ecological limits, improved land use planning and management, increased monitoring and data base management, and implementation of policy and program reform to strengthen economic viability and environmental sustainability. Before and after UNCED, the New Brunswick Environment and Development Working Group, Fallsbrook Centre has been working on the issue of sustainable agriculture focusing on community involvement.
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L&bridge Community College has developed a program in partnership Agriculture which offers training in farm business management.
with Alberta
Through its Rural Renewal Program, the National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy (NRTEE) is examining existing barriers to economic and ecological renewal in rural Canada. By linking sustainable agriculture, sustainable communities, landscape ecology and biological diversity, the NRTEE is examining the revitalization of rural Canada. The study has identified the growing urgency of alternative economic development in rural areas and subsequently the need for diversification which is stressed in Chapter 14. The NRTEE has also given importance to pending international agreements for Canadian agriculture industry and the competitiveness of the agri-food sector.
OTHER RELEVANT INTERNATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY-RELATED FORA United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Committee for Plant Genetic Resources General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), Working Group on International Trade and Environmental Measures International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development - Joint Experts Group on Trade and Environment - Joint Working Party on Agriculture and Environment United Nations Commission for Sustainable Development (CSD) United Nations Environment Committee
Program (UNEF) Methyl Bromide Tc&nkal
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United Nations Intergovernmental Committee for the Convention on Biological Diversity United Nations Intergovernmental Panel for the Convention on Climate Change
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-SUGGESTED READINGS AND INFORMATION SOURCES Chambers, R. Sustainable Rural Livelihoods: A Strategy for People. Environment and DeveloDment, (Sussex, UK: Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex, 1987). Conway, G.R. ad E.G. Barbier. After the Green Revolution: Develonment , (London: Earthscan. 1990).
Sustainable Agriculture for
Crosson, P. “Sustainable agriculture in North America”, in Canadian Journal of Agricultural Economics, June 30, 1990. Federal-Provincial Agriculture Committee on Environmental Sustainability. June 30, 1990.
Growing Together,
Government of Canada. Canada’s Green Plan, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1990). .
Canada’s Green Plan and the Earth Summit, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1992).
Canada’s National Renort: United Nations Conference on Environment Development Brazil, June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991).
and
Institute for Research on Environment & Economy (IREE). “Promoting Sustainable Agriculture and Rural Development”, UNCED, Prep Corn IV, Issue 6, (University of Ottawa, February 26, 1992). International Development Research Centre (IDRC). Agenda 21: Abstracts. Reviews and Commentaries, (‘I’heodora Carroll-Foster, editor), (Ottawa: IDRC, 1993). Keating, Michael. Agenda for Change: A Plain Language Version of Agenda 21 and the Other Rio Agreements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993). Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Arrricultural and Environmental Policy Integration: Recent Progress and New Directions, (Paris: OECD, 1993). . “OECD Country Report, Canada, Sustainable Agriculture Workshop, February”, (Paris: 1992).
Sopuck, Robert, D. Canada’s Aaricultural and Trade Policies: Implications for Rural Renewal and Biodiversity, (Ottawa: National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy, 1993). Stabler, J.C. “Rural Development. The issues and problems facing us in the 199Os”, in Canadian Journal of Agricultural Economics, 38:1990.
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Street, Roger and Keith Valentine. Sustainable Agriculture and Rural DeveloDment: Canadian Objectives, A paper prepared for The Fourth Preparatory Meeting of the UNCED, March 1992. World Commission on Environment and Development. Our Common Future, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987)
Information Sources: Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment (CCME), 326 Broadway, Suite 400, Winnipeg, Manitoba, R3C OS5, tel(204) 948-2090, fax (204) 948-2125. Canadian Federation of Agriculture (CFA), 72 Albert Street, Suite 1101, Ottawa, Ontario, KlP 5E7, tel (613) 236-3633. Canadian Fertilizer Institute, 360 Albert Street, Suite 1540, Ottawa, Ontario, KlR 7X7, tel (613) 230-3600, fax (613) 230-5142. Department of Agriculture, Ottawa, Ontario, KlA OC7, tel (613) 995-8963, fax (613) 996 9564. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Via Terme di Caracalla, 1-00100 Rome, Italy, tel (39 6) 57971, fax (39 6) 5797-3152. General Agreement on Tarrifs and Trade (GATT), Centre William Rappard, Rue Lausanne 154, CH - 1211, Geneve 21, tel(022) 739-51-11, fax (022) 731-42-06. International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD), 161 Portage Ave East, Winnipeg, Manitoba, R3B OY4, tel (204) 958-7716, fax (204) 958-7710. National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy (NRTEE), 1 Nicholas Street, Suite 1500, Ottawa, Ontario, KlN 7B7, tel (613) 992-7189, fax (613) 992-7385. Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD, 2, Rue Andre-Pascal, 75775, Paris, Cedex 16, France, tel(33) 1-45-24-93-14. Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration, Room 603, CIBC Tower, 1800 Hamilton Street, Regina, Saskatoon, S4P 4L2, tel(306) 780-5070. Western Economic Diversification Canada, Canada Place, 1500 - 9700 Jasper Avenue, Edmonton, Alberta, T5J 4H7, tel(403) 4954164, fax (403) 495-6876.
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CHAPTER 15 Conservation of Biological Diversity and the Convention on Biodiveksity - Elizabeth May -
“The Convention on Biological Diversity holds great promise, promise of a new deal between the South and the North. It could also lead to a greater understanding of the value of all living things to the welfare of the planet’s inhabitants.” ElizabethDow&swell Executive Director, UnitedNationsEnvironmentProgram
THE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM The opening words of Chapter 15 of Agenda 21 set out a consensus formulation of biological diversity: “Our planet’s essential goods and services depend on the variety and variability of genes, species, populations and ecosystems”. These biological resources are what feed and clothe us and provide housing, medicine and spiritual nourishment. It was the World Commission on Environment and Development (the Brundtland Report) that put biodiversity on the global political agenda, recognizing the accelerating loss of the planet’s lifeforms as a threat of international proportions. No longer would the debate about biodiversity focus on individual species (e.g., pandas) within nation states as primarily issues of local The elevation of species extirpation from national to global political action importance. successfully bypassed what for other issues was a near-fatal log jam -- sovereignty.
Elidabeth May is the Executive Director of Cultural Survival Canada and the Sierm Club of CaMda. The views apressed in this chapter are those of the author who received input from a number of SfaReholders, and do not necessariy represent the views of the Projet de soci&L
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The world’s biological diversity is being lost as a result of habitat destruction, overharvesting, pollution and inappropriate introduction of foreign plants and animals -- all as a result of human activities and demands on the planet. Agenda 21 recognized that the loss of biodiversity, while caused by human activity, was also a threat to human development. The urgent need to conserve and maintain genes, species and ecosystems was also recognized. Meanwhile, as natural systems face a seemingly unstoppable onslaught, humankind has entered a new age. Biotechnology already has vast commercial applications in the fields of agriculture, health and environmental protection, and we are only scratching the surface of its potential. Biotechnology (access to it and control of it) became a major part of the discussion in the Rio process. The packaging and repackaging of the “stuff of life” as a commodity to be exchanged in the marketplace is becoming commonplace.
PROGRAM AREAS AND OBJECTIVES Chapter 15 identifies one major program area and a number of objectives. In addition, it makes reference to the Conventionon Biological Diversity, which was being negotiated in parallel through the United Nations Environment Program between 1990 and 1992. The Convention was signed by most nations at the Earth Summit, when Agenda 21 was adopted. The biotechnology issues dealt with in the body of the Convention are the subject of Chapter 16 in Agenda 21. The objectives of l the 0 the 0 the
the Biodiversity Convention include: conservation of biological diversity; sustainable use of its components; and, equitable sharing of the benefits arising out of the use of genetic resources.
In its essence, the Convention on Biological Diversity is both a conservation and a development instrument. From the viewpoint of the industrialized countries whose publics are alarmed by the unprecedented level of mass extinction, the convention holds the promise of conserving biodiversity. For the developing world, the convention reflects their needs for the sharing .of benefits. The discovery of cancer fighting properties in the rosy periwinkle has become a classic example of the need for a mechanism and a guarantee for the sharing of benefits. The rosy periwinkle yielded millions of dollars in profits to the pharmaceutical company that developed the leukaemia drug, but the host country, Madagascar, received nothing and went on to allow the ecosystem that sustained the rosy periwinkle to be destroyed. The convention aims to create an incentive for the conservation of biological diversity through the sharing of benefits. The Convention, and the chapter in Agenda 21 which supports the aims of the Convention, commit signatory countries to a range of protection strategies, from developing national strategies for biodiversity conservation, to implementing effective environmental assessment of projects that significantly threaten biodiversity, to creating special regimes for protection of “buffer zones“ around park and designated wilderness areas. Both in situ and ex sim conservation is covered in the Convention. Specific roles of women and indigenous peoples are mentioned, and indigenous peoples are highlighted for the traditional ecological knowledge they
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possess. Countries are obliged to preserve, respect and protect traditional knowledge and to ensure that indigenous peoples share equitably in the benefits derived from their traditional knowledge. The development or “exploitation” side of the Convention’s equation refers largely to genetic resources, including potential benefits from biotechnology. It requires that signatories develop ways of ensuring the rights of countries of origin of genetic resources to benefits from the commercial utilization of products derived from such resources. The range of commitments undertaken by signatories to the Convention is impressive. While it should be noted that virtually every commitment is softened by language such as “as appropriate” and “where necessary”, still, if implemented, the Convention on Biological Diversity may well be the sleeper document of the decade or could prove to be the most potent tool emerging from Rio to move global society to sustainability and equity. The following is a representative sampling of specific commitments within the Convention: produce regularly updated world reports on biodiversity; develop national strategies for the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity and integrate these with other programs and policies; identify important components of biological diversity and monitor these components and the activities which are likely to have adverse effects on it; establish laws to protect threatened species, develop systems of protected areas to conserve biological diversity and promote environmentally sound development around these areas; rehabilitate and restore degraded ecosystems and promote the recovery of threatened species, helping local people to develop and carry out remedial plans; respect, preserve and maintain knowledge, innovations and practices of indigenous and local communities relevant to conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity and encourage the equitable sharing of the benefits of such knowledge; establish means to control the risks from organisms modified by biotechnology; use environmental impact assessment with public participation on projects that threaten biological diversity, in order to avoid or minimize damage; prevent the introduction of, control, or eradicate alien species which threaten ecosystems, habitat or species; use the media and educational programs to help people to understand the importance of biological diversity; establish and maintain programs for scientific and technical education and training in the identification, conservation and sustainable use of biological resources; facilitate access to genetic resources for environmentally sound uses by other countries and to the technologies that are relevant to these uses, under fair and most favourable terms while ensuring effective protection of intellectual property rights;
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take measures which would enable the sharing in an equitable way of the results of research and benefits arising from commercial use of genetic resources with that country which provided the resource; promote international technical and scientific cooperation in the field of conservation and sustainable use, and in promoting such cooperation ensure special attention is given to strengthening of national capabilities, particularly in developing countries; consider the need for an agreement on the safe handling and use of living organisms modified by biotechnology; and, provide new and additional financial resources to assist developing countries to meet the costs of implementation under this agreement.
CANADIAN POSITIONS AT RIO 1.
Official Canadian Position Canada’s two objectives in negotiating the contents of this chapter were to ensure that the chapter was consistent with and supportive of Canada’s position in the negotiations for the Convention on Biological Diversity, and to ensure that throughout the chapter biodiversity be recognized as consisting of two fundamental values - the ecological services it offers for the maintenance of life on the planet as well as the resources it can provide for human benefit if they are sustainably managed. Canada wanted the Convention to be the leading force and the Agenda 21 chapter to be a relatively simple reflection of the thrust of the Convention, which it was. The chapter is more substantive than Canada had anticipated, but given that it was compatible with the Convention there was no concern about having to implement it.
2.
Non-Governmental 0rPanization.s A number of Canadian environmental NGOs participated in the Biodiversity Convention Advisory Group (BCAG), convened by Environment Canada and comprising NGOs, industry and other interests. These groups (Cultural Survival (Canada), Cam&an Parks and Wilderness Society, Rawson Academy of Aquatic Sciences, Wildlife Habitat Canada, Sierra Club of Canada, Canadian Wildlife Federation as well as groups across the country, such as Western Canada Wilderness Committee and the Conservation Council of New Brunswick), participated in the BCAG as well as in UNCED Preparatory Committee meetings. An NGO representative was included in Canada’s delegation to the UNEI? negotiations, once the negotiations had emerged from early non-productive sessions and the government assessed that real progress was being made.
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International environmental NGOs favoured a strong convention with an independent scientific body at the international level, empowered with authority to catalogue the loss of biodiversity worldwide and offer priority suggestions for the application of funds to the developing world. They believed the convention should also initiate a massive effort to catalogue species and ecosystems and monitor how biodiversity is being protected in every nation. Finally they felt that strong incentives and disincentives were needed to ensure all countries maximize conservation of biological diversity. Canada considered the issues from a somewhat different perspective. While Canada accepted much of what NGOs favoured, a heated debate developed during negotiations about global lists. The idea of imposing global priorities for conservation ran counter to the principles behind the concept strongly endorsed by Canada that there be strong grassroots involvement in the development of national strategies and in their implementation. Developing countries saw global lists as an infringement on their sovereignty. The result of sometimes vitriolic negotiations was an effective compromise which retained the notion of national strategies, abandoned global lists and provided for the creation of a scientific and technical advisory body composed of government appointments, rather than truly independent advisors. 3.
Business and Industrv Business and industry participated in the negotiation sessions in Nairobi and Geneva prior to Rio. Their participation in the federal government’s Biodiversity Convention Advisory Group (BCAG) provided input at both the Convention negotiations and negotiations around Chapter 16 (Environmentally Sound Management of Biotechnology). Because of the participation of business from the inception, the positions carried forward by the Government to Rio on this issue were not inconsistent with the needs and concerns of business. One of the areas of concern for business is in respect of the Biosafety Protocol and the problem posed with respect to national approaches to a science-based or risk-based regulatory system. Business in general supports the latter and continues to voice concerns about a science-based regulatory system.
4.
Indipenous Indigenous views were sought by the Government of Canada through Indigenous involvement on the Canadian delegation to PrepCorns. Indigenous Peoples were not well represented on the BCAG and a separate consultation process has begun since Rio to identify the vital role of Indigenous Peoples in the implementation of the Convention. Despite the small delegation of Indigenous Peoples in the negotiating process, Canada’s delegation was an early and forceful source of the language relating to the rights of Indigenous Peoples found in both the convention and Chapter 15.
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Indigenous Peoples have recommended that they be consulted on all matters of conserving biological diversity. Indigenous Peoples have proved their ability to preserve and live sustainably in the most biodiverse environments in the world.
COMMITMENTS MADE BY CANADIANS 1.
Lwaiiv-Bind’mP Documents Canadasigned the Conventionon BiologicalDiversityat the Rio conference, and ratified it December 4, 1992. Elements of this binding convention are outlined above.
2.
Political Pronouncements Jn a speech at the Canadian Museum of Civilization on June 1, 1992, Prime Minister Brian Mulroney helped save the Biodiversity Convention from an ignominious defeat. On May 31, 1992, the day before, U.S. President George Bush announced that the United States would not sign the Convention, despite significant concessions to the U.S. in the negotiating process. Other G-7 leaders, including notably Prime Minister John Major of the U.K. who had been an early supporter of the Convention also appeared to be reconsidering support, as did France and Japan. Canada’s quick and unequivocal support of the Convention was a major factor in stemming a tide of erosion of support. In outlining a five-point Agenda for the way ahead, the Prime Minister emphasized the importance of the conventions and committed Canada to ratifying them by the end of 1992. He also suggested that the countries at Rio establish a quick-start agenda for action which would include arrangements for funding projects to preserve biodiversity in developing countries. Ultimately, the only country to refuse to sign the convention was the United States. On April 22, 1993, newly elected President Bill Clinton reversed his predecessor’s position and the U.S. became a signatory on June 5, 1993.
3.
Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NGO Treaties At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organization Forum (Global Forum), and the K&i-Oca Conference At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. Of these treaties, two addressed the subject matter of Chapter 15.
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Citizens Cownitment on Biodiversity This commitment describes the concept of biodiversity as “an expression of life which includes variability of all life forms and their organization and inter-relationships from the molecular to the biosphere level, which includes cultural diversity.� It recognizes that life forms have a right to exist, that the diversity of life has its own intrinsic value and that biodiversity is an essential condition for the preservation and evolution of life on the planet. Signatories subscribed to the principles outlined below. 0
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Biodiversity conservation includes the sustainable use of ‘its components sustainable use meaning that it does not interfere with the ecological integrity of any living things or their ecosystems and which is socially equitable to people. Conservation of biodiversity requires a fundamental change in patterns of socioeconomic development globally and changes in individual mindsets towards a more equal partnership with the Earth. Rehabilitation of degraded ecosystems is essential. The knowledge, traditions, innovations, understanding and management practices of indigenous people and women must be respected and form a basis for sustaining biodiversity. No patenting should be allowed on any living thing or product derived from it. This should not however, prejudice the rights of indigenous peoples, traditional farmers and fishermen to maintain control over and access to knowledge, innovations and cultural traditions concerning biodiversity and the right to just compensation for sharing that knowledge. The administration of environmental funds should not be done through the World Bank, and particularly not by the Global Environmental Fund. An intergovernmental institution is needed to manage financial assistance in a transparent and democratic way.
DrajZProtocol On Scientl@cResearch Componentsfor the Conservationof Biodiversity This protocol outlines both a number of subjects which it is felt should be given special attention in researching the conservation of biological diversity and a number of principles which the signatories agree to reflect in their research plans. The principles include, for example: 0 0 0 0
the ecological integrity of the ecosystems and their components must be respected; the social and cultural integrity of indigenous people must be respected; studies requiring the sampling of wild species will be avoided in sensitive ecosystems; and, knowledge obtained through international studies of biodiversity must be transferred.
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Some of the subjects to be studied include: l
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possible and existing impacts resulting from the introduction of exogenous species; the impact of militarism on biodiversity; basic inventories of ecosystems with regard to their biophysical, socioeconomic and cultural assets, and their relationship with neighbouring ecosystems; and, the dynamics of interactions and interlinkages of ecosystems.
The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference. They developed and adopted a 109point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter. One section of this document is titled, “Biodiversity and Conservation”, and clearly illustrates that Indigenous Peoples value the efforts being made regarding protection of biodiversity.
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15 AND THE
Despite the successful adoption of the biodiversity and biotechnology chapters of Agenda 21, and Canada’s ratification of the Convention, a great deal remains to be negotiated when the Convention enters into force. (Entry into force will occur 90 days after 30 countries have ratified it. As of August 1993, more than 20 countries had ratified it, so it is possible that the Convention will become legally binding within the calendar year.) Major gaps surround issues of biotechnology and the equitable sharing of benefits between industrialized country based multi-nationals (largely pharmaceutical companies, but also chemical producers of pesticides, etc.) and developing country governments. The imprecision around these issues was the primary reason for the U.S. initial refusal to sign the Convention. Also to be negotiated is the financial mechanism for the provision of resources to developing countries for the preservation of their in situ biodiversity. The Global Environmental Facility identifies biodiversity as one of its four program areas, and it is widely assumed that the GEF will be the appropriate mechanism for biodiversity convention arrangements. However, as noted above, the NGO alternative treaty strongly opposes the GEF in this role, as do the developing country governments.
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Other critical issues are raised, but not resolved by the Convention and chapters. Both speak of the role of indigenous peoples and of their right to the “equitable sharing of benefits arising from the utilization of (traditional ecological) knowledge, innovations and practices.” The traditional western concept of rewarding knowledge is through the recognition of intellectual property rights. It is not clear whether intellectual property rights (IPR) can be accommodated to collective wisdom of whole cultures, such as the knowledge of indigenous shaman. It is more likely that intellectual property rights will reward a pharmaceutical company that identified the relevant genetic factor in a traditional cure, than the people who have developed and used the cure for centuries. The relationship between IPR and Traditional Ecological Knowledge will be a key area for negotiation as the Convention is implemented.
COMPARISON BETWEEN CURRENT CANADIAN GOVERNMENT POLICY AND COMMITMENTS MADE 1.
Canada’s Current Plan for Imulementation Canada’s implementation of the Biodiversity Convention has largely been coordinated by the Biodiversity Convention Office (BCO), housed within Environment Canada. The BCO chairs and manages the work of the Biodiversity Working Group, comprised of contacts from within each provincial and territorial government. It is charged with bringing forward the Canadian Biodiversity Strategy for ministerial approval, formulating a public awareness campaign for biodiversity conservation and advising on Canadian positions relating to the convention for international fora. As well, the Biodiversity Convention Advisory Group (BCAG) discussed above, continues to meet and provide advice to the BCO and the Working Group. The target is to develop a Canadian Biodiversity Strategy by November 1994, with an interim report to be ready by November 1993. The following are the guiding principles Biodiversity Strategy .
for the development
of the Canadian
0
The scope of the Canadian Biodiversity Strategy should cover the entire range of Convention obligations, both domestic and international.
0
For federal, provincial and territorial components should be independent, but coordinated within a commonly agreed framework and set of criteria. Responsibilities for follow-up actions should be shared in some cases and made specific to individual jurisdictions in others. The federal government should take the lead for international obligations.
0
The strategy should be developed .in a coordinated and integrated way with Indigenous Peoples, non-government interests and industry.
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2.
0
The information base should be on a coordinated and cooperative basis to maximize efficiencies and avoid duplication.
0
The strategy should provide for coordinated public awareness and education, including sharing of information and consistent messages. Each jurisdiction should plan and, implement its own activities according to its particular circumstances.
0
The strategy and its application should provide the framework for reporting on the implementation of the Convention.
Recommendations For Action Beyond Current Government Plan Canadian environmental NGOs have criticized the government, both at the provincial and federal level, for failing to meet the commitments made at Rio. In the first annual “Rio Report Card”, the federal government received a “C” for Canada’s efforts to implement the Convention and chapter domestically. The Report Card issued by a large number of environmental groups and coordinated by the Forum for Sustainability and the Sierra Club RioWatch project, noted that two new national parks had been created, but that both were in the far north and not in areas of southern Canada where development pressures are more extreme. However, the federal government was also given an “A’ for timely Provincial ratification of both the Biodiversity and Climate Change Conventions. governments did not fare as well. British Columbia received an “F” for its decision to log most of Clayoquot Sound’s ancient temperate rainforest. A coalition of environmental groups also called on the federal and provincial governments to develop legislation as called for in the Convention for the protection of endangered species. The World Wildlife Fund, Sierra Legal Defense Fund, Canadian Nature Federation, Sierra Club of Canada, Canadian Environmental Law Association and the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society presented a joint brief to the Standing Committee on the Environment of the House of Commons. The Standing Committee accepted the recommendation for endangered species legislation. The Canadian Bar Association subsequently also endorsed the call for such legislation. Neither the federal nor provincial governments have yet accepted the call for endangered species legislation. (Only Ontario and New Brunswick have endangered species laws on the books, but no enforcement has ever taken place under their legislation.) The Standing Committee on the Environment of the House of Commons held hearings in November 1992 to identify action for Rio follow-up. They focused extensively on the The following are their recommendations relating to Biodiversity Convention. biodiversity, published in “A Global Partnership: Canada and the Conventions of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development.”
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This Committee recognizes the importance of organizing Canada’s scientific resources and expertise in order to optimize our capacity and effectiveness in meeting our international obligations under the Biodiversity Convention. The committee recommends that the Government of Canada examine the feasibility of re-grouping agencies and professionals working in the area of biodiversity in various federal departments to ensure effective communication and networking. The Committee considers that one of the fundamental building blocks of an effective National Biodiversity Strategy will be a National Inventory of Canada’s Biological Diversity, and we recommend that the development of such an inventory be facilitated by the Government of Canada. The Committee further recommends that the Government of Canada support the creation of an international data bank of the world’s species. The Committee recommends that the Government of Canada ensure sufficient support of institutional research into the classification and study of the species of flora and fauna that make up the biodiversity of life. The Committee recommends that the Government of Canada begin the design and implementation of economic instruments for the conservation of biological diversity and re-evaluate government subsidies, policies and programs that contribute to environmental degradation. The Committee recommends that the Government of Canada consider extending to donations of natural heritage property the same tax treatment that applies to donations of cultural property. The Committee recommends that the Government of Canada begin the process of determining the value of biological diversity, so that this value can be intemalized in its calculations of national accounts. The Committee recommends that the government of Canada, in cooperation with all levels of government, support the implementation of the five initiatives identified for action at the t&council meeting (of Canada’s Parks, Wildlife and Environment Ministers, November 25, 1992) including: 1.
completing networks of protected areas representative of Canada’s landbased natural regions by the year 2000 and accelerate the protection of areas representative of Canada’s marine natural regions;
2.
accelerating the identification and protection of critical wildlife habitat;
3.
adopting frameworks, strategies and timeframes protected areas networks;
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4.
continuing to cooperate in the protection of ecosystems, landscapes and wildlife habitat; and,
5.
ensuring that protected areas are integral components of all sustainable development strategies.
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The Committee recommends that the Government of Canada, working with the provinces and territories, consider the necessity of legislation to conserve biological diversity within Canada, and take immediate steps to develop an integrated legislative approach to the protection of endangered species, habitat, ecosystems and biodiversity in Canada.
l
The Committee recommends that the Government of Canada take whatever steps are necessary to ensure that environmental assessments take full account of Canada’s obligations under the Biodiversity Convention.
l
The Committee recommends that the policies of Parks Canada and the regulations promulgated under the National Parks Act fully reflect and fulfil Canada’s obligations under the Biodiversity Convention.
CANADIAN ACTIVITIES EVOLVING THROUGH THE SUSTAINABILITY PROCESS A number of government actions have been taken which are relevant to the chapter and Convention. The recent re-organization of government arguably weakens our ability to respond to the Convention. As the Standing Committee recommended, the relevant departments and agencies dealing with biodiversity should be centralized to provide for the most efficient communication and implementation. The recent removal of Parks Canada from Environment Canada and the placement of it within Heritage runs counter to such a goal. There are no other biodiversity related branches within Heritage, whereas Environment Canada houses the Canadian Wildlife Service and the Biodiversity Convention Office. Other sectors of Canadian society also play a role in implementing the Convention. The Canadian Museum of Nature has played a significant part in developing Canada’s positions, as well as developing an inventory of Canada’s biodiversity. Recent cut-backs at the Museum, due to both government budget cuts and a redirection of the museum’s purpose, unfortunately results in a loss of scientific research and the erosion of Canada’s ability to respond to our Convention obligations to inventory our biodiversity. The cuts at the Museum of Nature should be seen in the larger context of the steady erosion of Canada’s capacity in biosystematics. Agriculture Canada once had world-class biosystematics capacity, but it has been seriously down graded. Since at least the 197Os, various levels of governments and institutions in Canada have allowed the field of biosystematics to be so severely depleted that Canada now lacks the ability to fulfil obligations under the Convention -- much less to respond to requests from developing nations to lend our biosystematics expertise to their
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biological inventory commitments. In contrast, in the U.S., the world respected expert in biodiversity, formerly with the Smithsonian, Dr. Tom Lovejoy, has been named to head the new national Biological Survey Organization. In Canada, we do not have a biological parallel to our national Geological Survey. Significant upcoming decisions by Agriculture Canada should be noted. Two insecticides are currently under a registration review due to their significant impact in reducing biodiversity. Fenitrothion has been described in the Government Review Document as “environmentally unacceptable” due to its high toxicity to many forms of life, but particularly to migratory songbirds. Carbofuran is also facing registration review due to its impact on the endangered specie, the burrowing owl. The registration review process has, however, yet to take explicit note of the Biodiversity Convention and Canada’s international obligations.
OTHER RELEVANT INTERNATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY-RELATED FORA The Global Environmental Facility (GEF) The International Tropical Timber Organization Consultative Group on International Agriculture Research (CGIAR) Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) The United Nations Commission for Sustainable Development (CSD) The Intergovernmental Committee on the Convention on Biological Diversity (first meeting October 11-15, 1993, Geneva) l
Ramsar Convention (Convention on Wetlands of International Importance Especially as Waterfowl Habitat) Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) International Whaling Commission @VC) International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
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SUGGESI’ED READJNGS AND INF’ORMATION SOURCE23
Global Biodiversitv. A publication of the Canadian Museum of Nature. Government of Canada. Canada’s Green Plan, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1990). .
Canada’s Green Plan and the Earth Summit, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1992).
Canada’s National Renort: United Nations Conference on Environment Development Brazil. June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991).
and
International Development Research Centre (IDRC). Agenda 21: Abstracts. Reviews. and Commentaries, (Theodora Carroll-Foster, editor), (Ottawa: IDRC, 1993). Juma, Calestous. The Gene Hunters. Biotechnolorzv and the Scramble for Seeds, (Princeton University Press, 1989). ISeating, Michael. Agenda for Change: A Plain Language Version of Agenda 21 and the Other Rio Agreements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993). Mander, Jerry. In the Absence of the Sacred, (Sierra Club Books, 1993). Standing Committee on Environment. C, Commons, April 1993).
A Global Partnership: Canada and the Conventions of (Ottawa: House of
World Bank, World Resources Institute (WRI), International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN), and World Wildlife Fund (WWF), Conserving -World’s, (1990). World Commission on Environment and Development. Our Common Future, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987). World Resources Institute. Biodiversity Prospecting, Institute, May 1993).
(Washington D.C. : World Resources
. International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN), and United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), Global Biodiversitv Strateav: Guidelines for Action to Save and Use the Earth’s Biotic Wealth Sustainablv and Equitably, (1992).
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Information Sources: Biodiversity Convention Office, 351 St. Joseph Blvd., 4th Floor, Hull, Quebec, KlA OH3, tel (819) 953-9669, fax (819) 953-1765. Interim Secretariat, Convention on Biological Diversity, 15 chemin des Anemones, Case Postale 356,1219 Chatelaine, Geneva, Switzerland, tel(4122) 97909111, fax (4122) 797-2512. United Nations Commission for Sustainable Development, Department of Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development, Room S-3060, United Nations, New York, N.Y. 10017, USA, tel(212) 963-5959. United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), P.O. Box 30553, Nairobi, Kenya, tel254-233390, fax 254-2-520883. United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization, Via Terme di Caracalla, I-00100 Rome, Italy, tel (39 6) 57971, fax (39 6) 5795-3152.
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CHAPTER 16 Environmentally Sound Management of Biotechnology
THE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM Biotechnology is a set of enabling techniques for bringing about specific man-made changes in genetic material in plants, animals and microbial systems, leading to useful products and technologies - the practical utilization of microbial, plant and animal cells. It integrates new techniques emerging from modem technology with traditional knowledge. Biotechnology is an emerging field which is very knowledge intensive. It holds a lot of potential for resolving many environment and development problems, but at the same time has risks associated with its development and application. It holds promise in helping to develop better health care, enhanced food security, improved supplies of potable water, more efficient industrial processes, sustainable methods of afforestation and reforestation and detoxification of hazardous wastes. In addition, it offers much potential for cooperation and partnership between developing nations, who are rich in biological diversity and the developed nations, that have the technological expertise to transform these biological resources into products and processes which can serve the needs of sustainable development. The challenge is to ensure that biotechnology is developed and applied safely without damaging the environment or threatening human health, and it must be done equitably, taking advantage of the opportunities it offers for global cooperation and sharing.
This chapter is incomplete. It has been contributed to by a number of different stakeholders. in this chapter a% not necessarily represent the views of the Projet de socih!.
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PROGRAM AREAS AND OB.JECTIVES The chapter identifies five major program areas, each with a number of objectives. briefly outlined below.
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These are
1.
Increasing the availability of food, feed and renewable raw materials by: 0 increasing the yield of major crops, livestock, aquaculture species and forest products by using a combination of modem biotechnology and conventional means; 0 improving the nutritional value (composition) of source crops, animals and micro-organisms; 0 increasing the use of integrated pest, disease and crop management to eliminate dependence on agrochemicals; 0 expanding the application of biotechnology in forestry; and, a increasing efficiency of nitrogen furation and mineral absorption by the symbiosis of higher plants with micro-organisms.
2.
Improving human health by: 0 developing programs to combat major communicable diseases; 0 developing programs to protect against and treat major non-communicable diseases; and, l promoting good health among people of all ages.
3.
Environmental protection by: 0 adopting production processes which make optimal use of natural resources; 0 promote the use of biotechnologies, with emphasis on bio-remediation of land and water, waste treatment, soil conservation, reforestation, afforestation and land rehabilitation; and, 0 applying biotechnologies and their products to protect environmental integrity with a view to long-term ecological security.
4.
Improving safety through the development mechanisms by: 0 considering safety at all stages including exchange and transfer of biotechnologies; 0 promoting safety through internationally assessment and management.
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Establis~mg enabling mechanisms for the environmentally sound application of biotechnology by: 0 promoting the development and application of biotechnologies by providing support for research and product development, raising public awareness, encouraging exchange of scientists among all countries and discouraging the “brain dram�, recognizing and fostering traditional and ensuring their methods and knowledge of Indigenous Peoples participation in the benefits arising from biotechnologies; l enhancing current efforts, and determining where new enabling mechanisms are needed; and, 0 establishing mechanisms for safety appraisal and risk assessment.
CANADIAN POSITIONS AT RIO
1.
Official Canadian Position At Rio the Canadian objectives with regard to biotechnology included: promoting substantive discussion of the human and environmental health and safety issues related to biotechnology; promoting biotechnology research in areas where it can be used to reduce stresses on the environment and contribute to environmental mitigation; and minimizing the linkages between biotechnology and biodiversity except where biotechnologies are directly related to conservation of biological diversity. The resulting chapter was consistent with the general thrust of what the Canadian delegation put forward.
2.
Non-Governmental Owanizations Not available.
3.
Business and Industry Business and industry generally supported the official Canadian positions on Chapter 16. Because this in a fairly new and knowledge-intensive field, business recommended that nothing should be done to impede future unseen opportunities. This was emphasized in areas such as pesticides and fertilizers.
4.
IndiPenous Indigenous Peoples have brought to the attention of the international community that they have not been consulted until very late in the process. There is a need for the development of protocols which require the involvement of Indigenous Peoples at all levels of discussion and decision-making since international activities always effect Indigenous Peoples. Under Agenda 21, Indigenous Peoples were to be informed,
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consulted and allowed to participate at the national level for decision making. Support is required from all levels of government, industry and other NGOs to assist Indigenous Peoples to maintain their own NGOs. This supports the need for establishing Indigenous NGOs, Indigenous knowledge institutions, and financial institutions to support sustainable development.
COMMITMENTS MADE BY CANADIANS
1.
Lwallv-Bindiw
Documents
None. 2.
Political Pronouncements None.
3.
Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NGO Treaties At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organization Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Oca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. Of these treaties, one addressed the issues discussed in Chapter 16. Citizens’ CommitmentsOn Biotechnology. Under the Citizens’ Commitments on Biotechnology, an international convention on biotechnology is called for. Outlined in this document are 13 principles which should be incorporated into a biotechnology convention. Some of these principles include: l l
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biotechnological research should be oriented towards publicly defined needs, the common good and the good of future generations; prior to the use of biotechnology full social, cultural and economic predictive assessments of the impact should be publicly performed; regulation procedures should be based on the “precautionary principle”;
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companies and research institutions responsible for these biotechnologies should be held to strict financial and criminal liability for any damages or consequences; prior consent and notice by the effected public must be held before genetic manipulation of organisms and their products are undertaken by governments and companies; natural genetic structure of biota should not be viewed as an economic resource, therefore all kinds of patenting of life.forms should be prohibited; and, biotechnology should never be developed or used for military purposes.
Kari-oca The second alternative forum at Rio was the International conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference. They developed and adopted a 109~point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter. The Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter contains a number of commitments related to Culture, Science and Intellectual Property. Article 102 refers directly to biotechnology and rights of Indigenous Peoples over their intellectual property. “As creators and carriers of civilizationswhich have given and continue to share knowledge, experience and valueswithhumanity,we require thatour right to intellectual and culturalproperties be guaranteed and that the mechanismfor each implementation be in favour of our Peoples and studied in depth and implemented. lhis respect must include the right over genetic resources, gene banks, biotechnology and knowledge of biodiversityprograms “. Statement No. 99 stated that “the usurping of traditionalmedicines and knowledgefrom Indigenous Peoples should be considered a crime against Peoples”.
DEJTICIENCIES. GAPS ANJI CONS’IRAINTS WITHIN CHAPTER 16 The organization of Chapter 16 is weak, as it lists all the possible areas where biotechnology could be applied, many of which overlap with other Agenda 21 chapters, such as sustainable agriculture, biodiversity, deforestation, protection of human health and management of wastes. All possible areas of applying biotechnology are simply listed; no attempt is made to prioritiz the needs of or specific opportunities of lesser developed countries (LDCs) regarding the application of biotechnology. Also, some key elements are lost in the lists (e.g., the need for acceleration of technology acquisition, assessment of comparative costs and benefits of different technologies for a given purpose).
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It would have been more useful for the Chapter to lead with Section E, “‘Establishing enabling mechanisms for the development and environmentally sound application of biotechnology”, as the major organizing framework. Into this could be incorporated an activity on prioritization of needs or opportunities for biotechnology in LDCs among the multiple topics listed in the first three sections of the Chapter (Sections A, B and C) There is no distinction made between biotechnology tools (e.g. genetic engineering techniques) and biotechnological processes (the production of products using biotechnology). The latter implies all of the downstream activities related to access, application, utilization of biotechnology by farmers, industry, legislators, consumers, etc. The former relates to techniques for researchers. There are also a number of gaps in Chapter 16. The chapter emphasizes research and application of modem biotechnology (genetic engineering, etc.), but overlooks opportunities for traditional biotechnologies. There is no mention of the issue of intellectual property rights (IPR) and its significance as a limiting factor to the diffusion and access of technologies, processes and products. The role of multinational corporations in controlling the transfer of technology is not discussed. The high capital requirement for biotechnology research is also not mentioned, yet this is a major constraint for LDCs wanting to enter the field.
COMPARISON BETWEEN CURRENT CANADIAN GOVERNMENT POLICY AND COMMITMENTS MADE Not available.
CANADIAN ACTIVITIES EVOLVING THROUGH THE SUSTAINABILITY PROCESS Among organizations in Canada addressing the issue of environmentally sound management of biotechnology are: the Canadian Environment Network (CEN); Ocean Voice International; and the Unitarian Service Committee Canada (USC). CEN, for example, has been addressing the relevance and applicability of biotechnology to Canadian policy and regulatory framework. Three CEN members are currently participating in the Biotechnology Regulations under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act. They receive input from the caucus and regularly update the caucus on consultations.
OTHER RELEVANT INTERNATHONAL SUSTAINABILITY-RELATED FORA a
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SUGGESTED READINGS AND INFORMATION SOURCES
Government of Canada. Canada’s Green Plan, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1990). .
Canada’s Green Plan and the Earth Summit, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1992).
Canada’s National ReDort: United Nations Conference on Environment DeveloDment Brazil. June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991). .
and
International Development Research Centre (IDRC). Agenda 21: Abstracts. Reviews. and Commentaries, (Theodora Carroll-Foster, editor), (Ottawa: IDRC, 1993). Keating, Michael. Agenda for Chance: A Plain Language Version of Agenda 21 and the Other Rio Agreements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993). World Commission on Environment and Development. Our Common Future, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987).
Information Sources: CanadianEnviromnentalNetwork (CEN), P.O. Box 1289, Station “B”, Ottawa, Ontario, KlP 5R3, tel (613) 563-2078, fax (613) 563-7236. United Nations Commission for Sustainable Development, Department of Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development, Room S-3060, United Nations, New York, N.Y., 10017, USA, tel (212) 963-5959.
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CHAPTER 17 Protection of the Oceans, All Kinds of Seas, Including Enclosed and Semi-Enclosed Seas, and Coastal Areas and the Protection, Rational Use and Development of Their Living Resources - Judith Swan -THE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM The marine environment - including the oceans, seas, and adjacent coastal areas - forms an integrated whole that is an essential component of the global life support system, and a positive asset presenting opportunities for sustainable development. The coastal area contains resources and habitats important for human settlements, development, indigenous peoples and local subsistence. More than half the world’s population lives within 60 km of a shoreline, and this proportion could rise to three quarters by the year 2020. The exclusive economic zone (EEZ) is of vital importance. It allows States to manage and develop resources for their people. However, current approaches to the management of coastal and marine resources have generally not been consistent with sustainable development; coastal resources and the coastal environment are being rapidly degraded and eroded in many parts of the world. Degradation of the marine environment results from a wide range of land and sea sources. Land-based sources contribute 70 percent of marine pollution, yet there is no global scheme and few regional and national programs in place to address marine pollution from these sources.
JuaYth Swan, Executive Director of the Oceans Institute of Canada (OIQ, with the a&stance of Roberf Huebeti The views expressed in this chapter are those of the author who has received input from a number of stakeholders, and do not necessarily represent the views of the OIC or the Pmjet de socitW.
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Contaminants include sewage, nutrients, synthetic organic compounds, sediments, litter and plastics, metals, radionuclides, oil/hydrocarbons and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. Activities on land contributing to marine pollution are human settlements, land use, construction of coastal infrastructure, agriculture, forestry, urban development, tourism and industry. Coastal erosion and siltation are of particular concern. Sea-based degradation of the marine environment is caused by maritime transport and dumpingat-sea activities. Approximately 600,000 tons of oil enter the oceans each year, as a result of normal shipping operations, accidents and illegal discharges. Offshore oil and gas activities account for a very small proportion of marine pollution. Over the last decade, fisheries on the high seas have considerably expanded and currently represent approximately five per-cent of total world landings. However, management of high seas fisheries is inadequate in many areas and some resources are overutilized. There are problems of unregulated fishing, overcapitalization, excessive fleet size, vessel reflagging to escape controls, insufficiently selective gear, unreliable databases and lack of sufficient cooperation between States, particularly for highly migratory species and straddling stocks. Fisheries under national jurisdiction face mounting problems, including local overfishing, unauthorized incursions by foreign fleets, ecosystem degradation, overcapitalization and excessive fleet sizes, undervaluation of catch, insufficiently selective gear, unreliable databases, increasing competition between artisanal and large-scale fishing and between fishing and other types of activities. In addition, coral reefs and other marine/coastal habitats, such as mangroves and estuaries are under stress and threatened from a variety of sources, both human and natural. The marine environment is vulnerable and sensitive to climactic and atmospheric changes. Small increases in sea level have the potential of causing significant damage to small islands and low-lying coasts. Increased ultraviolet radiation as a result of ozone depletion could affect the marine environment. International law, as reflected in the provisions of the United Nations Conventionon the Law of the Sea, sets forth rights and obligations of States and provides the international basis upon which to pursue the protection and sustainable development of the marine and coastal environment and its resources. This requires new approaches to marine and coastal area management and development at the national, subregional, regional and global levels, approaches that are integrated, multisectoral, precautionary and anticipatory. National and international institutions with competence in marin.e issues need improved coordination and strengthened links.
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PROGRAM AREAS AND OBJECTIVES The chapter identifies seven major program areas, each with a number of objectives. These are briefly outlined below. 1. Integrated management and sustainable development of coastal areas, including exclusive economic zones l This includes providing for an integrated policy and decision-making process and providing access to relevant information and opportunities for consultation and participation in planning and decision-making. 2. Marine environmental protection l The general objective of this program is to prevent, reduce and control degradation of the marine environment so as to maintain and improve its life support and productive capacities.
J
1
3. Sustainable use and conservation of marine living resources of the high seas 0 Among other things, this program seeks to develop and increase the potential of marine living resources to meet human nutritional needs and social, economic and development goals. 4. Sustainable use and conservation of marine living resources under national jurisdiction l The general objective of this program is to obtain full social and economic benefits from sustainable utilization of marine living resources. 5. Addressing critical uncertainties for the management of marine environment and climate change l The general objective of this program is to improve the understanding of the marine environment and its role on global processes. 6. Strengthening international, including regional, cooperation and coordination l The general objective of this program is to promote institutional arrangements which support the implementation of program areas in Chapter 17. 7. Sustainable development of small islands l This final program area has as its objective, addressing the problems of sustainable development in small island developing States.
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CANADIAN POSITIONS AT RIO
Official Canadian Position
1.
d
Canadian objectives at UNCED included: l promoting a global strategy for the prevention, reduction and control of land based sources of marine pollution; 0 promoting a comprehensive approach to coastal zone management without compromising national sovereignty over living marine resources; 0 incorporating the results of the December 1991 Meeting of Experts on the Degradation of the Marine Environment from Land-Based Sources of Pollution (LBSMP) and Activities in Coastal Areas and the Montreal Guidelines directed at a global strategy for the prevention, reduction and control of degradation of the marine environment from land-based activities; 0 ensuring an institutional framework within the UN system for regular consideration of oceans issues; l establishing a mechanism to continue work on Agenda 21, which could include a global oceans conference; implementation and participation in the LC and l promoting wider ratification, MARPOL conventions; l supporting the consideration of an International Convention on Offshore Oil and Gas Activities; l promoting the better integration of data and information systems designed to monitor the marine environment, and provide support for country reporting on Marine Environmental Quality (MEQ); l ensuring the incorporation of Canadian values such as the role of NGOs, women and indigenous peoples in decision-making; l expressing concern about high seas overfishing of stocks that straddle the Canadian 200 mile limit. In addition, incorporate as many of the elements (principles and measures related to high seas fisheries) as possible of L-16 (the Santiago Group Paper) and seek an intergovernmental conference on high seas fishing problems to be convened after Rio. These objectives were achieved and are reflected in this assessment. However, Canada (and others) would have preferred stronger commitments, particularly on LBSMP. There was consensus among nations that a need exists to revisit the 1985 Montreal Guidelines on LBSMP with a view to preparing a global strategy or instrument. The possibility of a binding convention on LBSMP remains an open question.
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Key to Canadian interests in addressing the straddling stocks issue was the agreement in Agenda 21 to convene an intergovernmental conference under UN auspices to promote effective implementation of conservation targets for straddling and highly migratory fish stocks on the high seas. Canada was a prime mover behind this initiative. It was, in fact, Canada’s objective to place the marine environment on a par with the atmosphere and forests as a priority issue requiring global political attention. 2.
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Non-Governmental Owanizations Canadian NGOs called on the Delegation to: ratify the UN Conventionon the Law of the Sea; develop action plans to restrict land-based sources of marine pollution; commit to negotiate a high seas protocol to govern protection of straddling stocks; ban the dumping of hazardous and low-level radioactive waste; ban the killing of marine mammals, except for subsistence purposes by Indigenous Peoples, and place greater emphasis on the control of existing land-based sources of pollution and the prevention of environmental problems caused by proposed activities and projects. NGOs also agreed that the preamble to the Agenda 21 sections on protection of oceans and living resources does not reflect the critical importance of the oceans as a component of the global life support system. Section 4 needed to be strengthened to reflect the link between environment and development (livelihoods), the ocean and atmosphere (especially in the case of climate), freshwater and marine ecosystems (through the hydrological cycle), and finally land and sea (specifically land-based sources of pollution). NGOs urged high seas fishing nations to respect the UN Conventionon the Luw of the Sea and particularly the special rights of coastal States over straddling stocks. They also recommended strengthening the Santiago Declaration especially respecting the recognition of the inherent rights of coastal communities to stocks, registering vessels and masters for enforcement purposes and establishing a user-pay system of observers beyond 200 miles in areas where straddling stocks occur. NGOs proposed a new institution to coordinate intergovernmental and interagency initiatives on coastal zone management, and to undertake information dissemination and management, Law of the Sea (LOS) follow-up. Such an institution would not parallel IMO, IOC, FA0 and UNEP but effectively coordinate activities.
3.
Business and Tndust.rv The position of Canadian business at UNCED on Chapter 17 was consistent with the official Canadian position.
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Indigenous Indigenous Peoples recommended that support be provided for establishing Indigenous NGOs, Indigenous knowledge institutions and financial institutions to support sustainable development of marine life, Indigenous Peoples possess invaluable Indigenous knowledge regarding marine life and the behaviour of the naxime environment. Indigenous rights must be recognized to protect their lands, culture and language which inevitably will preserve their sustainable economic and environment regimes and their sustainable cultures.
COMMITMENTS MADE BY CANADIANS 1.
Lwallv-Binding Documents (N3. ‘\ ‘, .I
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Political Pronouncements In his address on June 12, 1992 at UNCED, Prime Minister Brian Mulroney announced Canadian support for strengthening international environmental law to prevent overfishing in the high seas. He invited like-minded nations to convene in St. John’s, Newfoundland in late 1992 to begin the process of establishing such an agreement.
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Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NGO Treaties At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organization Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Oca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. Of these treaties, the following seven focused on marine related issues - six on protecting the oceans and one on fisheries. Pollutionof the Marine Environment The NGOs at the Global Forum agreed with the UN Convention of the Law of the Sea that all states have an obligation to prevent, combat and control marine pollution. NGOs should be allowed to participate in relevant international tribunals to help victims of marine pollution and assist in creating a new convention protecting people from transboundary pollution. The NGOs affirmed that the Precautionary and Polluter Pays
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principles should apply. They agreed to assist UNEP to study the accumulation of toxins in marine species and their habitats and encouraged governments and international agencies to monitor waters for toxic substances. Developing global lists of persistent toxins could then lead to a treaty banning their discharge into the marine environment. To combat vessel pollution, NGOs will urge government to ratify existing international conventions and help develop international regulations. Other measures include: initiating an education and information campaign for seafarers to promote responsible management of wastes on board; introducing a “polluters registry� for vessels which illegally discharge wastes; and opposing offshore oil and gas drilling wherever it poses a serious risk to the local marine ecosystem. Finally, to combat atmospheric pollution, NGOs encouraged the studies on the impact of airborne pollution on the oceans and urge scientific institutions to develop models better explaining and publicizing this process. MinimizingPhysicalAlteration of the Marine Environment NGOs in Rio agreed to work for the minimizing of logging of mangroves, draining, dredging, filling and seawall construction in relatively undisturbed marine ecosystems. Activities that divert the flow of fresh water from rivers should ensure that adequate flow into the ocean, to minimize side effects, is maintained. NGOs can encourage international organizations to cooperate in gathering information on activities that alter marine ecosystems and develop methods of assessing the cumulative effects of physical changes in different ecosystems. Targeted activities would include: convening an international forum to ban fishing techniques that destroy the sea bottom; calling for an end to the harvesting of coral reef species, unless these can be proven to be done in an ecologically sustainable manner; and urging governments to pass laws on the construction of nuclear reactors in coastal zones, in order to eliminate the problem of thermal pollution. Protecting the Sea from Global Atmosphetic Change This treaty calls for an international fund, financed proportionally to the greenhouse gas emission each nation produces, that will finance projects and provide assistance to poor and less developed nations effected by sea level rise. NGOs should also urge nations to phase out the use of ozone depleting chemicals even more quickly than the existing international accord (the Montreal Protocol) calls for. The treaty also proposes measures in line with those of the treaty on international climate change. Marine BiodiversityTreaty NGOs urge their governments and the UN to convene meetings and sign existing international agreements that recommend procedures to prevent introduction of species into new waters. NGOs also urge the UN, their governments and international funding agencies, such as the World Bank, to avoid fishing practices that are non-sustainable -such as seabed trawling. Instead, government programs for sustainable management of marine resources should be developed. Projet de sociM:
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Marine Protected Areas Projects which are not ecologically sustainable result in the displacement of native populations dependent on marine ecosystems, creating poverty as well as loss of biodiversity. NGOs in Rio agree that marine protected areas must be set up to prevent this. Strict regulations, monitoring and the enforcement of policies are essential. Policies must include public awareness and empowering of native peoples. NGOs should monitor projects supported by financial institutions to verify they are not damaging coastal ecosystems. They should persuade scientific research centres to direct their work towards the real environmental and human needs of each region. Projects for protection, preservation and education can be recommended by NGOs to their government. However, when establishing “marine parks” all coastal residents should be included in discussion, and governments should adopt the principles of “eco-tourism”. Resolution Concerning GuanabaraBay: Humankind’sHeritage While meeting in Rio, NGOs at the Global Forum could not ignore the severe environmental damage in Guanabara Bay: the whales have been destroyed, the TupiGuarany native people have been exterminated, the coastlme has been deforested and people living along its margins have been impoverished. NGOs therefore resolved that Guanabara Bay and the surrounding environment be declared as Humankind’s Heritage. Fisheries Treaty The Fisheries Treaty recognized the importance of artisanal or subsistence fisheries as a source of food for local consumption, income and employment, as a means of promoting community stability and as a means of promoting resource conservation and environmental protection of marine, coastal and inland water areas. Aside from addressing the eco-systemic problems of fishery resource depletion, the treaty made a very pointed and strong reference to basic human rights of fisher-folk and fishworkers, including the right of self-organ&&ion and to have areas demarcated for exclusive artisanal fishing activities.
The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference. They developed and adopted a 109~point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter.
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Within Kari-Oca, Indigenous Peoples defined territory to include air, land and sea. Consequently, the large number of statements in Kari-Oca which refer to territory, specifically the territories of Indigenous Peoples, also refer to seas or oceans.
DEF’ICIENCIES. GAPS AND CONSTRAINTS WITHIN CHAPTER 17 Many of the critiques that may be made about Chapter 17 are common for Agenda 21 in general. For example, it calls for the transfer of relevant technology to assist in the preservation of the marine environment. However, it sidesteps the issue of the protection of intellectual property. The question remains as to how it is possible to transfer technology and protect intellectual property at the same time. For example, following the grounding of the Exxon Valdez, there was considerable discussion concerning evolving technologies for the control of oil spills. One of the technologies currently being developed is the creation of bacteria that feeds on oil. Progress is being made in this field through genetic manipulation. Yet, the biotechnology industry is sensitive about protecting its research. It is unlikely that any of these companies will freely surrender their developments. A system is required that will address the concerns of those who develop the technology with the means of sharing it in the international system. A second general problem with the Chapter is its omission of any connection to the UN Secretary General’s Agenda for Peace. As with any organization, there is a tendency in the UN to compartmentalize its activities. The UNCED process was perceived to be concerned with only environmental and developmental issues, while the Agenda for Peace is viewed as UN policy towards peacekeeping and peacemaking. Yet the connection between conflict and environment and development was made explicit during the Gulf War. The massive oil spills that occurred because of deliberate and accidental bombing of offshore regions continues to plague the region. While not as problematic as land-based mines, the existence of unlocated sea mines is a serious issue. The sinking of an oil tanker remains a distinct possibility. Ways and means need to be developed for protecting the marine environment during conflict. While some combatants may not comply with international law during a conflict, it is possible that rules of conduct could be developed and implemented when UN-sanctioned action is being undertaken. Related to this problem is the lack of enforcement capability in Chapter 17. This is a lost opportunity. With the end of the Cold War, many navies, Canada’s included, are searching for new roles. If Chapter 17 had discussed the employment of UN-sponsored forces for monitoring and enforcing marine protection, many countries may have responded favourably. There is precedent for joint, UN naval operations for peacekeeping missions in Central America and Cambodia. Thus, a role for marine environmental protection would also seem possible.
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A fourth omission of Chapter 17 is the lack of any form of a dispute mechanism. It is likely that efforts to develop policies to conserve the marine resources of the high seas will lead to international disagreement. If Agenda 21 had copied the Law of the Sea of the Convention (albeit with a somewhat less complicated version of Chapter XJY), it may have been possible to speed up the resolution of conflicts that are bound to develop as states move to implement Chapter 17. A fifth problem concerns the divisions of the seven main areas within Chapter 17. For example, Pit is difficult to separate the requirement for better sustainable management of coastal regions I ; -’ ,, from marine environmental protection. The delineation between coastal zone management *’ (CZM) and land-based sources of pollution is unclear. As a result of these divisions, it may prove difficult for states to monitor their efforts at abiding by Chapter 17. However, it is not immediately obvious how a better organization of the chapter could have been made. A sixth omission in this chapter is that it contains no reference to polar regions.
COMPARISON BETWEEN CURRENT CANADIAN GOVE RNMENT POLICY AND CO-S MADE When evaluating Canadian efforts to follow through on the commitments made at Rio, it is necessary to consider current problems that are caused by the structure of the Canadian government. Bureaucratic divisions within government, as well as the division of the levels of government, have hindered some efforts to implement Agenda 21, including Chapter 17. For example, efforts to develop coastal zone management schemes have proceeded smoothly in areas where there is cooperation between federal and provincial representatives. It is difficult to imagine the Government of Quebec willingly surrendering any powers to the federal government, despite the fact that a unified CZM policy could result and succeed. Aside from the differences between different levels of government, there is a problem within government. The seven main program areas of Chapter 17 cover a wide range of activities conducted by the federal government. For example, CZM policies in Canada involve over 15 federal departments and agencies alone. Such a wide range of bureaucratic interests will cause ’ two general problems: bureaucratic infighting and confusion over mandates. There is some uncertainty regarding the directions of the new government. Specifically, Canada’s position on the ratification of the Law of the Sea Convention is unclear. The Convention itself has just received its 60th ratification and will come into force one year from ; now. Officials in the Department of Fisheries and Oceans are also waiting to see if changes will ’ be made to the Ocea.n+ct. The previous government appeared ready to include important elements pertaining to CZM in the Act. However, it is unclear as to whether they will remain i or change.
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There is also concern that the new government may unilaterally extend control over the cod stocks in the Nose and Tail of the Grand Banks. During the election campaign, Prime Minister Jean Chretien stated that he would consider such a move if international negotiations failed to address the problem of foreign overfishing. There would be serious ramifications for Chapter 17 if the Canadian government did so. It would seem unlikely that international efforts to develop policies for the conservation and the sustainable development of living marine resources of the high seas would continue to be of importance to Canadian officials. Snecific Canadian Actions : Upon ex amining specific Canadian commitments to implementing Agenda 21, Chapter 17, it is possible to identify several key policy areas. Generally, these policy areas (listed below) concern more than one of the seven program areas contained within this chapter. ,,-b _ .._- _ ,,. - -^.. __.‘- I .__, Ta ‘,b .1r , / : W Coastal ZoneManagement_, “-Yi 0 Research into Climate Change 0 Preparation for the 1995 UNEP Conference on Land-Based Sources of‘l%rine .@!!e?n. (4BSMP> dc t#K-Development of Polidies for the development of the &inseriration arid- sustainableu~ .___.,” ti .__^... I .eI”l .I W-o-urces _____II -._._____ ... +--I-.-@ Implementation of the Arctic Environmental Protection Strategy 0 Support for the Planning and Implementation of the Global Ocean Observation System Coastal Zone Manapement (CZM]: Canadian efforts include: i) integrating the management and sustainable development of coastal regions; ii) protecting the marine environment of coastal regions; iii) promoting the sustainable use and conservation of marine living resources under national jurisdiction; and iv) strengthening international and regional cooperation and coordination through the development of CZM policies. Chapter 17 has focused the attention of Canadian officials on the need to improve and develop its CZM policies. Such efforts actually began to develop approximately three years ago with the federal government’s “Green Plan”. These initiatives have been reinforced by Chapter 17, and their development will, in the long term, define Canadian success or failure in regard to the sections on CZM. The federal Interdepartmental Committee on Oceans (ICO) is directing the development of a national strategy for CZM in Canada. Previously, disputes between federal and provincial governments had hindered efforts to develop such a strategy. However, in September 1993, the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment (CCME), through one of its planning committees, adopted the CZM as a key priority in its strategic plan. A recommendation is going forward to develop a cooperative federal-provincial framework for integrated environmental decision-making in the coastal zone.
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The Department of Fisheries and Oceans is currently developing a new Ocean Act which is rumoured to include elements of CZM. However, with the recent change of government, officials within the department are unable to provide either specific details on its composition or a date when it will be introduced to Parliament. The Canadian Environmental Protection Act is currently undergoing a five year review. The review is considering the drafting of new CZM legislation in order to integrate the process. It is much too soon to predict the outcome of this initiative. Several cooperative initiatives are presently being undertaken by the provinces to develop areaspecific CZM. On the west coast, the Fraser River Action Plan was initiated in 1991. This $100 million program was further broadened in May 1992, when the federal, provincial and local levels of government moved to create a management board which included public participation. Other regional initiatives include: The Canadian Arctic Environmental Strategy (CAES), 1991; the Canada-U.S. Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement, 1978 (updated 1987); the St. Lawrence River Action Plan, 1988 ($110 million federal and $63 million Quebec); and the Atlantic Coastal Action Program, 1991 ($10 million). These programs currently represent the main focus of Canadian CZM plans, and are, therefore, relevant to Chapter 17. Regional efforts have also been undertaken to improve CZM in association with the United States. As previously mentioned, Canada and the US share responsibility for the protection of the Great Lakes environment. There is also a 1989 agreement between the five provinces and states bordering the Bay of Fundy/Gulf of Maine for the cooperative management of that region. On the international level, Canada is committed to reporting on the progress that it has made in its CZM policies. It reported to the UNCED follow-up World Coast Conference in the Hague in November 1992, and will report to the OECD in 1994. -..:a While considerable progress has been made in the development of Canadian CZM policies, key difficulties still exist. All of the initiatives to better integrate and coordinate the Canadian decision-making process are still in the planning stage. It is uncertain whether the efforts being undertaken through either the Ocean Act or the review of CEPA will allow for a more integrated process. Since 1977, municipal governments have increasingly found federal support for infrastructure development to be decreasing. At the same time, demands on them have increased. Often, the result is the unwillingness or inability of cities or towns to undertake action in support of CZM policies. For example, in the Halifax region, debate over the treatment of sewage has been ongoing. While the control of effluence from a city is of direct relevance to Chapter 17, the debate has been almost entirely framed in the context of the financial cost rather than sustainable development. The Liberal government’s election program promised new support for municipal infrastructure which could be used for sewage treatment. As yet no policies have been announced.
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The Marine Environment and Climate Change: Canada has signed and ratified the framework Convention on Climate Change. This commits Canada to action as follows: reduce emissions; provide assistance to others to do so; report on what is being done; cooperate in scientific, technical and socioeconomic research; and increase levels of education on climate change. Canadian efforts to follow through on these commitments has emphasized scientific research. For example, the Department of Natural Resources, through the Geological Survey of Canada, has just completed a study assessing the impact on Canadian coasts of a global rise in the sea level caused by global warming. There is a general belief that a lack of knowledge on this issue currently prevents policy makers from making well informed decisions, particularly in regards to emissions control. Land-Based Sources of Marine Pollution (LBSMP): Chapter 17 is one of the first international agreements to address the issue of land-based sources of marine pollution. Canadian officials are revisiting the 1985 Montreal Guidelines for a meeting of experts in Montreal in 1994. This is in preparation for a 1995 intergovernmental UNEP meeting in Washington, DC that is to consider the issue. Promotion of the Sustainable Use and Conservation of Marine Living Resources of the High seas* -a It is still too soon to determine the end result of Canada’s diplomatic efforts to address the problem of foreign overfishing of cod stocks in the Nose and Tails of the Grand Banks. The issues of high sea fisheries and straddling stocks will be determined at the September 1994 September meeting of the General Assembly (2nd Committee). Canada has international government gathering of
served as an important actor in bringing the issue of high sea fisheries to the fora. This campaign was initiated in 1989 following the announcement by federal scientists that cod stocks were declining. In September 1990, Canada hosted a experts in St. John’s, Newfoundland to consider the issue.
As preparation for UNCED began, Canada and other like-minded states were opposed by the Europeans in their efforts to include the issue of straddling stocks on the agenda. When the Earth Summit began, no consensus had been reached. However, Singapore and the United States acted as intermediaries between Canada and the European states and an agreement was reached. Both agreed that “States should convene an intergovernmental conference under UN auspices with a view to promoting effective implementation of the provisions of the Law of the Sea on straddling and highly migratory fish stocks.” The UN General Assembly resolution 47/192, 22 December 1992, then established the Conference on Straddling Stocks and Highly Migratory Stocks to be held in July 1993. Prior to this conference, Canada continued its campaign for international support. In January 1993, it hosted another meeting of like-minded states in St. John’s. At this conference, Canada, with the support of other states, such as Australia, developed proposals to give coastal states limited rights of enforcement over foreign fleets fishing off their coasts but beyond the limits of their EEZ. Projet de sod&?:
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Some progress was made at the July conference. Efforts were made to reach an agreement that would allow coastal states some enforcement rights, and to create dispute settlement mechanisms to address conflict. However, no agreement was reached at the end of the conference, except to continue the negotiations at the UN General Assembly in September 1994. A review of the UN documents for the July 1993 conference seems to suggest that Canada’s position is stronger than the Europeans. Implementation of the Arctic Environmental Protection Strate~: Chapter 17 did not specifically address issues affecting the Polar regions. Nevertheless, it is worthwhile to mention a regional initiative that involves Canada and the seven other circumpolar nations. Known also as the Rovaniemi or Finnish Initiative, the eight circumpolar nations met in September 1989 to discuss cooperative measures to protect the Arctic environment. These ._$scussions resulted in the adoption of the Arctic Environmental Protection Strategy (AEPS). While it is currently non-binding, it is hoped that its cited objectives and principles will lead to binding norms in time. Of specific relevance to the protection of the marine environment was the identification of the main problem areas facing the Arctic. These included: 1) persistent organic contaminants; 2) oil pollution; 3) heavy metals; 4) noise; 5) radioactivity; and 6) acidification. All of these effect both the marine and land environment in the Arctic. Canada is currently developing its response to the Finnish initiative. In 1991 the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development released the Arctic Environmental Strategy (AES). Its goal was “to preserve the integrity, health, biodiversity and productivity of our Arctic eco-systems for the benefit of present and future generations.” The AES lists the main environmental challenges facing the Arctic and then identifies an objective and work plan. Supoort for the Planning and Implementation of the Global Ocean Observation Svstem: Canada is also currently examining options for its participation in the Global Ocean Observation System. -CANADIAN ACTIVITIES EVOLVING THROUGH THE SUSTAINABILITY PROCESS The Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) is involved in several notable Since 1990, CIDA’s programs related to Oceans and Coastal Zones Management. Canada-ASEAN Cooperation Program on Marine Science has aimed to upgrade ASEAN Marine Science capability through cooperative endeavours of the region’s countries and Canada. Also, since 1990, CIDA’s Canada-South Pacific Ocean Development program has been involved in institution building for six regional organizations to enhance marine resource development and protection through strengthened economic and technical cooperation in the region. Since 1991, CIDA’s Asian Pacific Ocean Cooperation project has acted to strengthen formal and informal negotiation networks and support for regional cooperation in marine-related development including both management of fisheries, resources, education and training, and conflict resolution of ocean resource disputes.
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CODA also runs the CARICOM Fisheries Resources Assessment and Management Project (CFRAMP). The project is an ongoing venture aimed at improving the information available for fisheries management in the Caribbean Community and Common Market (CARICOM) and to strengthen fisheries management institutions at national and regional levels. Chapter 17 has been identified as a priority action area by the UNCED Follow-up Task Group of the Canadian Council for Ministers of the Environment (CCME). The CCME is currently monitoring the issue of overfishing of straddling stocks. In addition, the CCME is also working on identifying impediments to implementing Chapter 17 and a report is currently being prepared on the strategic opportunities for CCME in the area of shoreline/coastal zone management. In association with Save our North Atlantic Resources (SONAR), the Fisheries Council of Canada is currently an active participant in the UN Conference on High Seas Straddling and Highly Migratory Stocks . McMaster University is currently involved with various activities directly related to the concerns and issues discussed in Chapter 17. The Centre for Earth and Ocean Research at the University of Victoria has established a Climate Modelling Centre whose mandate and actions correspond and further the objectives of Chapter 17. Protection and preservation of the marine environment, the overall objective of Chapter 17, has become an area of increasing importance for the National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy (NRTEE). The Education Task Force has prepared a study on how the media reports on sustainable development using the cod fishery crisis as a case study. In addition the NRTEE July 1993 Plenary which was held in St. John’s, Newfoundland focused on the current fishing crisis.
OTHER RELEVANT INTERNATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY-RELATED FORA 0
Group of Seven Summit - Tokyo July 1993 At the July meeting of the Group of Seven industrializednations, Former Prime Minister Kim Campbell stressed the ove@ishingissue.
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Base1 Convention on the Transboundary Movement of Hazardous Wastes This Convention is designed to control and reduce exports, imports and transits of hazardous wastes.
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Convention on Biological Diversity The BiodiversityConventionwas adoptedon June 5, 1992, Canadasigned it on June II, 1992 and it was ratijiedDecember 4, 1992.
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Framework Convention on Climate Change (1992) i%.sframework was adopted May 9, 1992. Canada signed it in June 1992 and it was rat@ied on December 4, 1992. It calls for the management of oceans as sinks for greenhouse gases and the developmentof integratedplans for coastal wne management. Proposed IMO Convention and Compensation of Damage Attributable to the Carriage of Hazardous and Noxious Substances (HNS) in Bulk by Sea (ongoing) This conventionis designed tofill the existinggaps regarding liabilityand compensation for the transportof hazardousand noxioussubstances. l%e I.0 legal committeeis still attemptingto drafl an HNS Convention,but because of signtjicantdrerences withinit on some key issues, the conference probably will not occur before I994 or 1995. International Convention on Civil Liability for Oil Pollution Damage 1969 (CLC 69) 7% I’0 convention is designed to ensure that adequate compensationis available to persons who sufler oil pollution damage. International Convention on the Establishment of an International Fund for Compensation for Oil Pollution Damage 1971 (Fund 7l)/Intemational Oil Pollution Convention Fund Secretariat Thisfind is designed toprovide supplementarycompensationto those who cannot obtain Jicll compensation for oil pollution damage under CLC 69, and to in&mnifL the shipownerfor a portion of his CLC 69 liability. Canada acceded to the Conventionin 1989. l
International Convention on Oil Pollution Preparedness Response and Cooperation 1990 l%isIMO conventionfacilitatesinternationalcooperationand assistancein preparing for and responding to a major oil pollution incident. It also encourages states to develop and maintainadequate capabilitiesto deal withoil pollution emergencies.
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International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships 1973, As Modified by the Protocol of 1978 Relating Thereto (MARPOL 73178) This IMO convention is designed to eliminate operationalpollution and to reduce the possibilityof accidentalpollutionfrom ships.
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United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) 1982 Part XII of UNCLOS deals withthe protection of the marine environment.
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London Convention 1972. IMO This conventionpromotes the control of marine pollution and prevents marine pollution by dumping of wastes and other materials at sea. It encourages regional agreements supplementaryto the Convention.
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United Nations General Assembly 1994 lBe issue of High Seas Fishery and straddlingstocks will be examined at the 1994 UN General Assembly.
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Intergovernment Conference on Land-Based Sources of Marine Pollution (LBSMP) United States, November 1995
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Global Conference on the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States Barbados, 25 April - 6 May, 1994.
SUGGESTED READINGS AND INFORMATION SOURCES
I)
Genera1 Information:
Bernstein, Johannah. CPCU Report on Canadian Government and NGO Participation UNCED, (CPCU National Coordinator, 25 June 1992).
act
Bernstein, Johannah, Pamela Chasek and Langston James Goree VI. Earth Summit Bulletin: A Summarv of the Proceedings of UNCED, (Island Press, 16 June 1992). Chung, Christopher and Lawrence P. Hildebrand. A MuZtinut.iondAssessment of CZM in OECD Countries, Coastal Zone ‘93, Proceedings, (New Orleans: 8th Symposium on Coastal and Ocean Management, July 19-23, 1993). Government of Canada. Canada’s Green Plan, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1990). .
Canada’s Green Plan and the Earth Summit, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1992).
Canada’s Development
National Renort: United Nations Conference on Environment Brazil, June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991).
and
International Development Research Centre (lDRC). Agenda 21: Abstracts. Reviews. and Commentaries, (Theodora Carroll-Foster, editor), (Ottawa: IDRC, 1993). Johnston, Douglas. Vulnerable Coastal and Marine Areas: A Frameworkfor the Planning and Environment Security Zones in the Oceans, Ocean DeveloDment and International Law Vol. 24, no. 1, (January - March 1993). Kari-Oca Declaration and Indigenous Peoples Earth Charter, Report from the World Conference of Indigenous Peoples on Territory, Environment, and Development, 25-30 May 1992. Keating, Michael. APenda for Change: A Plain LanPuaae Version of Agenda 21 and the Other Rio Agreements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993). Kwiatkowska, Barbara. The High Seas Fisheries Regime: at a Point of No Return? The International Journal of Marine and Coastal Law Vol. 8, no. 3, (1993).
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.Land-Based Sources of Pollution: Marine Issues for the Earth Summit, Marine Police. 16, no. 1, (January 1992). (Theme issue)
Vol.
l%e New York Declaration on High Seas Ove@shing - Protecting the Commons, Proposed by NWs and Government,31. March 1992. United Nations. Renort for Preparatory Committee for UNCED, A/45/45 17 October 1990, pp. 36-38. . Renort for Preparatory Committee for UNCED, . &xx-t for Prenaratory 1991, pp. 44-46.
A/46/48 Vol. 1, 1991, pp. 44-46.
Committee for UNCED,
A/46/48 Part III, 23 October
. The Law of the Sea - The Regime for High-Seas Fisheries: Status and Prosoects, A/46/724, Summation of St. John’s Conference, (New York: Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea, 1992).
m
Canadian Policy:
Bar&es, Nigel, Terry Fenge and Sarah Kalff. Toward SustainableDevelq;pmentin Canada’s Arctic: Policies and InternationalRelations, Canada Among Nations 1993-94: Global Jeopardy, Edited by Fen Osler Hampson and Christopher J. Maule, (Ottawa: Carleton University Press, 1993). Buxton, G.V. Sustainable Development and the Summit: Progress, International Journal, (47) 1992.
A Canadian Perspective on
Cooper, Andrew Fenton and J. Stefan Fristz. Bringing the NGOs in: UNC! InternationalEnvironm.entalPolicy, International Journal, (47) 1992.
and Canada’s
Government of Canada. Canada: Country Description, World Coast Conference 1993: International Conference on Coastal Zone Management, (The Hague, l-5 November 1993). .
Canada and The Earth Summit, UNCED (1) Autumn 1992.
Hildebrand, Ik-q. Canadian Advances in Coastal Zone Management, Paper for the Submerged Lands Management Conference, (St. Andrews By-the-Sea, New Brunswick: September 26-30, 1993). Inuit Circumpolar Conference. ICC and the United Nations Conference on Environmentand Development, Information North (18) 2 June 1992.
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Runnalls, David. Z%e Roadf/om Rio, Canada Among Nations 1993-94: Global Jeopardy Edited by Fen Osler Hampson and Christopher J. Maule. (Ottawa: Carleton Universib Press, 1993). Shaw, J., R.B. Taylor, D.L. Forbes, M.H. Ruz and S. Solomon. Sensitivityof the Canadian Coast to Sea-Level Rise. Forthcoming Geological Survey of Canada Open File Report, (Dartmouth, Nova Scotia: Atlantic Geoscience Centre, 1993).
III)
Offkial Canadian Statements/Documents:
Government of Canada. Canada RatifiesBase1 Convention,News Release, no. 170, (Ottawa: Department of External Affairs and International Trade, 28 August 1992). Maurice Strong to Deliver Foreign Policy Lecture, News Release, no. 217, (Ottawa: Department of External Affairs and International Trade, 9 November 1992). . McDougall and Crosbie Welcome UN High Seas Conference Decision, News Release, no. 247, (Ottawa: Department of External Affairs and International Trade, 24 December 1992). . Notes for an Address by the Honourable Barbara MacDougall, Secretary of State for External Aflairs to the PreparatoryCommitteeon UNCED, Statement 9217, (Ottawa: Department of External Affairs and International Trade, (Ottawa: Department of External Affairs and International Trade, 21 February 1992).
Notes for an Address by the Honourable Barbara MacDougall, Secretary of State fir External Asairs at the Meeting of the UhEP to the Convention on Biological Diversity Panel of Experts, Statement (Ottawa: Department of External Affairs and International Trade, 18 March 1993). Notes for an Address by Prime Minister Brian Mulroney. Earth Summit, Rio de Janeiro, (Office of the Prime Minister. 12 June 1992). United Nations Establishes Commission on Sustainable Development, News Release, no. 244, (Ottawa: Department of External Affairs and International Trade, 23 December 1992). Oceans: Marine Environment and Living Marine Resources in Areas under Nationul Jurisdiction, a Canadian position paper prepared for PrepCom IV.
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Information Sources: Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment, 326 Broadway, Suite 400, Winnipeg, Manitoba, RX OS5, tel (204) 948-2090, fax (204) 948-2125. Canadian International Development Agency, Place du Centre, 200 Promenade du Portage, Hull, Quebec, KlA OG4, tel (819) 997-5456, fax (819) 953-5469. Centre for Earth and Ocean Research, University of Victoria, P.O. Box 1700, Victoria, British Columbia, V8W 2Y2, tel (604) 721-8848, fax (604) 721-6200. Department of Fisheries and Oceans, 200 Kent Street, Ottawa, Ontario, KlA OE6, tel(613) 993-0999, fax (613) 990-1866. Fisheries Council of Canada, 141 Laurier Ave. West, Suite 806, Ottawa, Ontario, KlP 5J3, tel (613) 238-7751, fax (613) 238-3542. McMaster University, 1280 Main Street West, Hamilton, Ontario, tel(905) 525-9140, fax (905) 527-0100. National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy, 1 Nicholas Street, Suite 1500, Ottawa, Ontario, KlN 7B7, tel(613) 992-7189, fax (613) 992-7385. Oceans Institute of Canada, 1236 Henry Street, 5th Floor, Halifax, Nova Scotia, B3H 3J5, tel (902) 494-3879, fax (902) 494-1334. United Nations Association in Canada - Halifax Branch, 1331 Brenton Street, Halifax, Nova Scotia, B3J 2K5, tel (902) 421-1720, fax (902) 422-5343. UnitedNations Commission for Sustainable Development, Department of Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development, Room S-3060, United Nations, New York, N.Y. 10017, USA, tel(212) 963-5959.
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CHAPTER 18 Protection of the Quality and Supply of Freshwater Resources: Application of Integrated Approaches to the Development, Management and Use of Water Resources -- Sandra Scott --
THE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM Recognizing that water is needed in all aspects of life, the general objective of this chapter is to make sure that adequate supplies of good quality water are maintained for the entire population of the planet‘while preserving the hydrological, biological and chemical functions of ecosystems. The chapter recognizes the need for integrated water resources planning and management, given the widespread scarcity, gradual destruction and pollution of freshwater resources in many regions. Such integration must consider the different types of interrelated freshwater bodies including both surface and ground water and both quality and quantity issues. The approach to planning and management must accommodate the multi-interest utilization of water resources for water supply, sanitation, agriculture, industry, urban development, hydropower, fisheries, transportation, recreation etc. The problem of transboundary water resources is recognized in the chapter, and cooperation among those States affected by such transboundary interests is recommended. The protection of groundwater is also recognized as an essential element of water resource management.
Sandra Scott is the Coomlinatorfor UNCED Follow-Up at the Canadian Council of Minisfers of the Environment (CCME). The views expressed in this chapter are those of the author who received i&put from a number of stakeholders, and do not necessariljt represent the views of the CCME or the Projet de socitW.
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though not all, of the problems addressed in this chapter are relevant in the Canadian context. While sections on drinking water supplies and sewage treatment may have been more relevant for developing countries, many of the issues, and particularly the emphasis on integrated management, are important in Canada.
Many,
Canada does have an abundance of freshwater, yet 60% of it drains north toward the Arctic Ocean, and 90% of our population lives within 300 km of the Canada-US. border. This question of distribution, along with the fact that we are the world’s second largest per capita consumers of water could result in serious supply questions in the future. It is also important to know that Canada currently diverts more water between basins (principally for hydrogeneration purposes) than any other nation in the world. In addition, many of Canada’s freshwater systems (the Great Lakes, the St. Lawrence River, the Growth of cities, Fraser River etc.) are under considerable stress from human activities. industrial activity, and the increased use of chemicals in agriculture are all affecting the quality of water in Canadian lakes and rivers. Some water bodies are polluted by agricultural run-off and inadequately treated sewage, while others are exposed to toxic chemicals from industrial emissions. The loss of wetlands has also been an issue of considerable concern in Canada. Over the years wetlands have been drained to increase agricultural acreage, or to accommodate urban growth. Eighty percent of the Fraser River delta wetlands, 68 % of southern Ontario wetlands, up to 71% of prairie wetlands and 65% of Atlantic coastal marshes have been lost. Freshwater lakes and rivers have always been an important part of the Canadian landscape and of Canada’s economic and social history. As guardian of 9% of the world’s renewable supply of fresh water, Canada has a responsibility to ensure that it manages this resource properly.
PROGRAM AREAS AND OBJECTIVES The chapter identifies seven major program areas, each with a number of objectives. These are briefly outlined below. 1.
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Integrated water resources management a To promote a multisectoral approach to water resources management that integrates technological, socio-economic, environmental and human health considerations; 0 to plan for the sustainable use of water resources based on community needs and priorities; 0 to design and evaluate projects and programs within clearly defined strategies, based on an approach of full public participation in water management decision-making; l to harmonize, where appropriate, water management strategies of States sharing transboundary resources; and,
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to design and initiate costed and targeted national action programs by the year 2000.
2.
Assessment of water resources 0 To make available to all countries appropriate water resources assessment technology including methods for the impact assessment of climate change on freshwater; 0 to have all countries allocate the necessary financial resources to water resources assessment; 0 to ensure that the assessment information is fully utilized in developing policies; and, 0 to estab?ish the institutional arrangements needed to ensure the efficient collection, processing, storage, retrieval and dissemination of information about water resources.
3.
Protection of water resources, water quality and aquatic systems 0 To maintain ecosystem integrity; 0 to protect public health; 0 to develop human resources; 0 to identify surface and groundwater resources that could be used on a sustainable basis and develop programs for their sustainable use; l to identify all potential sources of water-supply and plan for their protection, conservation and rational use; 0 to initiate effective water pollution prevention and control programs, including reduction-at-source strategies, environmental impact assessments and enforceable standards for major point-source discharges; 0 to participate in international water-quality monitoring and management programs; l to reduce water-associated diseases, starting with guinea worm disease and river blindness, by the year 2000; and, 0 to establish biological, health, physical and chemical quality criteria for all water bodies.
4.
Drinking-water supply and sanitation 0 To promote integrated management of water resources and liquid and solid wastes; 0 to promote an integrated approach and the full participation of women at all levels in sector institutions; and, 0 to support community management of services.
5.
Water and sustainable urban development By the year 2000: a To ensure that all urban residents have access to at least 40 litres per capita per day of safe water and that 75 percent of the urban population is provided with on-site or community facilities for sanitation;
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to establish and apply quantitative and qualitative discharge standards for municipal and industrial effluents; and, to ensure that 75 percent of solid waste generated in urban areas is collected and recycled or disposed of in an environmentally safe way.
6.
Water for sustainable food production and rural development 0 Water should be regarded as a finite resource having an economic value with significant social and economic implications; l local communities must participate in all phases of water management; 0 water resource management must be developed within a comprehensive set of policies for (i) human health; (ii) food production, preservation and distribution; (iii) disaster mitigation plans; (iv) environmental protection and conservation of the natural resource base; and, l recognize and actively support the role of rural populations (especially women).
7.
Impacts of climate change on water resources 0 To understand and quantify the threat of the impact of climate change on freshwater resources; 0 to facilitate the implementation of effective national countermeasures, when the threat appears to justify such action; and, 0 to study the potential impacts of climate change on areas prone to droughts and floods.
CANADIAN POSITIONS AT RIO 1.
Official Canadian Position At Rio, the Canadian position with respect to Chapter 18 included the following four objectives:
(1) (2) (3)
(4)
to support the water management approaches and directions defined at the Dublin Water Conference; to avoid the creation of new institutions and financial commitment to proposals for which no funds have been identified; to ensure the decisions regarding cross-sector-al issues such as technology transfer and financial resources are consistent with what had been decided about these issues in the plenary; and, to remove financial estimates from the chapter.
Canada felt that their objectives were largely achieved. Although the Dublin Guiding Principles were not included verbatim, they were reflected in the text and no new institutional arrangements were recommended.
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2.
Non-Governmental Organizations Canadian NGOs focused most of their energies on the January 1992 International Conference on Water and the Environment which fed into the UNCED process, and on the NGO Freshwater Treaty. NGOs were concerned with preservation of water quality; promotion of conservation; preservation and restoration of aquatic ecosystems; equitable access to potable water and sanitation; the links between freshwater, human health and biodiversity; and, the recognition, involvement and support of non-governmental groups in freshwater management planning. These issues were included within Agenda 21, however, NGOs were concerned that the language of Agenda 21 was too vague and specific programs of action were not included. Some of the specific concerns NGOs had regarding Chapter 18 included: 0
l
0
the need to balance the chapters onus on improving water resources management in the South, with the need for industrialized countries to decrease water consumption; weak language regarding the need to address transboundary water issues as a major international priority; and, the emphasis on privatization of water delivery and of the hydrological process;
NGOs were participatory pleased with contributions
3.
pleased with the emphasis on involving communities and people in freshwater management planning. Women’s groups in particular, were the repeated mention of needing to address the needs, potential and of women in this area.
Business and Industrv Canadian business has a vested interest in clean and adequate water supplies currently and into the twenty-first century. The conservation of water and the cascading use of water (cleanest requirements first, using the residual for less and less demanding processes) is a primary focus of pollution prevention initiatives. Business supported the Canadian position at Rio as reflected by the governments Green Plan. They highlighted initiatives such as the pesticide industries’ support of best management practices to reduce and diffuse pollution.
4.
IudiPenous Indigenous Peoples need support in establishing Indigenous NGOs, Indigenous knowledge institutions and financial institutions to support sustainable development in terms of freshwater resources. Indigenous rights must be recognized to protect their lands, culture and language which inevitably will preserve their sustainable economic and environment regimes and their sustainable cultures.
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COMMITMENTS MADE BY CANADIANS
1.
Legally-Bindiw
Documents
While no legally-binding documents directly related to water management were signed at Rio, <both the Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Convention on Biological Diversity will have an impact on freshwater resources in Canada. As Chapter 18 acknowledges in its seventh program area, among the most important impacts of climate change will be its effects on the hydrological cycle and water management systems. As such, the signatory Parties’ agreement to take measures to anticipate, prevent or minimize the causes of climate change and mitigate its adverse affects will have important consequences for water supply and demand in Canada. The objectives of the Biodiversity Convention are, “the conservation of biological diversity, the sustainable use of its components and the fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising out of the utilization of genetic resources.. .‘I. Biological diversity defines “the variability among living organisms from all sources including terrestrial, marine ati other aquatic ecosystems and the ecological complexes of which they are part.. . “. Commitments made to conserve biological diversity apply equally to aquatic ecosystems, and as such will have implications for the management of Canada’s freshwater resources. Both of the legally-binding agreements signed at Rio will have considerable implications for freshwater management in Canada.
2.
Political Pronouncements None.
3.
Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NGO Treaties At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organization Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Oca conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. Of these treaties, one addressed the issues discussed in Chapter 18.
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NGU Fresh Water Treaty NGOs in Rio agreed that access to water and sanitation facilities should be a guaranteed right for all people. Market forces cannot solve all the problems. The solution requires a holistic vision of river basins and broad popular participation in managing hydrological systems. NGOs are committed to campaign against mining to prevent water contamination. Through the creation of river ecosystem reserves, they want to protect vital parts of river basins, establishing fisheries, reservoirs and recreation sites in these areas. Water conservation should be universally practised.
The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kaxi-Gca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference. They developed and adopted a 109-point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter.
DEFICIENCIES, GAPS AND CONSTRATNTS WITHIN CHAPTER 18 As a general introductory comment, Chapter 18 tends to be overly comprehensive, attempting to include so many considerations for so many countries, that strategic messages of value to individual countries such as Canada are difficult to identify. It is hoped that this chapter assessment will go some way toward focusing on those strategic messages. As the chapter indicates, there has been a considerable amount of attention given to freshwater issues over the last several decades. National and international goals for freshwater were originally set in 1977 at the UN Water Conference in Mar de1 Plata, Argentina. In an effort to achieve these goals, the UN established the International Drinking Water Supply and Sanitation Decade from 1981 to 1990. More recently, the International Conference on Water and the Environment, held in Dublin in 1992, was organized to assist in the development of the content for Agenda 21’s Chapter 18 on freshwater resources. Many of the issues appearing in Chapter 18 have been on national and international agendas for some time. The chapter addresses ongoing problems, and yet it fails to provide a concise update as to the current state of these problems. More critical analysis of the state of the globe’s water resources and key emerging issues would have added considerable value to such an ongoing discussion. The chapter makes the point that economic development and social well-being are often strongly influenced by water resources development. This point could have been highlighted more forcefully. In some countries the lack of an adequate freshwater supply can present a major threat to the health of a population, and in other countries it can be a principal constraint on economic development (this is increasingly likely to be the case in the future). Projet de socitW: Planning for a Sustainable Future
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Highlighting the economic value of water and the economic implications of deteriorating water quality and reduced water supply might help to raise the profile of water-related issues on both international and national agendas. The importance of obtaining efficiency in water use must be underscored. Demand management approaches are critical for dealing with efficient allocation and use issues, and they require the establishment of economic value. This kind of strategic recognition of the economic value of water must be integrated with what the chapter correctly identifies as the two priorities in developing and using water resources, namely, satisfying basic needs and safeguarding ecosystems. The economic value of water should be based upon water use value and non-use value. The non-use values (existence values and bequest values) have important implications for biodiversity strategies and inter-generational ewe. Having identified the satisfaction of basic needs and the safeguarding of ecosystems as priorities for water use, the chapter then suggests that beyond these requirements water users should be â&#x20AC;&#x153;charged appropriately â&#x20AC;&#x153;. While charging for water use is certainly an issue which needs to be addressed, this chapter fails to give it enough attention. There are serious equity issues associated with the pricing of water, and it would have been useful if the chapter had more fully outlined some of these concerns and the different options available for charging water users. While the chapter does encourage strengthening institutional capacities for conservation, it fails to emphasize the necessity of doing this in relation to an ecosystem health approach. Such an approach must clearly recognize land development/water use relationships as well as social economic considerations at all stages of the decision-making process. Chapter 18 falls short in addressing the need for reform in legislation, policies and processes in order to provide for management within an ecosystem perspective. Finally, the chapter, as demonstrated by its subtitle, is focused on the concept of integrated water resources planning and management. Unfortunately, it fails to provide any kind of a logical framework for such integrated management. It presents a long list of issues which need to be addressed under seven separate program areas. Many issues recur under different program areas. Not enough effort was made to reconstruct the freshwater management problem and to present it in a way that would should how this issue is interconnected with so many others (air pollution, agriculture, forestry, oceans, human settlements, population, over-consumption etc.). Having had 20 or more years of experience at the international level trying to address issues of freshwater resource management, there is surprisingly little innovation in this chapter. It does cover many of the pieces of the puzzle, but it fails to describe them in a way that could assist governments in approaching water management from a truly integrated perspective. This chapter lacks a sense of urgency. Freshwater is critical to human survival. Practical means must be found of implementing some of the principles, policies and programs which have been described and designed over the years, and this chapter fails to give much guidance as to how to ensure that happens.
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COMPARI!iJON BETWEEN CURRENT CANADIAN GOCOMMITMENTS MADE
Chupter 18
POLICY AND
There is very little in Chapter 18 which commits Canada to anything beyond what our own policies and approach to water management already include. Water management in Canada is largely the responsibility of provincial issues vary across jurisdictions and different approaches to management different provincial governments. In a number of cases agreements have jurisdictions to manage transboundary waters (e.g., the McKenzie Agreement which is currently being developed).
governments. Water have been adopted by been reached between River Basin Master
The federal government, however, retains significant water management responsibilities which are reflected in the Federal Water Policy of 1987. The Policy clearly enunciates most of the positions taken in the UNCED documents. Flowing from this Policy, the government’s Green Plan (1990) outlined a number of specific goals, the first of which was clean air, water and land. As a target under that broad goal it was agreed that we should try to achieve the “protection and enhancement of the quality of our water resources and promotion of the wise and efficient use of our water.. The Green Plan outlines five programs through which to achieve the target. These include: l
securing safe and dependable supplies of drinking water through the introduction of a Drinking Water Safety Act, developing codes of practice for dealing with groundwater problems, and accelerating the provision of water and sewer systems to Indian reserves;
0
cleaning up past mistakes focusing efforts first on the Fraser River Basin and Atlantic Harbour “hot spots”;
l
promoting pollution prevention by working with the U.S. on a bilateral action plan for comprehensive pollution prevention in the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River Basin, establishing a Great Lakes Pollution Prevention Centre, and carrying out a study of the Red and Assiniboine River Basins;
0
encouraging wise water use through improved demand management, realistic pricing and development and application of water conservation technologies; and
0
improving water science and technology by increased expenditure on water-related science and technology in co-operation with provinces and industry.
These broad issues were all addressed in the Agenda 21 chapter.
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Water related commitments made under the Green Plan were not in themselves groundbreaking. They reaffirmed many of the goals and strategies which had already been outlined in 1987 in the government’s Federal Water Policy. This policy was developed following an intensive public inquiry in 1985 into federal water policy. There are many water-related policies or agreements to which the Canadian government has been committed for many years. For example, Canada and the United States have been cooperatively dealing with the management of transboundary waters since 1909 when they signed the Boundary Waters Treaty. Over the years Canada has entered into a number of agreements with the U.S. under the terms of this treaty, perhaps the best known of these being the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreements of 1972, 1978 and 1987. In some eases, existing Canadian government policies or commitments go beyond what was agreed to in Chapter 18. For example, the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement mentioned above is governed by a number of principles, one being that the discharge of any or ail persistent toxic substances must be virtually eliminated. While Chapter 18 talks about pollution prevention, it does not go as far as does the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement in this area. It should be noted that while total elimination of persistent toxic substances, is a goal, progress toward achieving it has been slow. A recent review by Environment Canada of Chapter 18 and Canadian water management initiatives suggests that, for the most part, Canada is aware of the needs outlined in the chapter and policies and programs are often already planned or in place to address these needs. The challenge remains, however, to ensure that objectives are met and plans implemented. This seems to reflect a similar condition at the international level where problems have been recognized and actions required agreed to, but goals and objectives have not yet been achieved. In reviewing the seven program areas it is possible to identify areas where more work is needed to respond to commitments made in Chapter 18. First, more effort is needed in promoting an integrated approach to decision-making and water management. where integrated management approaches or plans have been developed, these must be implemented. Data collection with regard to water quality and quantity issues in Canada has been somewhat variable. Water quantity data is collected to consistent national standards under identical federalprovincial agreements with all 10 provinces and with Indian and Northern Affairs for the two territories. These data are now more readily accessible through the national CD-ROM HYDAT package, which includes user-friendly interpretive software. Water data are also collected for specific programmes and projects within limited geographical areas and focusing on specific problems or conditions. This fragmented approach is the basis for the conclusion in the report on the State of Canada’s Environment (1991), that the national profile of the state of Canada’s water resources is essentially a “patchwork” of program specific and regional studies data, particularly with respect to water quality. Efforts should be continued to develop a more consistent national approach to the collection and storage of water quality
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data. In addition, means must be developed for easier access and interpretation of water quality data for decision makers. Over 90% of Canadians are served by treated water supplies, and the other 10% use private water systems. About 75% of Canadians living in communities of over 1000 people are served by sewage treatment plants. While this is a strong record, water supply and sanitation services need to be improved on native lands. Some people believe that there is still a need for national drinking water standards in Canada. It should be emphasized that while Canada is successful in the sense that its citizens are well supplied with water and sanitation services, we are currently the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s second largest per capita consumers of water. More effort will have to be made to develop a water conservation ethic among Canadians. The program area which likely presents the greatest challenge to Canadians is the one which deals with the protection of water quality. Cleaning up existing pollution, virtually eliminating the discharge of toxic substances, and shifting to a preventive approach to water pollution control are all difficult and critical issues. Canada has a number of policies and programs in place to address these concerns, but what will be very important in the coming years is how successful we are at implementing these. It would appear that Canada has in many cases already committed itself to the kinds of objectives outlined in Chapter 18. In some cases Canada has policies or agreements in place which commit them to go beyond what was agreed to at UNCED. What remains to be seen is how effectively these commitments are being, and can be implemented.
CANADIAN ACTIVITIES
EVOLVING THROUGH THE SUSTAINABILITY
PROCESS
There are many initiatives underway in Canada (government and non-government based) which are relevant to this chapter. Remedial action to clean up polluted waters, efforts at pollution prevention, basin-wide or ecosystem approaches to management, and efforts to promote water conservation are all being pursued at some level in Canada today. The Remedial Action Plan (RAP) program was initiated in the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Basin in 1987. Having identified â&#x20AC;&#x153;hot spotsâ&#x20AC;? or areas of severe water quality degradation in the Lakes, the purpose of the remedial action program was to establish a process whereby all stakeholders in a community could come together to develop a plan of recovery for their harbour. Having developed the plan, they would then be involved in its implementation. In the 1990 Green Plan, the idea behind these remedial action plans was extended to the Atlantic coast. The Atlantic Coastal Action Plan or ACAP was established to respond in a similar community-based way to the most critical areas of concern on the Atlantic coast.
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In addition to this necessary remedial action, it is being recognized in Canada that pollution prevention is the direction in which we must be moving. The federal Department of the Environment now has an Office of Pollution Prevention, and the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment has endorsed a National Pollution Prevention Framework. Non-governmental organizations and industry have also been active in the area of pollution prevention. In September 1991, the New Directions Group, a voluntary network of citizens, industry CEOs, environmental groups, and other NGOs, released a plan for reducing and eliminating the emission of toxic substances in Canada. They felt a multistakeholder consultative committee should be set up to develop an action plan with specific milestones for the accelerated reduction/elimination of toxics (ARET). An ARET committee has been established, and has begun its work on promoting the voluntary reduction of toxic substances emissions. A number of strong regional initiatives are underway in an attempt to deal with water issues on a basin-wide level. The Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement, for example, adopts an ecosystem approach to the management of these international waters. The Fraser River Estuary Management Program is another example of an attempt to co-ordinate management roles based on the geography of the river, not artificial jurisdictional lines. Water conservation is being pursued on two fronts under the Green Plan. A National Water Conservation Conference was held in Winnipeg, Manitoba in 1993. This Conference promoted wiser use of our water resources through movement toward demand management practices, water pricing initiatives and better water conservation technologies. As a result, many governments as well as industry and NGOs are currently considering the issue of water conservation and what kinds of goals and measures to adopt in this area. Consequently, the federal government itself adopted a Water Conservation Plan for federal government facilities which provides for water use efficiency in the government’s own operations. The Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment is committed to the development of a national approach to water use efficiency, beginning with an action plan to promote municipal water use efficiency. In Alberta, part of the provincial government’s effort to improve the management of water resources has focused on developing a methodology for incorporating instream flow needs, which allows managers to address the balance between requirements for allocation purposes and scientifically based needs for protection and maintenance of ecosystems. This attention to insbxam flow needs is very much in keeping with Chapter 18’s focus on the safeguarding of ecosystems. The National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy, together with the North American Wetlands Conservation Council and other partners convened the Sustaining Wetlands Forum which produced a comprehensive backgrounder on wetlands. Since then, the Canadian Wetlands Conservation Task Force has monitored implementation of the report’s 73 recommendations.
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Canadian environmental NGOs have lobbied for and/or participated in numerous consultation processes involving water and ecosystem management. These include river basin management initiatives in western Canada; multi-stakeholder discussions on curtailing various forms of water pollution by industry; the development of wetland policies; and the development of provincial water policies. The International Secretariat for Water, an international NGO headquartered in Montreal, promotes co-operation between NGOs of all countries that are involved with drinking water and sanitation improvement in the South. Much work remains to be done on documenting the state of Canadaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s water resources, managing conflict over use more effectively (particularly with regard to hydra-electric development), developing more efficient water use practices, preventing pollution, and improving our somewhat preliminary efforts at truly integrated water management.
OTHER RELEVANT INTERNATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY-RELATED FORA
0
United Nations Conference on Human Environment, Stockholm, Sweden in 1972
0
United Nations Water Conference, Mar de1 Plata, Argentina in 1977 This Conference was held in Mar de1 Plata, Argentina in 1977. It produced the Mar de1 Plata Action Plan upon which many of the activitiesin Chapter 18 are based.
0
United Nations International Drinking Water Supply and Sanitation Decade, 1981-1990 T%e1980s were dedicated by the UN as a decade in which the internationalcommunity would make a concerted efSortto address drinking water supply and sanimtion issues. Not all of the objectivesfor the decade were met, and Chapter 18 reiterates marryof these.
0
International Conference on Water and the Environment, Dublin, Ireland in 1992 i%is Conference was organizedby the WorldMeteorological Organizationin early 1992. It waspart of thepreparatoryprocess for UNCED, and much of whatappears in Chapter 18 emerged from thisforum.
l
Global Consultation on Safe Water and Sanitation for the 199Os, New Delhi, September lo-14 1990
l
Global Water Quality Monitoring Program (GEMS/WATER) l%e environmentalassessmentarm of UNEP is called Earthwatch. EQrthwatchincludes the global EnvironmentMonitoringSystem (GEMS), which coordinatesthe collectionof data worldwideon such trends as climate change, soil degradation and air quality. The Water QualityMonitoringProgram collects this kind of data on water quality.
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United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) Environmentally Sound Management of Inland Waters (EMINWA) lItis program concentrates on promoting cooperationin water matters among countries sharing a common river basin. There are relatedprojects in training and informulating guidelines and improvingmethodsof analysisand decision-makingin watermanagement.
0
Ramsar Convention l&e Ramsar Conventionis the 1971 Conventionon Wetlandsof InternationalImportance Especially as Water$owlHabitat, under which signatory states designate protected wetlandsfor an InternationalList and agree to make wise use of wetlands, whether or not they are included on the List.
SUGGESTED READINGS AND INFORMATION
SOURCES
Colbom, T.E., A. Davidson, S.N. Green, R.A. Hodge, C.I. Jackson, R.A. Liroff. Great Lakes, Great Legacy, (Washington and Ottawa: The Conservation Foundation and The Institute for Research on Public Policy, 1990). Government of Canada.
A Primer on Water, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991).
.
Canada’s Green Plan, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1990).
.
Canada’s Green Plan and the Earth Summit, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1992).
Canada’s National Report: United Nations Conference on Environment and Develonment Brazil. June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991). .
Federal Water Policy, (Ottawa, 1987).
.
The State of Canada’s Environment, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991).
International Development Research Centre (IDRC). Agenda 21: Abstracts. Reviews and Commentaries, (Theodora Carroll-Foster, editor), (Ottawa: IDRC, 1993). International Conference on Water and the Environment. The Dublin Statement and Reoort of the Conference, World Meteorological Organization, (Geneva: 1992). Keating, Michael. Agenda for Change: A Plain Language Version of Agenda 21 and the Other Rio Agreements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993). Science Council of Canada. Water 2020, Report 40, (Ottawa: Science Council of Canada, June 1988).
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World Commission on Environment and Development. Our Common Future, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987). World Resources Institute. Press, 1992).
World Resources 1992-1993, (New York: Oxford University
Information Sources: Canadian Institute of Resources Law, Bio Sciences Building, Room 430, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, T2N lN4, tel (403) 220-3200, fax (403) 282-6182. Department of Fisheries and Oceans, Freshwater Institute, 501 University Winnipeg, Manitoba, R3T 2N6, tel (204) 983-5000, fax (204) 984-2401.
Crescent,
Environment Canada, Inland Waters Directorate, Terrasses de la Chaudiere, 10 Wellington Stre&, Hull, Quebec, Kl A OH3 (there are 5 regional offices in addition to the office in Hull). Gr&t Lakes United, Box 548, Station â&#x20AC;&#x153;Aâ&#x20AC;?, Windsor, Ontario, N9A 6M6, tel(716) 886-0142, fax (716) 886-0303. International Joint Commission, Canadian Section, 100 Metcalfe Street, 18th Floor, Ottawa, Ontario, KlP 5M1, tel (613) 995-2984, fax (613) 993-5583. St. Lawrence Centre, 105 McGill Street, 4th Floor, Montreal, Quebec, H2Y 2E7, tel (514) 283-7000, fax (514) 283-1719.
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CHAPTER 19 Environmentally Sound Management of Toxic Chemicals Including Prevention of Illegal International Traffic in Toxic and Dangerous Products -- Gordon Clifford -THE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM While substantial use of chemicals is generally recognized as essential to meet the social and economic goals of the world community, there are two major problems, particnlarly as pertains to developing countries (DCs). First, there is a lack of sufficient scientific information on a great number of chemicals. As a result, the proper assessment of risks associated with use of these chemicals can be insufficient or non-existent. Second, there is a lack of resources available to undertake the assessment of the effects of chemicals for which data is available. To provide perspective on the importance of this chapter to global environmental management and sustainable development, the following facts are helpful: l l l l l
although there are approximately 100,000 chemicals in commercial production, 1500 of these account for 95 per cent of production; every day 3 to 5 new chemicals enter the marketplace; every day approximately one million tons of hazardous wastes are generated in the world, 90% of this comes from the industrial&d world; about 85% of chemicals used in Canada are imported; and, toxic chemicals usually exhibit at least one of the following three properties persistent, bioaccumulative or toxic.
Gordon Clifford is a consultant with Consulting and Audit Canada. The views presented in this chapter are th.ose of the author who received input from a number of stakeholders, and do not represent the views of Consulting and A&it Canada or the Projet de socitW.
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The effects of handling toxic substances are often delayed. Associated environmental and health problems may not manifest themselves for many years. Gradual and often undetected leaching of toxic chemicals into groundwater, and genetic damage resulting from exposure to certain toxic chemicals, are two examples of problems which may only emerge over tilme. These help to explain the lack of a sense of immediacy that often occurs in discussions about toxic chemicals. While certain problems take time to detect, others, such as the synergistic effects of releasing numerous toxic chemicals into the same eco-system, are often simply unknown. There is concern on the part of many countries that the international movement of toxic and dangerous products is frequently carried out in contravention of existing national legislation and international laws, to the detriment of the environment and public health in all countries, particularly developing countries. This chapter characterizes the problem of toxic chemicals as follows - toxic chemicals are necessary to economic growth and yet they pose a serious environmental threat if not handled correctly. As such Chapter 19 focuses on the management of risks.
PROGRAM AREAS AND OB,JECâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;lâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;IVES The following six program areas, along with their corresponding objectives, are outlined in Chapter 19. 1. Expanding and accelerating international assessment of chemical risks l Strengthen international risk assessment. l Produce guidelines for acceptable exposure for a greater number of toxic chemicals. 2.
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Harmonization of classification and labelling of chemicals 0 Establish a globally harmonized hazard classification labelling system by the year 2000.
and compatible
3.
Information exchange on toxic chemicals and chemical risks l Promote intensified exchange of information on chemical safety, use and emissions. 0 Achieve by the year 2000, as feasible, full participation in, and implementation of, the Prior Informed Consent (PIG) procedure.
4.
Establishment of risk reduction programs l Eliminate unacceptable or unreasonable risks and, to the extent economically feasible, reduce risks posed by toxic chemicals, by employing a broad-based approach.
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5.
Strengthening of national capabilities and capacities for management of chemicals l By the year 2000, national systems for environmentally sound management of chemicals, including legislation and provisions for implementation and enforcement, should be in place in all countries to the extent possible.
6.
Prevention of illegal international traffic in toxic and dangerous products l Reinforce national capacities to detect and halt any illegal attempt to introduce toxic and dangerous products into the territory of any State. l Assist all countries, particularly developing countries, in obtaining all appropriate information concerning illegal traffic in toxic and dangerous products.
CANADIAN POSITIONS AT RIO 1.
Offkial Canadian Position Canadian objectives during the PrepCom sessions leading to Chapter 19 were the following:
(1) (2) (3) (4) (5)
(6
to promote the life cycle (cradle to grave) approach to management of chemicals; to promote thorough prior assessment of economic, health, safety and environmental consequences of control measures and alternative technologies considered for adoption in the national management of chemicals; to encourage adoption of measures that will assist developing countries to develop the expertise and legislative infrastructure needed to be able to take timely and informed decisions on their own regarding the use of chemicals; to seek to promote adoption of compatible approaches to chemical management by countries; to seek to ensure that terminology used in the paper is well understood, consistent with the use in other fora and does not inappropriately cover non-toxic chemicals or adversely affect activities such as recycling; and, to encourage harmonization of classification and labelling systems.
A key issue for Canada was the deletion of text calling for bans or phase-outs of asbestos and organohalogens. After lengthy discussion at PrepCom IV there was acceptance of Canadaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s proposal to make it clear throughout the text that product substitution should be a last step to be used for chemicals which pose an unreasonable and otherwise unmanageable risk. To reach this agreement, Canada accepted wording that also reflected the European Communityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s position, namely that chemicals that are toxic, persistent and bioaccumulative and cannot be adequately controlled, should be phased out.
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Recognition at the PrepCorns of the need for international cooperation in the development of hazard and risk data through strengthening the International Program on Chemical Safety (IPCS) was consistent with the Canadian objectives to promote compatible international chemical management. This chapter can be considered a success from Canadaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s point of view, as all Canadian objectives were met.
2.
Non-Governmental Orpanizations In general, the NGO position on this chapter was that toxic chemicals and their usage should be approached from a position favouring restraint and prevention. This position compares to the government, business & industry view supporting reduction, but mostly proper management, of toxic chemicals. In addition, the NGO community is concerned that it be involved in policy making around toxic chemicals. Although the chapter encourages the role of â&#x20AC;&#x153;community rightto-know programsâ&#x20AC;?, it has nonetheless been criticized for giving insufficient emphasis to community involvement and participation in all aspects of decision-making and management pertaining to toxic substances; the main efforts in such decision-making are relegated to governments and industry.
3.
Busiuess and Industrv The position of Canadian business and industry was essentially consistent with the official Canadian position at UNCED.
4.
IndiPenous Indigenous Peoples recommended that their territories and lands should be protected from the effects and dumping of toxic chemicals. There is a need for the development of protocols which requires the involvement of Indigenous Peoples at all levels of discussion and decision making since international activities always affect Indigenous Peoples. Under Agenda 21, Indigenous Peoples were to be informed, consulted and allowed to participate at the national level for decision making. Support is required from all levels of government, industry and other NGOs to assist Indigenous Peoples to maintain their own NGOs. Toxic chemicals should be restricted and prohibited rather than managed.
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COMMITMENTS MADE BY CANADIANS 1.
Legally-Bindiw
Documents
None. 2.
Political Pronouncements During the Minister of the Environment Jean Charestâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s disclosure of the National Statement of Canada, on June 11 1992 at UNCED, he announced that Canti would reduce its waste production by 50 % by the year 2000. While not. directly related to toxic chemicals, this pronouncement is relevant in the broader waste management context in which toxic chemicals need ultimately to be considered.
3.
Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NGO Treaties At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organ&ion Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Oca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. Of these treaties, one addressed the issues discussed in Chapter 19. Treaty on Waste Principles agreed upon at the Global Forum to counter the waste problem include: work to reach the goal of zero production of hazardous and nuclear wastes; promote local, democratic decision-making about waste; get producers to fund the cost of creating solutions. Industrial, nuclear and hazardous waste must be kept in the country that produced it, and countries may not effect neighbours with their waste disposal. As an emergency measure, strict regulations which exist in some countries now, should be extended to the global community until a realistic international code can be implemented. In addition to waste-reducing actions outlined in other treaties, the Treaty on Waste suggests that a permanent inventory of accidents, transportation routes and potential problems should be developed. By encouraging research on appropriate technologies, services, quality and cost of waste management, governments and NGOs can help provide communities with a basis for their decisions. Through networks, the export of technical expertise on waste issues can be facilitated. Source separation and recycling of urban wastes should be worked toward and NGOs should mobilize against waste incinerators. Finally, the Treaty suggests NGOs should form pressure groups for a tax on the use of chemicals and their emissions as a disincentive to industry for their abuse.
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Kari-oca The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference. They developed and adopted a log-point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter.
DEFICIENCIES.
GAPS AND CONSTRAINTS
WITHIN CHAPTER 12
Although the chapter encourages the role of “community right-to-know programs”, it has nonetheless been criticized for giving insufficient emphasis to community involvement and participation in all aspects of decision-making and management pertaining to toxic substances. Much of decision-making remains in the hands of government and industry. The chapter gives little indication that the groups directly concerned with the issue of toxic chemicals (workers in chemical factories, peasants using pesticides) will have any say in the decisions and management of such chemicals. Some labour groups in Canada have expressed concern that the chapter focuses on the management of risk rather than the reduction of hazards. Program areas focus on information, classification, assessment, risk management and the movement of toxic products. While these may assist workers and others in managing toxic chemicals, they do not deal with the reduction or elimination of chemical hazards. Labour’s sense is that the kind of risk analysis emphasized in this chapter will do little to reduce chemical hazards worldwide. More emphasis should have been place on hazard reduction or elimination. Related to Chapter 19, some NGOs felt that the separation of the waste issues into separate chapters was not beneficial, detracted from consideration of the entire waste issue, and lost the linlages between the various types of wastes. In particular the separation of hazardous waste, toxic chemicals and radioactive wastes was questioned in that they are related both in nature and remediation approaches. This concern is emphasized by the fact that the four chapters on waste were not consistent in their general approach or specific actions recommended, despite their similarities. In addition, not only were the waste issues discussed in isolation of each other, but there was inadequate discussions of other Agenda 21 issues, (such as fresbwater, atmosphere, technology transfer, and financial resources), which are strongly related to the issue of toxic chemicals.
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COMPARISON BETWEEN COMMITMXNTS MADE
CURRENT
CANADIAN GOVERNMENT
POLICY
AND
The Canadian Environmental Protection Act (1988) provides the authority to implement many of the government-related activities outlined in this chapter. In July 1991 the federal government established a National Office of Pollution Prevention within Environment Canada to promote a shift from “react and cure” to “anticipate and prevent”. The Office is presently developing, in co-ordination with the provinces, a strategy framework for pollution prevention in Canada. As part of the Green Plan, a publicly accessible National Pollutant Release Inventory database will be established, listing major Canadian industrial pollutants, where they are found, and in what quantities. In 1991, a “New Directions Group”, composed of senior representatives from industry and environmental groups recommended that a process to reduce or phase out selected toxic substances be established. This resulted in the establishment in February 1992 of an ARET (Accelerated Reduction or Elimination of Toxics) committee composed of representatives from labour, business/industry, environmental groups and the federal and provincial governments. The Committee is developing criteria for selecting substances and setting targets for reduction. The ARET process will rely on voluntary compliance by all groups involved. A Pollution Prevention Initiative was also established for the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence basin in March 1991, backed by $125 million in federal funding from Environment Canada. Overall, Canada’s approach to managing toxic chemicals is to combine regulatory controls with pollution prevention, and to work with industry to control and reduce both toxic chemicals and their emissions. There appears, to date, to be little reliance on market or economic based incentives (as advocated in Agenda 21) to address the management of toxic substances in Canada.
CANADIAN ACTIVITIES
EVOLVING THROUGH THE SUSTAINABILITY
PROCESS
International Program on Chemical Safety Canada is party to the International Program on Chemical Safety @PCS), under whose auspices classification and labelling of toxic chemicals is undertaken. This activity is consistent with the Canadian objectives concerning this chapter. Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment The Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment (CCME) has initiated the National Sites Remediation Program, a $250 million program to clean-up high risk “orphan” contaminated sites where contamination poses an existing or imminent threat to human health or the environment. These funds are intended to enable immediate action to be taken where the responsible party is unknown, cannot be located, or is insolvent. In addition, the CCME is also developing small scale waste management models to be directed at waste reduction strategies for small and remote communities. Projet de so&k
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In November Framework.
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1993, the Council of Ministers endorsed a National
Pollution Prevention
In terms of private sector initiatives which are consistent with the objectives of this chapter, there is, in addition to the chemical industry’s “Responsible Care” initiative, a growing demand for development and implementation of Environmental Management Systems for business use. These systems often include environmental audit protocols which adopt spill prevention and hazardous waste management evaluations. Continuing trends in this direction will promote the safe handling of toxic chemicals and hazardous wastes. New Directions Group The New Directions Group intends to create a schedule to reduce industrial emissions into the The Group developed a plan which recommended that work on a national environment. inventory of pollution begin by 1992, with a public report in 1994. Canadian Industrial Transportation League The Canadian Industrial Transportation League is a business association wlhich is educating its membership on issues of environmentally sound management of toxic chemicals. Structural Board Association The Structural Board Association has ongoing safety and Workplace Hazardous Information Management System (WHMTS) programs which deal with environmentally sound management of toxic chemicals. MininP Association of Canada The Mining Association of Canada (MAC) is addressing the issue of environmentally sound management of toxic chemicals through its participation on: the Accelerated Reduction and Elimination of Toxic Substances Committee; the Short Term Action within a Reasonable Timeframe (START) Subcommittee; the National Pollutant Release Inventory Multistakeholder Advisory Committee; and the Canadian Standards Association (CSA) Environmental Technical Committees. MAC is also addressing the concerns of Chapter 19 through participation in discussions on the OECD Risk Reduction and High Production Chemicals Programs. Major Industrial Accidents Council of Canada The Major Industrial Accidents Council of Canada (MIACC) is a relatively new organization which is undertaking activities consistent with this chapter’s objectives. Funded by both governments and industry, its mandate is to facilitate consultative processes between industry and government stakeholders in an effort to reduce the number of accidents involving hazardous materials.
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OTHER RELEVANT INTERNATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY-RELATED F’ORA 0
Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Environmental Policy Committee Groups on: 1) Pollution Prevention and Control 2) Chemicals Program
0
International Program on Chemical Safety (supported by the International Labour Organ&&ion; the World Health Organization; and the United Nations Environment Program)
0
International Chamber of Commerce (ICC)
0
(A joint UNEP/WHO co-ordinating International Program on Chemical Safety mechanism for the exchange of information about the risk to human health and the environment associated with the exposure to harmful chemicals).
SUGGESTED READINGS AND INFORMATION
SOURCES
Ayres, R.U., et al. “Industry and Wastes”, International Conference on an Agenda of Science for Environment and Development into the 21st Century, ASCEND 21, Vienna, November 1991, p.24-29. Government of Canada. Canada’s Green Plan, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1990). .
Canada’s Green Plan and the Earth Summit, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1992).
Canada’s National Report: United Nations Conference on Environment Development Brazil. June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991). .
and
The State of Canada’s Environment, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991).
Institute for Research on Environment and Economy. A Oualitative Assessment of ProDosed Policies and Activities for the Conservation and Management of Resources for Development, (Ottawa: University of Ottawa, February, 1992). International Development Research Centre (IDRC). Agenda 21: Abstracts. Reviews. and Commentaries, (Theodora Carroll-Foster, editor), (Ottawa: IDRC, 1993). Keating, Michael. Agenda for Change: A Plain Language Version of Agenda 21 and the Other Rio Agreements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993). National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy (NRTEE). The National Waste Reduction Handbook, (Ottawa: NRTEE, 1991). Projet de socUt& Planning
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AwessmmtofAgenda 21
World Commission on Environment and Development. Oxford University Press, 1987)
Our
Common Future, (Oxford:
Information Sources: Canadian Chemical Producers Association (CCPA), 350 Sparks Street, Suite 805, Ottawa, Ontario, KlR 758, tel (613) 237-6215, fax (613) 237-4061. Canadian Environmental Network (CEN), P.O. Box 1289, Station B, Ottawa, Ontario, KlP 5R3, tel(613) 563-2078, fax (613) 563-7236. Greenpeace, 185 Spadina Avenue, 6th Floor, Toronto, Ontario, M5T 2C5, tel(416) 345-8408, fax (416) 345-8422. Ontario Toxic Waste Research Coalition, Box 35, Vineland Station, Ontario LOR 2EO, tel (519) 744-7503, fax (519) 744-1546.
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CHAPTER 20 Environmentally Sound Management of Hazardous Wastes Including Prevention of Illegal International Traffic in Hazardous Wastes - Gordon CIiffod THE NATURE OF â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;ITIE PROBLEM Our industrial processes are producing increasing amounts of hazardous waste and human health and environmental quality are being degraded as a result. Problems are associated with the generation, handling and disposal of such wastes. Significant health and environmental impacts are also caused by the misuse of hazardous materials during the manufacturing process. Such issues as worker safety, spills, improper ventilation, and lack of training need to be dealt with. In many countries, a lack of expertise and political will prevents proper management of hazardous waste. Minimizing the generation of hazardous waste and rehabilitating sites which have already been contaminated with hazardous waste are the two key problems which this chapter tries to address. A third concern is focused around the international movement of hazardous wastes. There exist wide differences in standards relating to hazardous waste management between industria&ed and developing countries. Legislation protecting the environment is generally much weaker in developing countries because of the high premium these countries place on economic growth. The result has been that a number of developing countries have become dumping grounds for industrial wastes. In summary, the chapter tries to address the problems of how to prevent and minimize the generation of hazardous waste, and how to manage those wastes in such a way as to ensure that the health of people and the environment are not put at risk. It recognizes that this is a problem which will have to be addressed by the international community, governments and industry.
Gordon Cli$foordis a consuibnt with Consalting and Audit GamuSz. The views expressed in this chapter are those of the author who received input from a number of stakeholders, anddo not necessarily represent the views of Consulting and Audit Canada or the Projet de soci&b.
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PROGRAM AREAS AND OBJECTIVES Chapter 20 identifies four major program areas, each with a number of objectives. briefly outlined below.
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These are
1.
Promoting the prevention and minim&&ion of hazardous waste l To reduce the generation of hazardous wastes as part of an integrated cleaner production approach; 0 to utilize, where practicable and environmentally sound, the residues from production processes; and, 0 to enhance knowledge and information on the economics of prevention and management of hazardous wastes.
2.
Promoting and strengthening institutional capacities in hazardous waste management 0 To adopt appropriate coordinating, legislative and regulatory measures at the national level for the environmentally sound management of hazardous wastes; 0 to establish public awareness and information programs on hazardous waste issues; l to establish comprehensive research programs on hazardous wastes; 0 to strengthen service industries to enable them to handle hazardous wastes; l to promote human exposure assessment with respect to hazardous waste sites and identify the remedial measures required; 0 â&#x20AC;&#x2122; to facilitate the assessment of impacts and risks of hazardous wastes on human health and the environment; 0 to improve knowledge regarding the effects of hazardous wastes on human health and the environment; and, 0 to make information available to governments and to the general public on the effects of hazardous wastes on human health and the environment.
3.
Promoting and strengthening international cooperation in the management of transboundary movements of hazardous wastes 0 To facilitate and strengthen international cooperation in the environmentally sound management of hazardous wastes, including control and monitoring of transboundary movements of such wastes; 0 to adopt a ban on or prohibit the export of hazardous wastes to countries that do not have the capacity to deal with those wastes in an environmentally sound way or that have banned the import of such wastes; =d, 0 to promote the development of control procedures for the transboundary movement of hazardous wastes destined for recovery operations that encourage environmentally and economically sound recycling options.
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4.
Preventing illegal international traffic in hazardous wastes 0 To reinforce national capacities to detect and halt illegal attempts to introduce hazardous wastes into the territory of any State in contravention of national legislation and international instruments; l to assist all countries in obtaining appropriate information concerning illegal traffic in hazardous wastes; and, 0 to cooperate in assisting countries that suffer the consequences of illegal lXZiffiC.
CANADIAN POSITIONS AT RIO 1.
Official Canadian Position At Rio, the Canadian government objectives related to Chapter 20 were as follows:
(1)
to seek to strengthen commitments to establish alternate controls for the transboundary movement of hazardous waste destined for recycling operations;
(2)
to seek to support efforts to share environmentally sound facilities on a regional basis;
(3)
to seek to recognize and support efforts of existing UNEP study groups on environmentally sound management and liability, as well as ensure that Agenda 21 proposals complement existing international programs; and,
(4)
to avoid broad-ranging proposals to ban or prohibit exports of hazardous wastes to developing countries indiscriminately without considering the controls of the Base1 Convention.
Most of these objectives were met. 2.
Non-Governmental Omanizations With regard to Chapter 20, Canadian NGOs expressed the following position.
NGOs:
(1)
felt that there is a clear need for detailed definitions of hazardous wastes, recycling, reuse, reduction, etc.;
(2)
called on Canada to join other countries in their support for a proposed ban on the transboundary movement of hazardous wastes;
(3)
expressed concerns that sections of Chapter 20 do not adequately reflect the environmental policy shift that has occurred over the last several years in favour of the precautionary approach and clean production;
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(4)
felt that greater emphasis should be given to clean production processes; and,
(5)
advocated that there needed to be stronger active roles given to local communities, indigenous groups, NGOS, etc. As written, Chapter 20 focuses almost exclusively on the roles of government.
With regards to the recycling of hazardous wastes, many NGOs felt that environmentally sound recycling of hazardous wastes is preferable to disposing of hazardous wastes and could provide significant economic benefits to many countries, including developing countries. However, other NGOs were sceptical of “converting waste to recyclable or reusable materials and energy”, especially in the context of using “recycling”as a pretext for trade in hazardous waste. Specifically, these NGOs advocated that recycling of hazardous wastes often creates other environmental hazards and that such recycling processes could be shifted to developing countries. 3.
Busiuess and Iudustry Business and industry supported the official Canadian position at UNCED, with particular emphasis on the clearly defined ability to accommodate transboundary movement of waste for recycling operations.
4.
Indifzenous Indigenous Peoples recommended that their territories and lands should be protected from the affects and dumping of hazardous wastes. There is a need for the development of protocols which requires the involvement of Indigenous Peoples at all levels of discussion and decision-making, since international activities always affect Indigenous Peoples. Under Agenda 21, Indigenous Peoples were to be informed, consulted, and allowed to participate at the national level for decision-making.
CO-S 1.
MADE BY CANADIANS Legallv-Bindine Documents None.
2.
Political Pronouncements None.
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3.
Chapter 20
Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NGO Treaties At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organization Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Oca conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. Of these treaties, one addressed the issues discussed in Chapter 20. Treaty on Waste Over a hundred participants assisted in the development of the NGO Treaty on Waste. The Treaty defines principles and action plans and commitments for all kinds of waste including solid waste, hazardous waste, military waste and nuclear waste. Some of the principles outhned which are of particular relevance to hazardous waste include: the need to work toward the goal of zero production of hazardous waste; the precautionary principle should be applied with regard to waste production before a new technology or industrial process is adopted; society should have the right to unrestricted access to information about the quantity of all wastes produced and the associated risks; all hazardous waste management or clean up costs, direct or indirect, must be assumed by the producers, while ensuring the health and security of workers; hazardous waste must remain in the country where it is produced, even if designated an economic good; and, transnationals should be prohibited from making the decisions as to where hazardous wastes are disposed of. The specific actions and commitments under the Treaty with regard to hazardous waste include: 0
0
0
pressuring governments to establish legal, financial and monitoring mechanisms to guarantee: the reduction in the production of hazardous waste; regular publication and rigorous control of transportation routes of dangerous chemical substances; and a ban on imports of hazardous waste-producing technology repudiated in the countries of origin; pressuring governments to place a tax on the use of chemicals and on their emissions by industry as a disincentive to the abuse of chemicals; the funds generated by the tax should be set aside for use by community groups to conduct environmental studies, monitor etc.; and, requesting an immediate revision of policies and legislation regarding use and commercialization of agrochemicals and a ban on the export and traffic of agrochemicals whose use has been prohibited in their countries of origin.
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Kiwi-04x The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Gca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference. They developed and adopted a 109~point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter. Under item 45 of the Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter, signatories agreed that “toxic wastes must not be deposited in our areas. Indigenous Peoples must realize that chemicals, pesticides and huzardous wastesdo not bemy%the People.”
DEF’ICIENCIES. GAPS AND CONSTRAINTS WITHIN CHAPTER 20 This chapter in Agenda 21 may be criticized on the grounds that recommended activities give too much responsibility to governments over local communities, NGOs, Indigenous Peoples, and institutions involved in the management of hazardous wastes. For example, with regard to the cause and resolution of hazardous waste problems, community organizations are considered rather passively, as opposed to the very active role expected of governments and industry. Similarly, almost all of the recommended activities are directed at dealing with hazardous wastes produced by large corporations (20.1). Environmental problems derived from hazardous wastes produced or managed by local small and medium industries are given minimal consideration, and yet collectively, they contribute considerably to the hazardous waste problem. The chapter may also be criticized on the grounds that the recommended activities are centred around the command and control approach to management of hazardous wastes as opposed to research, remediation and public mobilization activities. It should be said that the chapter does provide some positive support for recycling activities. Some NGOs have stated that the chapter discusses mainly solid or sludge wastes and generally overlooks significant contributors to environmental degradation in the form of persistent and bioaccumulative substances. Some NGGs have also criticized Chapter 20, be:lieving that it often deals with only one aspect of the problem. For example, much of Chapter 20 deals with hazardous wastes produced by large corporations. Problems derived from hazardous wastes produced or managed by small and medium industries were not given much attention or emphasis. More generally, but related to Chapter 20, NGOs felt that the separation of the waste issues into separate chapters was not beneficial, detracted from consideration of the entire waste issue, and lost the linkages between the various types of wastes. In particular the separation of hazardous waste, toxic chemicals and radioactive wastes was questioned in that they are related both in nature and remediation approaches. This concern is emphasized in that the four chapter on waste were not consistent in their general approach or specific actions recommended, despite their similarities. In addition, not only were the waste issues discussed in isolation of each other, but there was inadequate discussions of other Agenda 21 issues, (such as freshwater,
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atmosphere, technology transfer, and financial resources), which are strongly related to the issue of hazardous wastes.
COMPARISON BETWEEN CURRENT CANADIAN GovERNMEm COMMWMENTSMAJlE
POLICY AND
In Canada, hazardous wastes are controlled through the Export or Import of Hazardous Waste Regulations under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA). Although Canada, along with 33 other countries, has ratified the Base1 Convention (the Global Conventionon the Control of TramboundaryMovementsof Hcuardous Wastesand their Disposal) as cdkd for in Agenda 21, many of Canada’s large trading partners, such as the United States and the EEC, have not. The reason ratification has not taken place is that these countries do not yet have the necessary domestic legislation in place. Chapter 20’s third and fourth program areas fall within federal jurisdiction and are under the purview of the Export or Import of Hazardous Waste Regulations. With regard to the first and second program areas, the federal government, in cooperation with provincial governments through the CCME and under the Green Plan, is working with industry to reduce hazardous waste destined for disposal (landfilling and incineration) by 50% by the year 2000. In addition, non-legally binding federal guidelines are being developed by the federal government to promote strengthened institutional capacities in hazardous waste management as described under the second program area. This chapter does not commit Canada to anything new with respect to hazardous waste management. Canada has already committed itself to the goals of this chapter through the Green Plan, OECD and UNEP. For example, the emphasis placed on minimizing the generation of hazardous wastes is addressed in the Green Plan and the control of transboundary movements of hazardous wastes is covered under the Export or Import of Hazardous Waste Regulations. Notwithstanding that Canada is already meeting its Agenda 21 commitments with respect to hazardous wastes, the activities recommended in this chapter and the contents of domestic legislation, will have a strong impact on Canadian industry. The push toward the adoption of “clean technologies”, for instance, will have an effect on certain sectors of the Canadian economy, depending on how and when they are adopted and how “clean” is defined. Chapter 20 emphasizes the use of economic instruments to prevent pollution and the “polluter pays” principle for remediating damages caused by hazardous wastes. This emphasis is consistent with Agenda 21’s reliance on market forces to enable the transition to global sustainable development.
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The Hazardous Waste Minim&&on Committee (HWMC) This industry-led group with government representation, has been established to design and implement action plans directed at helping to meet Canadaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s target of reducing hazardous waste destined for disposal by 50% by the year 2000. The HWMC is a voluntary initiative made possible through the cooperation of stakeholders from industry, fedeml and provincial governments, environmental groups and labour. Major Industrial Accidents Council of Canada (MIACC) MIACC is an organization funded by both government and industry that is unidertaking activities to improve the management of hazardous wastes. Specifxally, its mandate is to facilitate consultative processes between industry and government stakeholders, with the objective of reducing the number of accidents involving hazardous wastes. Canadian Chemical Producerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Association (CCPA) Many initiatives by industry, including the Responsible Care Program of the Canadian Chemical Producers Association and the New Directions Group formed in September 1991, have established action plans to reduce and eliminate toxic substances emissions. The Ontario Waste Management Cornoration (OWMC) The OWMC is provincial Crown agency which offers an on-site technical assistance program to generators of hazardous and liquid industrial waste in Ontario. Since 1990, OWMC has completed 21 projects with clients in 10 industry sectors, and provided short-term assistance, such as technical information and waste reduction advice to 130 other companies. Results to date include the reduction and/or recycling of 4,600 tonnes per year of hazardous and liquid industrial waste, and the reduction of more than 94,000 tonnes of wastewater discharges. Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment (CCME) In conjunction with the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environrnent (CCME), the Department of the Environment (DOE) is preparing a comprehensive national inventory of hazardous waste, which will be used as a basis to monitor the progress of waste reduction programs. In 1993 the CCME re-established its Hazardous Waste Task Force to promote the uniform management of hazardous wastes across Canada. As part of its hazardous waste plan, the CCME is cataloguing hazardous waste facilities in Canada. Ouebec Minister of the Environment (MENVIQ) MENVIQ is developing programs to maximize the reuse and recycling of hazardous wastes, and will modify its hazardous waste regulations in 1994. Manitoba Hazardous Waste Management Corporation (MHWMC) The MHWMC is in the process of constructing a central treatment, storage and transfer facility in Manitoba. There are already several small treatment/storage facilities located in the province.
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Province of British Columbia In 1992, the government of B.C. created the Toxics Reduction Branch, whose mandate is to implement strategies focused on reduction of hazardous waste with a long term goal of zero pollution from all sources. Canadian Environmental Network (CEN) The Canadian Environmental Network has a national waste caucus which focuses on lobbying, educating and researching issues surrounding waste. One of its focuses consultation and education has been the transboundary movement of hazardous waste. The New Directions Group The New Directions Group, composed of senior representatives from industry and environmental groups, has worked on the issues of environmental cleanup. Province of New Brunswick New Brunswick is currently developing regulations to manage hazardous waste in that province and create a tracking system which will include a manifest database. Inuit Tapir&t of Canada Indigenous groups, such as the Inuit Tapir&t of Canada, are developing integrated waste management strategies which are directed at such areas as household hazardous waste and abandoned military hazardous waste in Canada’s northern communities.
OTHER RELEVANT INTERNATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY-RELATED FORA 0
International Chamber of Commerce (ICC)
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Grganization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Waste Management Policy Group and Pollution Prevention and Control Group
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The United Nations Environment Program (UNEP)
SUGGESTED READINGS AND IN-FORMATION SOURCES
Government of Canada, Canada’s Green Plan, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1990). .
Canada’s Green Plan and the Earth Summit, (Ottawa: Environment Canada,
Canada’s National Report: United Nations Conference on Environment Development Brazil. June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991).
1992). and
Inform Inc. Cuttina Chemical Wastes: What 29 Oraanic Chemical Plants are Doing to Reduce Hazardous Wastes,@avid Saroking, editor), (New York: 1985). Pmjet de soci.&~$:Phnning
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International Development Research Centre (IDRC). Agenda 21: Abstracts. Reviews. and Commentaries, (Theodora Carroll-Foster, editor), (Ottawa: JDRC, 1993). Keating, Michael. Agenda for Change: A Plain Language Version of Agenda 21 and the Other Rio Agreements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993). National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy (NRTEE). The National Waste Reduction Handbook, (Ottawa: NRTEE, 1991). Ontario Waste Management Corporation (Toronto: OWMC, 1989).
(OWMC), Waste Audit and Reduction Manual,
Pollution Probe Foundation, Profit from Pollution Prevention, (Toronto: Pollution Probe, 1991). World Commission on Environment and Development. Our Common Futurg, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987). Yakowitz, H. Policv Issues Associated with Transfrontier Movement of Hazardous Wastes, (Paris: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, 1984).
Information Sources: Canadian Chemical Producerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Association (CCPA), 350 Sparks Street, Suite 805, Ottawa, Ontario, KlP 6N4, tel (613) 230-6215, fax (613) 237-7643. Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment (CCME), 326 Broadway, Suite 400, Winnipeg, Manitoba, R3C OS5, tel(204) 948-2090, fax (204) 948-2125. Canadian Environmental Network (CEN), PO Box 1289, Station B, Ottawa, Ontario, KlP 5R3, tel(613) 563-2078, fax (613) 563-7236. Environment Canada, Office of Waste Management, Hazardous Waste Management Division, Place Vincent Massey, 351 St. Joseph Boulevard, 12th floor, Hull, Quebec, KlA OH3, tel(613) 953-1390, fax (613) 997-3068. International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), 38, Cours Albert ler, 75008, Paris, France, tcl (33-l) 49-53-28-28, fax (33-l) 42-25-86-63. Inuit Tapir&at of Canada, 170 Laurier Avenue West, Suite 510, Ottawa, Ontario, KlP 5V5, tel(613) 238-8181, fax (613) 234-1991. Major Industrial Accidents Councfi of Canada (MIACC), 265 Carling .Avenue, Suite 600, Ottawa, Ontario, KlS 2E1, tel(604) 232-4435, fax (613) 232-4915.
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Manitoba Hazardous Waste Management Corporation (MHWMC), 530 Century, Winnipeg, Manitoba, R3H OY4, tel(204) 945-1844, fax (204) 945-1844. Ontario Waste Management Corporation (OWMC), 2 Bloor Street, Toronto, Ontario, tel (416) 923-2918, fax (416) 923-7521. Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), 2, Rue Andr&Pascal, 75775, Cedex 16, France, Paris, tel(33) 1-45-24-93-14. Pollution Probe, 12 Madison Avenue, Toronto, Ontario, M5R 2S1, tel (416) 926-1907, fax (416) 926-1601. United Nations Commiss ion for Sustainable Development, Department of Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development, Room S-3060, United Nations, New York, N.Y., 10017, USA, tel(212) 963-5959. United Nations Environment Program, PO Box 30552, Nairobi, Kenya, tel(254-2) 33-39-30, fax (254-2) 52-08-83.
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CHAPTER 21 Sustainable Management of Solid Wastes and Sewage-Related Issues - Gordon Clvford THE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM Unsustainable patterns of production and consumption are increasing the quantities of wastes to be treated and disposed of. Reduction and elimination of wastes is, therefore, among the environmental issues of major concern in maintaining the quality of the Earthâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s environment and in achieving global sustainable development. In the context of this chapter, solid wastes include all domestic refuse and non-hazardous wastes such as commercial and institutional wastes, street sweepings and construction debris. If these wastes are determined to manifest hazardous or toxic characteristics, they should be treated as hazardous or toxic wastes (see chapters 19 and 20). Reduction and elimination must go beyond the mere safe disposal or recovery of wastes that are generated and must seek to address the root cause of the problem by attempting to change unsustainable patterns of production and consumption. This implies the application of the integrated management concept, which presents a unique opportunity to reconcile development with environmental problems. Canada is one of the highest per capita generators of waste in the world and the environmental, health and economic costs in dealing with this problem are mounting rapidly. It is clear that the designs of many consumer products and their packaging are incompatible with notions of sustainability. There is a need to move toward the use of more durable, repairable and re-usable designs. PROGRAM AREAS AND OBJECTIVES
Chapter 21 identifies four major program areas, each with a number of objectives. briefly outlined below.
These are
Gordon iIi@ord is a consultant with Consulting and A&it Canada. The views expressed in this chapter are those of the author who received input from a number of stakehoIders, and do not represent the views of Consulting and Audit Canada or the hjet de so&M.
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Minbiziiwastes l To stabilize or reduce the production of wastes destined for final disposal, over an agreed time-frame, by formulating goals based on waste weight, volume and composition and to induce separation to facilitate waste recycling and reuse; and, 0 to strengthen procedures for assessing waste quantity and composition changes for the purpose of formulating operational waste minimizationpolicies utilizing economic or other instruments to induce beneficial modifications of production and consumption patterns.
2.
Maximizi environmentally sound waste reuse and recycling l To strengthen and increase national waste reuse and recycling systems; l to create a model internal waste reuse and recycling program for waste streams, including paper, within the United Nations system; ad, l to make available information, techniques and appropriate policy instruments to encourage and make operational waste reuse and recycling schemes.
3.
Promoting environmentally sound waste disposal and treatment 0 To establish waste treatment and disposal quality criteria based on the assimilative capacity of the receiving environment; 0 to undertake waste-related pollution impact monitoring and conduct regular surveillance; and, 0 to ensure that, progressively, all sewage and waste are disposed of in conformity with national and international. environmental and health quality guidelines.
4.
Extending waste service coverage l To provide health-protecting, environmentally safe waste collection and disposal services to all people; l to have the necessary technical, financial and human resource capacity to provide waste collection services commensurate with needs by the year 2000; l to provide all urban populations with adequate waste services by the year 2025; and, l to ensure that full urban waste service coverage is maintained and sanitation coverage achieved in all rural areas by the year 2025.
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CANADIAN POSITIONS AT RIO
1.
Official Canadian Positions Canada currently spends approximately $2 billion annually for the management of its solid wastes (excluding sewage). Canada supports the principle that a percentage of expenditures associated with the management of wastes be devoted to waste minimization activities. Already, the sum of current federal and provincial expenditures on waste minimization programs far exceeds recommended amounts. At Rio, Canada’s three main objectives in negotiations around this Chapter 21, are outlined below. To assist developing countries with their immediate and pressing need to improve fundamental solid waste and sewage services.
(2)
To promote the reduction of current excessive generation of solid waste and sewage in industrialized countries. To this end, Canada’s position was that waste reduction targets as opposed to waste stabilisation ones should be encouraged to promote the lifestyle changes necessary to reverse current waste production trends.
(3)
To avoid a commitment to restrict transboundary movements of solid wastes so the management of wastes on regional bases can be achieved. As a result, the transportation of wastes over long distances can be avoided where waste treatment facilities are regionally available.
Canada achieved its objectives, notably inclusion of an amendment which recognises that the transboundary movement of solid wastes should be allowed for environmentally sound reasons. Canada was also supported in its view that proposals to reduce agricultural and toxic wastes are outside the scope of this chapter and should, therefore, be addressed elsewhere.
2.
Non-Governmental Owanizations In general, the position of Canadian NGOs on this chapter, was that solid wastes should be approached from a position favouring restraint and prevention. Given that the chapter’s definition of solid wastes included all “non-hazardous wastes”, many NGOs lobbied for the redefinition of hazardous waste classifications in order to increase environmental protection.
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In addition, NGOs called for consistent multisectoral participation in policy-making directed at solid wastes and sewage related issues. Although the chapter acknowledges that “all sectors of society should participate in all the program areas”, it has nonetheless been criticized for giving insufficient emphasis to community involvement and participation in all aspects of decision making and management pertaining to solid wastes; the main efforts in such decision making are relegated to governments and industry. 3.
Business and Industry Business and industry in Canada is heavily involved in solid waste reduction not only to meet goals such as the National Packaging Protocol or Ontario’s waste reduction targets, but also as a cost-reducing measure to enhance profitability and long term competitiveness. Business supported Canada’s official position on this chapter but strongly emphasized the need for voluntary programs and targets as opposed to legislated targets and solutions.
4.
InWenous Indigenous Peoples identified the need for the development of protocols which requires the involvement of Indigenous Peoples at all levels of discussion and decision making since international activities always affect Indigenous Peoples. .Under Agenda 21, Indigenous Peoples were to be informed, consulted and allowed to participate at the national level for decision-making.
CO-S
1.
MADE BY CXNADIANS
Lepallv-Bindiw Documents None.
2.
Political Pronouncements During his disclosure of the National Statement of Canada on June 11 1992 at UNCED, the Minister of the Environment, Jean Charest, announced that Canada would reduce its waste by 50% by the year 2000. In a speech on June 12 1992 at UNCED, Prime Minister Brian Mulroney drew attention to a $250 million program for water and sewage services on Indian reserves, as one of a variety of projects to be undertaken as part of Canada’s Green Plan.
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3.
Chapter 21
Aiternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NGO Treaties At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organization Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Oca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. Of these treaties, one addressed the issues discussed in Chapter 21. Treaty on Wmte Over a hundred participants assisted in the development of the NGO Treaty on Waste. The treaty defines principles and action plans and commitments for all kinds of waste including solid waste, hazardous waste, military waste and nuclear waste. Some of the principles outlined include: l the precautionary principle should be applied with regard to waste production before a new technology or industrial process is adopted; 0 society should have the right to unrestricted access to information about the quantity of all wastes produced and the associated risks; 0 society has a right to access to full information about all steps in waste production and management, including different modes of waste storage and transportation; 0 the primary impact of waste is local, and the solution of this problem should therefore be initiated at the local level; and, l the adoption of national and international regulations aimed at clean production technologies, waste minimization at source and eliminating non-biodegradable, non-reusable or non-recyclable packaging, is an essential step toward new social attitudes.
Some of the specific actions and commitments under the treaty include: 0 to enforce source separation for collection of urban waste; l to promote education campaigns to change lifestyles so that urban waste can be reduced; l to organize campaigns to abolish packaging that is non-recyclable, nonbiodegradable and non-reusable; l to identify experts and reference centres through an international network to provide independent and technically sound advice to municipalities with respect to waste; and, l to enforce environmental impact studies prior to the implementation of any activity that generates waste and might cause negative impacts on the environment or the community.
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The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference. They developed and adopted a 109~point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter.
DEF’ICIENCIES. GAPS AND CONSTRAINTS WITHIN CHAPTER 211 l
There is no mention of hygiene education and its relevance to the effective use, operation and maintenance of waste collection and treatment facilities.
l
Little emphasis is placed on the promotion of inter-se&oral efforts to link waste management, health, nutrition, population growth and the socioeconomic development of poor populations.
l
The role of reuse and recycling of wastes (e.g. use of treated sewage in agriculture) receives little emphasis, yet seems to be an important area within the realm of waste management.
l
The potential for cost recovery approaches to the provision of waste management services is given little emphasis, which is particularly surprising given the importance attached by Agenda 21 to the role of the private sector in promoting sustainable development.
l
Despite the support throughout much of Agenda 21 for community-based problem solving, this chapter does not place any emphasis on the role of the community in management of waste reduction and treatment services.
0
That is clear definition as to exactly what “solid wastes” include.
l
The chapter fails to discuss the importance of pollution prevention as a means to achieve chapter objectives.
l
The chapter is too heavily oriented to the sewage and waste management needs of developed, rather than developing, countries. Many developing countries do not even have the most rudimentary of sewage and waste disposal infrastructure, and as such, much of what is recommended in this chapter is premature and largely academic from the perspective of these countries.
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l
With regards to the definition of solid wastes, many NGOs were critical of the chapter. Defining solid wastes as “all domestic refuse and non-hazardous wastes such as commercial and institutional wastes, street sweepings and construction debris”, the chapter assumes a clear definition of what is hazardous wastes. Consequently, it is not clear whether certain substances, such as paint, would be covered under this chapter or Chapter 19 on Toxic Chemicals or Chapter 20 on Hazardous Wastes. Moreover, no explanation of what is meant by “sewage-related issues” is given in the chapter.
l
Related to Chapter 21, some NGOs felt that the separation of the waste issues into separate chapters was not beneficial, detracted from consideration of the entire waste issue, and lost the linkages between the various types of wastes. In particular the separation of hazardous waste, toxic chemicals and radioactive wastes was questioned in that they are related both in nature and remediation approaches. This concern is emphasized in that the four chapter on waste were not consistent ion their general approach or specific actions recommended, despite their similarities. In addition, not only were the waste issues discussed in isolation of each other, but there was inadequate discussions of other Agenda 21 issues, (such as freshwater, atmosphere, technology transfer, and financial resources), which are strongly related to the issue of solid wastes.
COMPARISON BETWEEN CURRENT CANADIAN GOVERNMENT POLICY AND CO-SMADE As a result of UNCED, the issues of sewage treatment and waste management are now on the international agenda (including, for example, at the OECD). Canada is not, however, formally involved in solid waste and sewage management outside of North America, except with regard to ocean discharges and waste-related research. Canada may wish to examine further to what extent it should be participating in international forums around this issue. This chapter calls for nationally coordinated sewage treatment plans. Such national coordination does not currently exist in Canada. An effort should be made to discuss whether or not such an initiative would be appropriate in this country. National networks have been established as a result of recent federal and CCME activities in the area of waste management. Such networks, however, are not active in the area of waste water, and some effort should be made to develop these.
CANADIANACTIVITIES
EVOLVING THROUGH THE SUSTAINABILITY PROCESS
Office of Waste Management (OWM) of Environment Canada The OWM has the responsibility for managing key elements of the federal waste management program and for coordinating the federal input to the development of the CCME comprehensive National Waste Management Strategy. The OWM has set the goal of Canada becoming “the lowest generator, the greatest re-user and recycler and the most safe, prudent and efficient manager of waste in the world by the year 2020.” Prqjet de s0ci.M:
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Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment (CCME) In 1989, the CCME committed to reducing waste generation by 50% by the year 2000. Most provincial governments have launched their own programs to achieve this goal. In 1990, the Council of Ministers packaging policies for Canada which in an effort to help Canada meet its per capita consumption of packaging per Y-l-*
endorsed the National Packaging Protocol, a set of six were developed by the National Task Force on Packaging â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;waste reduction goal. At that time, it was estimated that :i Canada amounted to one tome of packaging per family
In 1992, the National Task Force on Packaging, a multistakeholder group, contributed to meeting the first reduction milestone of 20% reduction in packaging waste from 1988 levels. It has also produced a Canadian Code of Preferred Packaging: Practices and a Packaging Audits and Pa&a&e Waste Reduction Plan. Office of Environmental Stewardshin of Environment Canada The Office of Environmental Stewardship coordinates in-house or internal (to the federal government) waste minimization initiatives under the Code of Environmental Stewardship. National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy (NRTEE) One objective of the NRTEE is to encourage Canadians to reduce the production of waste, then to reuse, recycle and recover waste by-products of our domestic and industrial activities. The NRTEE is responsible for publishing The National Waste Reduction Handbook designed to serve as a starting point for Canadian municipalities in investigating and implementing options regarding source reduction and recycling. In August 1992, the NRTEE published A Renort on Waste Management for the Construction Industrv which provides members of the construction industry with information about waste manageme& as it relates to regulations and the variety of emerging methods of dealing with solid waste. Federation of Canadian Municipalit& (FCM) The FCM launched a Municipal Action Plan on Packaging and through a working group, Governments Incorporating Procurement Policies to Eliminate Refuse (GIPPER), have developed procurement policies to support mark:ets for recycled materials and encourage waste reduction. Comnosting; Council of Canada (CCC) The CCC was formed in 1991 and has been actively working to sponsor research, disseminate information to encourage the application of composting and ensure realistic composting quality standards. Citv of London. Ontario The City of London has initiated a five year Waste Management Planning Study with other local municipalities which will examine environmentally sound management of solid wastes and sewage-related issues.
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Base1 Convention The 1992 ratification of the Base1 Convention allowed for the transboundary movement of recyclables. As part of the ratification of the Base1 Convention, Environment Canada amended the Canada-U.S. Agreement on the transboundary movement of wastes to include non-hazardous solid wastes. A number of NGOs have articulated positions on waste management; in general they have strongly advocated movement by governments, industry and the public toward the recycling, reuse and reduction of materials which contribute to solid wastes. Many Canadian NGOs at the local, regional and national level continue to be actively focused on waste issues, including each of the four program areas outlined in Chapter 2 1. For example, both the Canadian Environmental Network and the Ontario Environment Network have active waste caucuses which are involved in promoting awareness and lobbying to eliminate and reduce wastes. NGOs have been actively involved with raising awareness about and developing composting depots and blue-box recycling systems, both residential and municipal. Many NGOs advocate incineration bans, and have been supportive of Ontario’s incineration and transport ban. In essence, NGOs are involved in providing construction alternatives to both products and processes; participate in multi-stakeholder groups, round tables, waste management master planning and government consultations; elevate the awareness and debate of the public; focus discussions on the human dimension of environmental impacts and decisions; and provide a diversity of interests and strategies. Some large utilities have implemented zero waste programs in office buildings, which have proven to be both highly effective at waste reduction, as well as a means of saving significant amounts money during day-today operations.
OTHER RELEVANT INTERNATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY-RELATED FORA l
Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Waste Management Policy Group and Pollution Prevention Control Group
l
United Nations Commission for Sustainable Development (CSD)
SUGGESTED READINGS AND INFORMATION SOURCES Canadian Institute for Environmental Law and Policy (CJELAP). “A Regulatory Agenda for Solid Waste Reduction”, Report prepared for SWEAP by S. Shrybman, (Toronto: Solid Waste Environmental Assessment Plan, Metropolitan Toronto Works Department, July 1989). Government of Canada. Canada’s Green Plan, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1990). .
Canada’s Green Plan and the Earth Summit, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1992).
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. Canada’s National Reuort: United Nations Conference on Environment Develonment Brazil. June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991).
and
International Development Research Centre (JDRC). Agenda 21: Abstracts. Reviews. and Commentaries, (Theodora Carroll-Foster, editor), (Ottawa: JDRC, 1993). International Reference Centre for Waste Disposal (IRCWD), Manuals and Technical Renorts on Waste Disuosal, (Dubendorf, Switzerland: JRCWD). Keating, Michael. Agenda for Change: A Plain LanauaPe Version of Agenda 21 and the Other Rio Agreements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993). National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy (NRTEE). Ihe National Waste Reduction Handbook, (Ottawa: NRTEE, 1991). President’s Commission on Environmental Quality (PCEQ). “Partnerships to Progress the Report of the President’s Commission on Environmental Quality”, (Washington, D.C.: PCEQ, January, 1993). “Total Quality Management - A Framework for Pollution Prevention”, (Washington D.C.: PCEQ, January, 1993). “The Road to a Conserver Society”, Speech to the Ontario Management Conference, 17 June 1991, (Toronto: Ministry of the .Environment, 1991). “The Waste Management Crisis: A Shared Responsibility”, Brief presented to Provincial/Municipal Policy Forum, (Toronto: Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) , 1989). United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). A Decision-Maker’s Guide to Solid Waste Management, (Washington, D.C: EPA, 1990). United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The Solid Waste Dilemma: An Agenda for Action, (Washington, D.C: EPA, 1989). World Commission on Environment and Development. Our Common Future, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987).
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Information Sources: Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment, 326 Broadway, Suite 400, Winnipeg, Manitoba, R3C OS5, tel(204) 948-2090, fax (204) 948-2125. Environment Canada, Environmental Choice Program, Birks Building, 107 Sparks Street, Ottawa, Ontario, KlA OH3, tel(613) 952-9440, fax (613) 952-9465. Environment Canada, Office of Waste Management, Place Vincent Massey, 351 St. Joseph boulevard, Hull, Quebec KlA OH3, tel(819) 953-1712, fax (819)953-0X)9. National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy (NRTEE), 1 Nicholas Street, Suite 1500, Ottawa, Ontario, KlN 7B7, tel(613) 992-7185, fax (613) 992-7385. Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), 2, Rue Andre-Pascal, 75775, Cedex 16, France, Paris, tel(33) l-45-24-93-14. United Nations Commission for Sustainable Development, Department of Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development, Room S-3060, United Nations, New York, N.Y., 10017, USA, tel (212) 963-5959.
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CHAPTER 22 Safe and Environmentally Sound Management of Radioactive Wastes
- Gordon Clifford -
THE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM At the end of 1991, approximately 17% of the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s electricity was derived from 420 nuclear reactors with an installed capacity of 327,000 MW(e). For the year 1990 the total volume of spent fuel, high, medium and low level wastes produced in the OECD countries was about 170,000 cubic metres for all industrial operations, from fuel fabrication to reactor operation and reprocessing. The safe and environmentally sound management of radioactive wastes, including their minimization, transportation and disposal, is important given their potential risks. In most countries with a substantial nuclear power programme, technical and administrative measures have been taken to implement a waste management system. However, in many countries which are still in the process of preparing for a national nuclear programme or nuclear applications (i.e., the use of radionuclides in medicine, research and industry), such systems are still needed. The radiological and safety risk from radioactive wastes varies from very low for short-lived, low-level wastes to very high for high-level wastes. The amount of such waste is increasing as more nuclear power plants start up and others are decommissioned. Although the use of radioactive substances in medicine, research, and industry produces much smaller amounts of waste -- typically some tens of cubic metres or less per country per year -- the use of such radioactive substances is growing, and so is the waste. PROGRAM AREAS AND OBJECTIVEfSâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;L The objective for this program area is to ensure that radioactive wastes are safely managed, transported, stored and disposed of. This objective was set with a view to protecting human health and the environment, within a larger context of encouraging an interactive approach to radioactive waste management and safety.
Gordon Cl(ffonl is a consultant wifh Consulting and Audit Canada. The views erpressed in this chapter are those of the author who received input from a number of stakeholders, and do not represent the views of Consult&g and Audit Canada or the Projet de so&W.
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CANADIAN POSITIONS AT RIO 1.
Official Canadian Position The official Canadian position was to not pre-empt the work being undertaken in other international fora, including the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the London Convention. Moreover, although the official Canadian position supported some reduction of the generation of radioactive waste, Canada was against calling for the “prevention” of radioactive waste; in effect Canada asserted that to seek to prevent radioactive wastes is to seek to abolish the use of nuclear energy. Assuming that countries make use of nuclear energy in their national energy programs, Canada’s objective was to ensure that the resulting risks to the environment and to members of the public do not pose any undue risks and are as low as reasonably achievable. Similarly, Canada was against specific reference to “transmutation”, calling instead for wording which would allow greater flexibility in determining direction of research efforts.
2.
Non-Governmental Organizatious Canadian NGOs saw the govemment position on radioactive wastes limited to supporting reduction, but not prevention. The issue of the need for nuclear technology (energy) was broached, but was not considered appropriate by the government representatives. NGOs differed greatly from government and business on this issue, favouring restraint and prevention. Some Canadian NGOs felt very strongly that until there were socially and environmentally acceptable methods for disposal of radioactive wastes, the activities generating these wastes should be discontinued. Moreover, some Canadian NGOs felt that Canada should propose the formation of a UN agency which would establish a coordinated international regime to deal with the long-term management of toxic wastes of all kinds, both chemical and nuclear, and which would have no promotional function. One of the main NGO critiques of the UNCED process was that the issue of demilitarization/disarmament was not covered as a separate issue, and indeed that the issue of radioactive wastes resulting from military activities and weapons was not even addressed in Agenda 21’s Chapter 22.
3.
Business and Industry Business supported the official Canadian position on Chapter 22.
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4.
Indbenous Indigenous Peoples identified the need for the development of protocols which requires the involvement of Indigenous Peoples at all levels of discussion and decision making since international activities always affect Indigenous Peoples. Under Agenda 21, Indigenous Peoples were to be informed, consulted and allowed to participate at the national level for decision-making.
CO-S
1.
MADE BY CANADIANS
LePally-bindiw Documents None.
2.
Political Pronouncements None.
3.
Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NGO Treaties At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organ&ion Forum (Global Forum), and the B&-i-Oca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO l3rt.h Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. Of these treaties, three relate to issues discussed in Chapter 22. NW
Treatyon Waste
This treaty is based, in part, on the principle that, â&#x20AC;&#x153;(t)he problems induced by industrial, hazardous and existing nuclear wastes must be prevented and solutions must be funded by the producers themselves. These solutions must be licensed and monitored by the authorities as well as by elected citizen bodies. All of these management or clean up costs, direct or indirect, must be assumed by the producers themselves. The security and health of the workers must be assured.â&#x20AC;&#x153;
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NW Treaty on the Nuclear Problem This treaty is based on NGOs concern about the nuclear dilemma and presents a number of alternatives to the nuclear threat with which all living species of our planet now live. In discussing these options, the treaty refers a number of times ta the reduction and treatment of nuclear waste. NW Treaty on Militarism,the Environmentand Development This treaty is relevant to Agenda 21’s Chapter 22 in that radioactive wastes can result from the production and use of military weapons. The treaty demands that the impact of militarism be put on the post-Rio agenda and calls for: the elimination of military activity; education in conflict resolution; and the promotion of peaceful resolution of With regards to radioactive wastes, the treaty calls for the immediate disputes. prohibition of the use of uranium, the dismantling of weapons of mass destruction, and the elimination of the development, production, transport and storage of nuclear, chemical and biological weapons as well as weapons systems and nuclear power.
The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference. They developed and adopted a 109point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter. DEFICIENCIES.
GAPS AND CONSTRAINTS WITHIN CHAPTER 22
0 The extent of the problem is not thoroughly enough described, both in terms of environmental effects and in terms of what countries are in fact affected by this issue. The views of developing countries with regard to radioactive waste management are not as explicit as they might have been. While developing countries often do not have nuclear programmes, they can still be adversely affected by the mismanagement of radioactive wastes on the part of countries which do have such programmes. This problem could have been more explicitly recognized. l
0 The issue of low-level radioactive mine wastes and tailings (e.g., from the exploitation of uranium, bauxite, copper, phosphate, etc.), notably in developing coun&ies, is completely omitted from the “Basis for Action” section of the chapter.
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l Nothing is said about the handling of radioactive waste from nuclear weapons and the consequent threat of environmental contamination. It should be noted that the UNCED Secretariat deemed military wastes to be beyond the scope of this chapter on the grounds that it would be covered more generally under the principles of the Rio Declaration. l The importance of public awareness and participation in decisions relating to radioactive waste management is given inadequate attention. Again it was intended that this matter would be addressed more generally under the principles of the Rio Declaration.
0 Some NGOs have objected to the use of the term “disposal” in the context of radioactive waste. They felt that the chapter should have admitted that: (1) human society has never successfully disposed of any indestructible toxic materials, (2) no reliable scientific criteria exist to determine whether or not a proposed disposal scheme will in fact work for the indefinite periods of time involved, and (3) perpetual monitoring and retrievability should be the hallmarks of any responsible toxic waste management scheme until such time as disposal has been scientifically defined and experimentally verified. 0 Related to Chapter 20, some NGOs also felt that the separation of the waste issues into separate chapters was not beneficial, detracted from consideration of the entire waste issue, and lost the linkages between the various types of wastes. In particular the separation of hazardous waste, toxic chemicals and radioactive wastes was questioned in that they are related both in nature and remcdiation approaches. This concern is emphasized in that the four chapter on waste were not consistent in their general approach or specific actions recommended, despite their similarities. In addition, not only were the waste issues discussed in isolation of each other, but there was inadequate discussions of other Agenda 21 issues, (such as freshwater, atmosphere, technology transfer, and financial resources), which are strongly related to the issue of radioactive wastes. l As a final comment, the omission of uranium mill tailings and post-reprocessing nuclear wastes as matters of urgent international concern, was considered by some NGOs to be the most obvious deficiency in Chapter 22.
COMPARISON BETWEEN CURRENT CANADIAN GoCO-MADE
POLICY AND
The commitments made at UNCED by participating countries were generally to manage radioactive wastes in a responsible manner. A commitment was also made to support the efforts of intcmational organizations working in this area and especially those which provide assistance to developing countries. In this context, Canada’s performance is quite strong. Canada has a strict regulatory regime with regard to the management of radioactive wastes and is actively supporting the efforts of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
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The IAEA has two budgets to which Canada contributes. The main budget receives mandatory set contributions from member countries and the Technical Assistance and Cooperation (TAC) Fund receives voluntary contributions for which a target is set by the IAEA. Extra-budgetary resources may also be received. Canada faithfully pays its annual dues to the main budget and has contributed fully to the TAC Fund. Canada can be seen as fully supporting the IAEA and consequently already follows the spirit of the recommendations made in this chapter.
CANADIANACTIVRIES
EVOLVING THROUGH THE SUSTAINABILITY PROCESS
In 1982, the government established the Low Level Radioactive Waste Management Office as the federal agent responsible for the clean-up of sites contaminated by historic wastes (where those who created the contaminated sites can no longer be held responsible). In the Spring of 1990, the government renewed its commitment to continue the operation of the Office. The federal government policy on the management of high and low level radioactive wastes is based on the principle that the producer/owner is responsible. As such, insofar as possible, disposal technologies must not rely on the maintenance of institutional controls, permanent disposal must be instituted at an appropriate time, and risks transmitted to the future must not be greater than the risks of the present. Within these regulatory guidelines, waste producers can propose their own long-term waste management strategy. Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd. (AECL), for example, is currently proceeding with an application to the Atomic Energy Control Board (AECB) for approval to construct and operate a demonstration unit of a modular near surface disposal system at their Chalk River Laboratories site. It would be used for low level wastes produced by AECL, and for wastes received on a commercial basis from small volume producers who have no interest in developing their own facilities for long term management. In addition to the regulatory requirements of the AECB, it has become the practice in Canada to carry out. independent and public processes of environmental review and consultation for major new activities or major new initiatives related to existing activities. In particular, most new nuclear facilities in Canada are now referred to the federal Minister of Environment for a formal public review by an independent panel, with full opportunity for public hearings, and with funding for intervenors. A detailed and comprehensive research program was initiated by AECL in 1978 to develop a disposal concept for high-level radioactive waste using a geologic repository in crystalline rock. One of the major research facilities is an Underground Research Laboratory located in Manitoba, close to the Whiteshell Laboratories of AECL Research. Construction of this facility is now complete and experiments are continuing.
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In October, 1989, the Canadian Minister of the Environment appointed an independent panel to conduct an environmental assessment and review of the concept of deep geologic disposal of nuclear fuel wastes in Canada and other related waste management issues. AECL expects to table an extensive Environmental Impact Statement on the disposal concept with the Panel in early 1994. The entire review is expected to take about five years. (Funds to pay for disposal of used fuel are currently being accrued by the nuclear utilities).
OTHER RELEVANT INTERNATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY-RELATED F’ORA 0
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)
l
The London Dumping Convention (this Convention dumping at sea of radioactive wastes)
a
Nuclear Energy Agency of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)
initiated a moratorium on the
SUGGESTED READINGS AND INF’ORMATION SOURCES Atomic Energy Control Board. Controlling Low-Level Radioactive Wastes, (Ottawa: Atomic Energy Control Board, 1989). .
Annual Re-port.
Government of Canada. Canada’s Green Plani (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1990). .
Canada’s Green Plan and the Earth Summit, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1992).
Canada’s National Reuort: United Nations Conference on Environment Develonment Brazil. June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991).
and
. ‘Radioactive Waste Management Policy in Canada”, Paper presented at Waste Management ‘92, March 1992, Tucson, Arizona, (Ottawa: Department of Energy, Mines and Resources, 1992).
International Atomic Energy Agency. Annual Yearbook. Jr&national Development Research Centre (JDRC). Aeenda 21: Abstracts. Reviews. and Commentaries, (Theodora Carroll-Foster, editor), (Ottawa: JDRC, 1993). Keating, Michael. Agenda for Change: A Plain LanguaPe Version of Agenda 21 and the Other Rio Agreements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993).
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Nuclear Energy Agency of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). Nuclear Energv and its Fuel Cycle. Prospectus, (Paris: OFXD). World Commission on Environment and Development. Our Common Future, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987).
Information Sources: Atomic Energy Control Board, PO Box 1046, Ottawa,, Ontario, KlP 5S9, tel(613) 995-5894, fax (613) 995-5086. Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd., 344 Slater Street, Ottawa, Ontario, KlA OS4, tel (613) 2373270
Energy Probe, 225 Brunswick Avenue, Toronto, Ontario, M5S 2M6, tel(416) 964-9223, fax (4 16) 964-8239. Federal Department of Natural Resources, Electricity Branch, 580 Booth Street, Ottawa, Ontario, KlA OE4, tel(613) 992-4261, fax (613) 995-0087. Ontario Hydro, 700 University Avenue, Toronto, Ontario, M5G 1X6, tel (416) 592-5111. Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, 2, Rue And&Pascal, Cedex 16, France, Paris, tel(33) 1-45-24-93-14.
75775,
United Nations Commiss ion for Sustainable Development, Department of Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development, Room S-3060, United Nations, New York, N.Y., 10017, USA, tel (212) 963-5959.
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CHAPTER 23 PREAMBLE TO SECTION III. STRENGTHENIN G TH.E ROLE OF MAJOR GROUPS
Chapter 23 is a preamble to Section III of Agenda 21, (Chapters 24 through 33), which addresses strengthening the role of nine major groups in all aspects of Agenda 21: women; youth; Indigenous Peoples; non-governmental organ&&ions; local authorities; trade unions; business and industry; the scientific and technological community; and farmers. Chapter 23 underlines the need for commitment and genuine involvement of all social groups in the objectives, policies and mechanisms agreed to by Governments in all program areas of Agenda 21. This is crucial for the effective implementation of objectives identified in Agenda 21 and for moving towards real social partnership in support of common effects for sustainable development.
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CHAPTER 24 Global Action for Women Towards Sustainable and Equitable Development
- l%eodora Carroll-Foster-
THE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM Various international conventions and plans of action to improve women’s situations exist. l’kese include, among others, the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (1979), the International Labour Organ&&ion and UNESCO Conventions to end gender-based discrimination and to ensure women’s access to land and water resources, education and employment, the 1990 World Declaration on the Survival, Protection and Development of Children, and the Nairobi Forward-Looking Strategies for the Advancement of Women, which recognized the important linkages between women’s roles in development and the protection of the environment, and adopted measures to enhance women’s participation in national ecu-system management and control of environmental degradation. But the improvement in the status of women remains slow. Women, who are a majority of the world’s population, play integral roles in environment and development, yet are still not properly represented or involved in planning, decision-making and implementation. with better integration in all sectors and at all levels of decision making, women could play even greater roles in sustainable development, including economic improvements, the determination of family size and reduced population growth. Women are environmental managers and guardians of resource stocks, educators, facilitators and negotiators, and they could contribute more effectively to their families’ and communities’ improvements if they were more systematically integrated.
llzeoabm Gzrmll-Foster is the Coo&kator/Mvisor ofthe Agenda 21 Unit at the Intemational Development Researclr Centre (ZDRC). The views expressed in this chapter are those of the author who received input from a number of stakeholders, and do not necessa$y represent the views of the IDRC, the Government of Canada, or the &jet de socib?.
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Women’s capabilities and capacities speak for themselves. 0 0 0
0
Women are responsible for up to 70% of all the production, processing and marketing of food in Sub-Mar-an Africa. In Kenya, as the main participants in the National Soil Conservation Program, women have terraced over 40% of the nation’s more than 360,000 farms. In numerous countries, like Nepal and Burkina Faso, women spend upwards of 4 hours a day fetching fuelwood and water, spend hours grinding gram, cooking and caring for their families, and work in poorly paid employment. The lack of adequate, affordable and accessible family planning services, combined with inadequate health care, cause at least 500,000 women to die each year of pregnancy and birthing complications, while at least another known 500,000 die from back-alley abortions. In Canada, women own and operate an increasing majority of small and medium sized enterprises and are now responsible for the majority of innovative start-up businesses.
PROGRAM AREAS AND OBJECTIVES The following eight objectives implementing Chapter 24.
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were proposed to national
governments
as essential to
(1)
Implement the Nairobi Forward-looking Strategies for the Advancement of Women, particularly with regard to women’s participation in national ecosystem management and control of environmental degradation.
(2)
Increase the proportion of women decision-makers, planners!, technical advisers, managers and extension workers in environment and development fields.
(3)
Consider developing and issuing by the year 2000 a strategy of changes necessary to eliminate constitutional, legal, administrative, cultural, behavioral, social and economic obstacles to women’s full participation in sustainable development and in public life.
(4)
Establish by the year 1995 mechanisms at the national, regional and international levels to assess the implementation and impact of development and environment policies and programs on women, and to ensure their contributions and benefits.
(5)
Assess, review, revise and implement, where appropriate, curricula and other educational material, with a view to promoting the dissemination to both men and women of gender-relevant knowledge and valuation of women’s roles through formal and non-formal education, as well as through training institutions, in collaboration with non-governmental organizations.
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(6)
Formulate and implement clear governmental policies and national guidelines, strategies and plans for the achievement of equality in all aspects of society, including the promotion of women’s literacy, education, training, nutrition and health. Promote women’s participation in key decision-making positions and in management of the environment, particularly as it pertains to their access to resources, by facilitating better access to all forms of credit, particularly in the informal sector, taking measures towards ensuring women’s access to property rights as well as agricultural inputs and implements.
(7)
Implement, as a matter of urgency, in accordance with country-specific conditions, measures to ensure that women and men have the same right to decide freely and responsibly the number and spacing of their children and have access to information, education and means, as appropriate, to enable them to exercise this right in keeping with their freedom, dignity and personally held values.
(8) ’
Consider adopting, strengthening and enforcing legislation prohibiting violence against women and take all necessary administrative, social and educational measures to eliminate violence against women in all its forms.
CANADIAN POSITIONS AT RIO 1.
Official Canadian Position The UNCED process provided an opportunity for the broad-based participation of women’s groups which succeeded in integrating women’s concerns in all UNCED documents. Widespread support for this chapter came from both developed and developing countries, and the changes proposed helped to strengthen the text. Throughout the preparatory process, Canada, with support from the Scandinavian countries, New Zealand and Australia, played a leading role in forging partnerships with the various major groups and the NGOs to ensure support for the inclusion of women and the other major groups in Agenda 21. Through its Interdepartmental Working Group, which drew upon the expertise of government, women’s organ&&ions, business, and NGOs, Canada prepared a number of suggestions which were included in the final text. The Women’s Caucus, an informal group that emerged during the conference preparatory process, circulated the suggested changes to other delegations, which resulted in a stronger chapter. Although the chapter recommended changes within the UN system in all policies, programs and activities, concern remained that the follow-up recommended in Agenda 21 would be slow to come, due to entrenched attitudes, biases, and infrastructure. Status of Women Canada (SWC), with substantive input from CIDA, IDRC and others, detailed where women should be reflected in each chapter of the draft Agenda 21 document. This study was made available, through the NGO members of the delegation, to the women who were attending the final PrepCom in New York, enhancing their input into the PrepCom and then into the Farth Summit itself.
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Non-Governmental Orfzanizations The position of NGOs was that women, who contribute more than half the effort to social welfare, should be recognized as a powerful source for change, and that women’s status in decision-making and social processes should be properly taken into account so as to reflect their contributions to society and the economy. The Global Women’s Forum affmed that the participation of women in the conduct of daily life and policy-making from the community level to the international level is indispensable. Many of the NGO treaties that emerged from Rio made explicit reference to the negative effects on society that are the result of the exclusion of women, and they call for women’s empowerment and inclusion.
3.
Business and Industry In Canada, women are responsible for over 60% of the start-ups of small business (including eco-entrepreneurships) and comprise 60-70% of the environmental movement’s voluntary and paid work force. Women are making substantial contributions to sustainable development in all its aspects, despite on-going constraints of finance, credit, marketing and technology, and the tendency of policy and decision-makers and of CEOs not to integrate them fully in all sustainability plans and processes.
4.
IndiPenous At Rio, the Indigenous People asserted that Indigenous women’s rights must be respected and that women must be included in all local, national, regional and international organizations. In addition, elders, men and women must be recognized and respected as teachers of the young people. Also, at local, national, and international levels, governments must commit funds to the provision of new and existing resources for the education and training needed by Indigenous Peoples, to achieve their sustainable development. In ord.er to contribute and to participate in sustainable and equitable development at all levels, particular attention in the Indigenous community should .be focused on women (along with children and youth). Indigenous Peoples advised that gender, cultural and generational continuity are important holistic concepts to Indigenous Peoples’ development and philosophy.
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COMMITMENTS MADE BY CANADIANS
1.
Lezallv-bindiw
Documents
None. 2.
Political Pronouncements In the National Statement of Canada, delivered on June 11, 1992 at UNCED, Minister of the Environment Jean Charest stated, “(t)he crucial role of women for the implementation of Agenda 21 has been widely acknowledged but they have been denied too long their rightful place in decision-making. ”
3.
Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NGO Treaties At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organization Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Oca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. Of these treaties,‘one specifically addressed the issues discussed in Chapter 24. A Global Women’s Treatyfor NWs Seeking a Just and Healthy Plant In this treaty, the NGOs in Rio pledged to demand and work for gender balance in all aspects and at all levels of policy-making, government and NGO activity. The NGOs called on all to comply with international agreements that prohibit discrimination against women. Raising the status of women requires policies and actions that assure equal access to education, information, fair wages, safe working conditions, inheritance rights, credit, appropriate technology, environmentally friendly consumer products and health care. The treaty also called on society to condemn domestic and sexual violence. The Global Women’s Treaty addresses the population problem as an issue of women’s reproductive rights.
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Kari-oca
The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Karl-&a Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference. They developed and adopted a 109point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter.
DEFICIENCIES. GAPS AND CONSTRAINTS WITHIN CHAITER 24 No linkage is made between Chapter 24 and the other Agenda 21 chapters. More effort should have been made to ensure that women, their needs, concerns, role and participation were integrated throughout the other Agenda 21 chapters (such as Chapter 12 on Combatting Desertification and Drought or Chapter 14 on Sustainable Agriculture), ratlher than being dealt with in an isolated manner. There is also no linkage made to other key groups, including workers (Ch. 29), business (Ch.30), the scientific and technical community (Ch.31), NGOs (Ch.27), and Indigenous Peoples (Ch.26). In addition to governments, these and other groups need to undertake measures that ensure the full and equal participation of women in their sustainable development policies and programs. This was not acknowledged in the Chapter 24. Armed hostilities are one of the major causes of human suffering and environmental degradation in many countries. Chapter 24 is one of the few chapters that refers to this problem. However, it does not elaborate on the issue other than to suggest that some research on the impact of armed hostilities on women should be undertaken. Means of implementation are non-existent in Chapter 24. There is no adequate estimate of the cost of implementing the activities outlined in this chapter. This might be indicative of the UNCED Secretariat’s or delegates’ underestimation of the enormity of the problem. There appears to be an implicit expectation that governments will determine the actual costs and financial terms of the chapter, once implementation programs are decided upon. Women’s Global Action programs are likely to be under-implemented and under-funded. Chapter 24 indicates that the Secretary-General of the United Nations should review the success of all UN agencies, including those with a focus on women (UNIFEM, INSTRAW), in meeting development and environment objectives and in including (and increasing) women in senior decision-making roles. However, Chapter 24 neglects to specifically mention the World Bank and the regional banks that have major impacts on the environment and on women’s lives.
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A final deficiency in Chapter 24, is that it fails to discuss many of the important issues facing women in the industrial&d countries. Women in western countries often bear the major responsibility for household work and child care while also participating in the paid workforce. There is a higher proportion of women than men living in Poverty in industrial&d countries, and many women in the workforce continue to earn less than their male counterparts. Violence against women continues to be revealed as a major social issue. These are important issues which need to be addressed and they should have been included in this chapter.
COMPARISON CO-MADE
BETWEEN
CURRENT
CANADIAN GOVERNMENT
POLICY
AND
The advancement of women is an integral component of Canadian foreign and aid policy. Canada has been active in numerous United Nations forums (e.g., the Commission on the Status of Women, Commission on Human Rights, UNESCO, and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women) in supporting the advancement of women’s concerns. Such involvement has extended also to other international forums, including among others, the Commonwealth Women’s Affairs Ministers Meetings and the Organization of American States Inter-American Commission of Women. Canada’s International Development Agency (CIDA) adopted a Policy Framework for Women in Development in 1984. It was designed to integrate women of the Third World in the development process, both as agents and beneficiaries. A new interim Women in Development Policy has been adopted for 1993-94. It goes beyond the 1984 emphasis on the role of women as agents and beneficiaries, to recognize a more active and integral role for women in the development process. Canada has supported many initiatives at the international level. The current domestic situation in Canada, however, has seen cutbacks to social programs and training, and the elimination of a national child care program. These kinds of decisions continue to limit the opportunities for women in Canada to improve their positions and increase their roles in decision-making.
CANADIANACTIVITIES
EVOLVING THROUGH THE SUSTAINABILITY
PROCESS
Apart from the initiatives sustained and launched by government entities such as Status of Women Canada, the Canadian International Development Agency (UDA), the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), and the Department of Health and Welfare, many activities have been initiated by Canadian development NGOs (Cause Canada, Unitarian Service Committee Canada, YWCA, Micah Institute of Southern Alberta) and environmental NGOs (Cultural Survival Canada, WEED Foundation, Friends of the Earth), as well as by academic institutions such as Sir Sandford Fleming College and the B.C. Institute for Sustainable Development.
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The Women and Environments Education and Development CWEED) Foundation WEED has a project underway called Building Women’s Network for Sustainability. It was inspired by women’s impact on the UNCED. In the wake of UNCED, Canadian women are ready to turn the resolution of Agenda 21 into action. Building Women’s Networks for Sustainability is one response to the commitments made by Canada in Rio to recognize women as equal partners in policy-making and decision-making in all aspects of environmental management. Women and Sustainable Develonment: A Canadian Persoective is a national conference being held by the Sustainable Development Research Institute, at the University of British Columbia, Simon Fraser University’s Department of Women’s Studies, and the Centre for Sustainable Regional Development at the University of Victoria. The objectives of the conference are to substantively prepare Canadian women working in the area of sustainable development to form part of the NGO response to the 1995 Bejing International Women’s Conference; to bring female activists and female researchers together to collectively look at the meaning and implementation of sustainable development in Canati, and to -build a vibrant domestic network between indigenous and immigrant women of all ages, young and senior women working in the area of sustainable development from the peace, feminist, academic and environment communities. Organized around four main themes: women and decision-making; women and economics; women and community; women and creativity, the conference will be held in Vancouver, May 27-June 1, 1994. Most programs are still in an embryonic stage of planning and implementation, but they range from building women’s networks for sustainability and “a just and healthy planet” to training, and the more traditional health and community development.
OTHER RELEVANT INTERNATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY-RELATED F’ORA The following fora are especially relevant for improving women’s status and have implemented a wide variety of programs to effect positive changes for women: 0
United Nations
0
INSTRAW
0
United Nations
0
United Nations Development Program (UNDP)
l
International Labour Organ&&ion (ILO)
l
United Nations Family Planning Association (LJNFPA)
(UNIFEM)
(UNICEF)
Canada has been, and continues to be, a supporter and funder of these international fora.
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Such international financial institutions as the World Bank and Inter-American Development Bank purport to support women’s status and improvement, but do so somewhat peripherally and marginally on the whole.
fXJGGESTED READINGS AND INFORMATION SOURCES Women’s Develonment Models and Gender Analvsis. Boonsue, Komvipa. (Bangkok: Asian Institute of Technology, 1992).
A Review,
Carroll-Foster, Theodora. Women. Religion and Develonment - The Imnact of Religion on Women’s Development, (Connecticut: Praeger/Greenwood Press, 1982). Dankelman, Irene and Joan Davidson. Women and Environment in the Third World: Alliance for the Future, (London: Earthscan, 1988). Esserman, Lauren. “Women Break into the Process”, International News, MS., (New York: September-October 1992). Government of Canada. Canada’s Green Plan, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1990). .
Canada’s Green Plan and the Earth Summit, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1992).
. Canada’s National Re-port: United Nations Conference on Environment Development Brazil, June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991).
and
Sharing Our Future, “Women in Development”, (Ottawa: Canadian International Development Agency). .
International Development Research Centre (IDRC). Agenda 21: Abstracts. Reviews and Commentaries, (Theodora Carroll-Foster, editor), (Ottawa: IDRC, 1993). IIED. ‘Women in Environment and Urbanization: Strategies for Action and the Potential for Change”, Environment and Urbanization, Vol. 3, No. 2, October 1991, London. International Women’s Tribune Centre. “Women Making Money”, Women and DeveloDment Ouarterly, (New York: International Women’s Tribune Centre). Keating, Michael. APenda for Change: A Plain LanPuage Version of Agenda 21 and the Other Rio Agreements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993). Report
of the UNCED/UNICEF/UNFPA Symposium on Poverty and Environmental Degradation. “Women and Children First”, United National Conference on Environment and Development Research Paper No. 2, July 1991.
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Shields, Margaret. Statement at UNCED, INSTRAW, and Bella Abzug, Statement at the Plenary at UNCED, June 9, 1992. United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNJFEM). Women. Environment. Development - Agenda 21. An Easv Reference to the Soecific Recommendations on Women, (New York: 1992). Women and Environments Education. and Development Foundation, Women and Environment Charting a New Environmental Course, (Toronto: Winter/Spring 1991). Women’s Environment and Development Organization, Women’s Action APenda, (New York: 1992). World Commission on Environment and Development. Our Common Futu~, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987). Wyman, Miriam.
“Women and UNCED - A Personal Perspective”, (Toronto: June 1992).
Information Sources: Cultural Survival Canada, 1 Nicholas Street, Suite 620, Ottawa, Ontario, KlN 7B7, tel(613) fax (613) 233-2292.
233-4653,
InternationalDevelopment Researclh Centre (IDRC), 250 Albert Street, Ottawa, Ontario, KlG 3H9, tel(613) 236-6163, fax (613) 238-7230. Sustainable Development Research Institute, University of British Cohnmbia, B-5, 2202 Main Mall, Vancouver, B.C., V6T 124, tel(604) 822-8198, fax (604) 822-9191. UnitedNations Commk ion for Sustainable Development, Department of Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development, Room S-3060, United Nations, New York, N.Y., 10017, USA, tel(212) 963-5959. Women and Environments Education and Development Foundation (WEED), 736 Bathurst Street, Toronto, Ontario, M5S 2R4.
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CHAPTER 25 Children and Youth in Sustainable Development
- Sarah Murdoch -
THE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM Comprising nearly 30% of the world population, it is imperative that youth from all parts of the world participate actively in all relevant levels of decision-making processes because it affects their lives today and has implications for their futures. In addition to their intellectual contribution and their ability to mobilize support, they bring unique perspectives that need to be addressed. Young people have and continue to organize around different issues at local, regional and national levels, often being a driving force behind social movements. Their activism, however, has not translated into access to decision making processes. Few countries have mechanisms whereby young people and the community at large can influence the programs and policies that affect them. Increased opportunities for youth involvement in environment and development decision-making will be critical to the long-term success of Agenda 21. Children make up nearly half the population in many developing nations and in both developing and industrialized countries, they are highly vulnerable to the effects of environmental degradation. Many are not adequately fed, educated or protected from pollution and toxic substances. Consequently, the needs of children must be taken fully into account in the participatory process on environment and development. This is necessary to safeguard the sustainability of actions taken to improve the environment, and ensure it will remain sustainable for future generations.
Samh Murdoch was the Roy Aitken Intern at the National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy (NRTEE) in the summer of 1993. She is now jkishing her ties at the University of Ottawa. lb views expressed in thb chapter are those of the author who has received input from a number of shke?wiYers, and do not necessariy represent the views of the NRTEE, the Government of Canada, or the Projet de sociktb.
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PROGRAM AREAS AND 0-m The objectives and activities recommended in Chapter 25 fall under the following two program areaS:
1.
(1)
advancing the role of youth and actively involving them in tlhe protection of the environment and the promotion of economic and social development; and,
(2)
children in sustainable development.
Youth At the international level, the Chapter 25 proposes that action should be taken in the following program areas:
(1)
the promotion of participation of young people in UN decision-making processes and in national delegations to international meetings;
(2)
the review and coordination by the United Nations and international organizations of their youth programs; and,
(3)
the promotion of the United Nations Trust for the International Youth Year by the United Nations and national governments. Youth representatives should be involved in the administration of it, focusing particularly on. the needs of youth from developing countries.
At the national level, the Chapter 25 recommends that countries address the program areas outlined below.
284
(1)
Promotion of dialogue between the youth community and Government 0 Governments should consult young people and establish mechanisms that allow them access to information and the opportunity to present their perspectives on decisions that affect to the environment.
(2)
Increased education levels 0 Governments should make increased education levels a priority to ensure that half of all young women and men have access to secondary or vocational education by the year 2ooO.
(3)
Reduction of youth unemployment
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Protection of young peopleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s human rights a Human rights abuses against youth, especially against young women and girls should be combatted.
Children At the international level, the Chapter 25 recommends the following:
(1)
a commitment to the survival, protection and development of children, in accordance with the goals endorsed by the 1990 World Summit for Children; and,
(2)
an assurance that the participatory process on environment and development takes the specific interests of children fully into account. UNICEF should maintain cooperation and collaboration with other organizations of the United Nations, governmental and non-governmental organizations to develop programs for children.
At the national level the Chapter 25 proposes:
(1)
the implementation of programs for children, especially in health, nutrition, education, literacy and poverty alleviation; and,
(2)
the ratification of the Convention on the Right of the Child (General Assembly Resolution 44/25 of 20 November 1989).
CANADIAN POSITIONS AT RIO 1.
Official Canadian Position At Rio, the official Canadian position on Chapter 25 sought to strengthen an acceptance for a role for youth in policy and decision-making without being prescriptive as to the mechanisms used in achieving this objective. This would permit a mutually productive dialogue between youth and government through the most appropriate organizational arrangements. Canada called for the deletion of sections referring specifically to the formation of a national youth advisory council, and opposed the development of an International Youth Advisory Council, supporting instead the promotion of the already existing United Nations Youth Fund. Canada was in favour of adjusting global targets to those which encourage each country to establish national goals based on their current situation and potential for change.
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Canada sought to encourage the empowerment of youth to take diiect action on the environment at the community level; to ensure that youth were consulted in the development and implementation of programs that involve them; and to strengthen measures to increase young peoplesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; access to employment and education. Canada also placed importance on references to human rights and the special needs of young women, and on specific General Assembly Resolutions calling for all national delegations to international meetings to include a youth representative. 2.
Non-Governmental OrPanizations Unlike the official Canadian position, NGOs identified a specific need for both effective youth advisory councils and the involvement of young people in all types of government organizations. Considering that all issues are youth issues, NGOs saw a youth advisory council as an effective mechanism when implemented with strong participation of the youth community. This is particularly true when its decisions and recommendations are considered and acted upon by the government and all decision-making bodies. NGOs can set an example for government, by providing youth with necessary experience, while gaming from youth perspectives and input. Youth Prior to UNCED, youth representatives met separately on February 23, 1992 and Canadian youth representatives adopted the position that the following programs should be adopted as part of the official Canadian position.
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(1)
Each country, by 1995, should establish with their youth communities mechanisms to promote the effective participation of youth in the decisionmaking processes. These mechanisms should include full positions for youth representative on all local, regional and national ministries, round tables, institutions, advisory bodies, and NGOs.
(2)
Each country, by 1995, should establish a national youth advisory board, comprised wholly of youth, to provide all levels and sectors of government with input on youth perspectives, to liaise between the youth community and government ministries, and to establish official mechanisms for youth monitoring of government decisions, including the applications of Agenda 21. Mechanisms should be established to ensure that governments are responsive and held accountable to the national youth advisory boards.
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3.
(3)
By 1993, the opportunities for youth in government decision-making should be reviewed through a process involving youth. Procedures to include youth should also be organized, at the local, regional and national levels. Governments should establish full positions for youth representatives on all government delegations and within all government ministries, advisory bodies, institutions and round tables. Moreover, NGOs should also take measures to establish procedures to include youth in Decision Making Processes: By 1993, establish full positions for youth on Boards of Directors and Advisory Councils.
(4)
In consultation with existing youth organizations, national youth advisory councils should be created which will provide effective youth input into all spheres of government activity, especially into national development plans.
(5)
Governments should be held accountable to respond to, and whenever possible, incorporate the recommendations of international, regional, national and local youth conferences and advisory councils that offer a youth perspective on all issues, especially those pertaining to the environment and development.
(6)
By the year 1993, an International Youth Advisory Council to the Secretary-General of the United Nations should be established. An accountability mechanism should be built into this process.
Business and Industry None.
4.
Indhenous
In the Canadian Youth Declaration on Environment and Development, The Youth Earth Charter proclaims the need for re-empowerment through self-government and selfdetermination of the Indigenous Peoples throughout the world being fundamental to all decision-making on environment and development issues. Further, alliances and networks with Indigenous Peoples must be kept strong, them main objective being the achievement of a binding commitment to environment protection and human equality.
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MADE BY CANADIANS Lwally-bindixuz Documents None.
2.
Political PronoUncements None.
3.
Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NGO Treaties At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organization Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Oca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. Of these treaties, two addressed the issues discussed in Chapter 25. Treaty in Defense and Protection of Children and Adolescents The legal rights of children and adolescents should be encompassed in an agreement that all societies should adopt and enforce. NGOs will work to create laws for child rights in the nations that currently do not have them. The theme of Children and Adolescents should be included in forums and debates on the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s future. Young people should have the right to participate in all discussions and action concerning them, especially in regard to the future of the planet. Of particular concern is bottle feeding with artificial milk, which has caused the death of a great number of babies and harmed womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s health. The right of infants to be breast fed should be respected. Youth Treaty This treaty repeats that young people are the present and future of the planet and need to participate within their societies to encourage global, social, and environmental change. Based on this premise, the treaty sets out a number of principles and actions to which participating youth committed themselves. These principles relate the need for: 0
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unity in diversity to ensure for all people a lifestyle directed toward responsible development;
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0
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the alleviation of vast extremes of wealth and poverty based on the inequitable relations between North and South; support for local sustainable development alternatives; assurance of free and democratic access to information; the promotion of free and public integrated education; and the end to open and covert destabilization of national sovereignty and selfdetermination.
The treaty also presents a number of suggested actions based on these principles, which fall under the following three program areas: education and diffusion; consumption patterns; and international campaigns related to the issues that were not addressed adequately at UNCED (e.g., debt, militarism, nuclear power and testing, overconsumption and unnecessary use of pesticides). The Youth Treaty was consolidated, in part, on the basis of the World Youth Statement and Plan of Action on Environment and Development. This document was developed at the World Youth Preparatory Forum for UNCED in March 1992, which was cocoordinated by Canadian and Costa Rican young people.
The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference, where they also developed and adopted a 109~point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter. Of these, one referred directly to the issue of children, youth and sustainable development. Statement number 107 declared that, “(A)t local, national, international levels, governments must commit funds to new and existing resources to education and training for indigenous peoples, to achieve their sustainable development, to contribute and to participate in sustainable and equitable development at all levels, particular attention should be given to indigenous women, children and youth. ”
DEF’ICIENCIES. GAPS AND CONSTRAINTS WITHIN CHAPTER 25 Chapter 25 acknowledges the fact that needs of youth and government are distinct, but not necessarily irreconcilable. The chapter is a clear step forward in that it recognizes the importance of both children and youth in sustainable development. The chapter recognizes the need for increasing young people’s participation in decision-making, as well as education and employment opportunities. Chapter 25 also illustrates increased concern over human rights abuses against youth, especially against young women and girls. Projet de soch!tt!: Planning for a Sustainable Future
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Despite this, Chapter 25 is both vague and general. Methods to increase youth participation in decision-making are recommended, but specific strategies are not defined, nor is the concept of “youth participation”. In fact, the ambiguous nature of the activities proposed in the chapter make them more like objectives. The chapter generally takes a welfare approach to the needs of children and youth. Consequently, it fails to effectively address the need for changes in their current roles, particularly the role of youth, to make them more effective actors in development. The chapter also completely fails to address the issue of child labour. Gaps exist in Chapter 25, due to the fact that no differentiation is made between the needs and experiences of children and youth in the south and those in the north. Throughout the chapter, generalizations are made concerning “youths” and “children”, giving no acknowledgement to the differing needs and situations of children and youth worldwide. Moreover, there is no mention of the need for contributions by the North to assist in the alleviation of poverty in the South. This has crucial effects on the well bemg of youth and children by inequitable conditions among children and youth are often caused by inequitable development. The value of the chapter is severely limited because Agenda 21, as a whole, fails to sufficiently integrate the objectives and activities proposed in this chapter into other Agenda 21 chapters. These also have defmite effects on both youth and children. This is also reflected in Chapter 25 itself, which disconnects the problems that effect youth and children from larger societal problems. Bringing youth into the decision-making processes and addressing the needs of children are part of the larger issue of community participation in decision-making. They should not be addressed in piecemeal fashion.
COMPARISON BETWEEN COMMITMENTSMADE
CURKENT
CANADIAN GOVE RNMENT POLICY
AND
Canada has supported and contributed substantially to international organisations concerned with the needs and rights of children and youth, such as the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organ&&on (UNESCO). Moreover, Canada has ratified the Convention on the Right of the Child (General Assembly Resolution 44/25 of 20 November 1989) and has contributed to the UN Trust Fund for International Youth Year. Canada has met in many ways the more explicit and defined policies and actions proposed in Chapter 25, including access to secondary education, protection of the rights of youth, and vocational training programs. However, the extent and degree to which education in Canada, for instance, is accessible is disputable. With ever increasing user fees for post secondary education, shrinking student loans, and high youth unemployment levels, accessibility has become a serious concern for many young Canadians. Also, given the risirtg levels of poverty among children and youths, some also contend that Canada is not sufficiently protecting the rights of children and youth to an acceptable standard of living, based on adequate health, food,
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clothing and housing. This, as well as the right to education, is guaranteed in the United Nations Declaration on Human Rights, to which Canada is a signatory. Less specific, but perhaps the most indicative objectives of Chapter 25 are those related to involving youth in decision-making processes. Canadaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s decision to involve youth in the negotiations on this chapter and preparations for Rio clearly added validity to the Chapter. Moreover, it provides the basis for an improved partnership between government and Qnadian young people. Presently however, youth are not included in the Canadian delegation to the United Nations General Assembly, although the official Canadian position at UNCED placed importance on specific General Assembly Resolutions which recommended that all national delegations to international meetings include a youth representative. More importantly, Canada has not yet established a Youth Advisory Council as other OECD countries have done, despite the fact that under the Green Plan, it was proposed that a youth council on environment and development be established. In A Pronosal for a Youth Initiative For a Post UNCED Era issued on May 26, 1992, Canadian young people identified further commitments from the Government of Canada needed to assist Canadian youth groups promote effective action among Canadaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s youth. These commitments include the following:
(1)
organizing training programs and workshops so that young people may be better informed and equipped with the necessary skills for effective community action;
(2)
providing ongoing support systems and training;
(3)
collecting and distributing information and research materials on a wide range of subjects within the purview of the projects of young people;
(4)
cataloguing the human, financial and physical resources which would be useful for youth action;
(5)
facilitating communications, exchanges, and regional networks among young people and between youth and the general public for two purposes: the successful realization of youth projects and the celebration of the experiences of young people engaged in community action;
(6)
encouraging young people to work at the national and international levels by linking their projects with parallel ones in other communities and countries; and,
Q
making special financial contributions to assist those community projects where the human, physical, and financial resources of a given community would not be sufficient.
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CANADIAN ACTIVITIES EVOLVING THROUGH THE SUSTAINABILITY PROCESS Youth
‘92
Entirely youth-driven, the Youth ‘92 project was formed in 1990 by the Canadian Youth Working Group on Environment and Development, a coalition of Canadian youth organizations that cooperated to facilitate youth participation in UNCED. Prior to Rio, Youth ‘92 organized UNCED preparatory events worldwide, including six regional workshops in Canada, a national conference held in Halifax, Nova Scotia in the summer of 1991, and the World Youth Preparatory Forum for UNCED, which was held in Costa Pica, in March 1992. At the national conference, participants wrote a position paper, the Canadian Youth Declaration on Environment and Develonment. Similarly, at the World Youth Preparatory Forum, over 300 participants from ninety-seven countries produced an international position paper, the World Youth Statement and Plan of Action on Environment and Develonment. Following UNCED, the Canadian youth organizations involved nationally in Youth ‘92 met again to discuss the project and the directions that follow-up should take. It was agreed that the most pressing collective need among Canadian youth organizations was tlhe development of effective mechanisms to facilitate the sharing of information and resources within Canada, and the creation of more effective means for these organizations to work together, network and do outreach. Already having a large core of information in the Youth ‘92 database, and with Youth ‘92 ending, it was identified that a tool was needed for managing, updating, and distributing this information. Environment Canada also showed interest in having an ongoing, up-to-date source of information on youth groups working on environmental issues in Canada. Consequently, as of July 1993, Youth ‘92 staff have been working in cooperation with Environment Canada on the development of the Canadian Youth Information Management System (CYIMS), an information system that will facilitate networking and cooperation among Canadian youth groups. This project is ongoing, and is currently being carried on by the Canadian Youth Foundation (CYF). Financing of the activities of Youth ‘92 was made possible primarily through the contributions of Environment Canada, the Canadian International Development Agency, and the United Nations Environment Program. Canada World Youth (CWY) Since its inception in 1971, CWY’s mission has been to increase people’s ability to participate actively in the development of just, harmonious and sustainable societies. Some of its activities include: North-South cooperation and linkages; leadership training; intercultural training; nonformal education; and development education. CWY has also served as host organ&ion for Wheels of Change (mentioned below).
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Canadian Federation of Students (CFS) The CFS was founded in 1981 by post-secondary students who felt the need to defend their rights and interests. Through the Federation, students are working to create a universally accessible, high quality system of post-secondary education that recognizes the rights of students and the legitimacy of student representation. Canadian Unified Student Environmental Network (CUSEN) CUSEN is a university-based network operated for and by students. It publishes a newsletter and facilitates communications across Canada among youth and other environmental groups. Canadian Youth Foundation (CYF) Founded in 1986, the CYF is designed to provide young people in Canada with the tools and resources required to enrich policy debates with a genuine youth perspective. Among the projects/activities that have been undertaken by the CYF are: an internship program; the publication of several reports; and conducting of workshops across Canada to develop plans for community action by youth for youth. The CYF was also home to the Youth â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;92 Secretariat and is currently carrying on the Canadian Youth Information Management System (CYIMS) project, an information system that will facilitate networking and cooperation among Canadian youth groups. Cree Nation Youth Council The Cree Nation Youth Council was established in 1985, the International Year for Youth. Its purpose if to promote activities enhancing Cree traditions, values, customs and ways of life among the Cree youth. Areas of action include: preservation of tradition, identities and heritage through direct youth involvement and input into the social, cultural, economic and political sectors at all levels affecting Cree youth. Environmental Youth Alliance (EYA) The EYA was created in response to a growing need for Canadian students to work together on environment and development issues. To accomplish this, EYA has focused its networking on students in elementary and secondary schools across Canada, now with over 20,000 members. To support and maintain a solid network, the EYA continues with three primary foci: a newsletter; wilderness trips; and conferences. Environnement JEUnesse (ENJEU) ENJEU is an environmental education organ&&ion with individual and group members throughout Quebec. ENJEU has two main priorities: to support and encourage action related to education and the environment by groups of youth between the ages of fifteen to thirty; and to further their participation in environment and development decision making. ENJEU spe&hzes in the areas of: energy, waste management, environmental impact assessments, and environmental education. ENJEU has also assumed leadership in creating a network of environment/development youth groups within the International Francophone community.
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Generation 2000 Generation 2000 aims to empower youth to positively impact the future. Generation 2000 has two main programs; the National Tour and the Action Network. Since 1991, the National Tour has annually involved forty diverse and active youth travelling across Canada between February and May. Through communicating the ideas and experiences of youth to youth, the Action Network newsletter provides skills and installs confidence. In alliance with the Canadian Youth Foundation, Generation 2000 has also produced the Youth Action Handbook, a step-by-step guide to project management to assist Action Teams in developing, running and evaluating a community project. International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) The IISD has developed a Youth Sourcebook to provide information on global youth activities, contacts and networks in support of sustainable development. Aimed at supporting youth grassroots initiatives, youth networking and joint youth action around sustainable development initiatives, the youth sourcebook will also be incorporated into the larger IISD Sourcebook database. National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy (NRTEE) The NRTEE, and particularly its Task Force on Education, has been actively concerned with engaging young people in the round table process, and giving them skills to address sustainable development issues in the future. Under the direction of this task force, the NRTEE has developed or catalyzed several different initiatives: the Model Round Table for Youth Kit and Future Links: Youth Round Tables in Canada, a kit and brochure that explains how Canadian youth can establish round tables and operate them with the support of local businesses, environmental groups and individuals; Learning for a Sustainable Future, a non-profit organization to create a sustainable development education program for primary and secondary schools across Canada; and Energy, the Environment, and Me!, an interactive computer game/quiz on energy and the environment. In January 1993, the NRTEE launched COURAGE, a rock music video as part of a campaign to challenge Canadian youth to integrate the concept of sustainable development into their lives. In 1993, the NRTEE also founded the Roy Aitken Sustainable Development Internship Program, in conjunction with the International Nickel Company @IWO) and other private sector sponsors, to encourage young Canadians to think creatively about the integration of the environment and the economy. SAVE! (Student Action for a Viable Earth) Tour The SAVE Tour was a completely student-run, national youth speaking tour. Consisting of eight Canadians representative of Canadaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s diversity, the aim of the tour has been to raise awareness of global issues, while leaving students with tools to take constructive action at local, regional and national level. This has been done through interactive workshops and presentations to students in elementary and high schools.
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Wheels of Change Wheels of Change is a grass roots, action-oriented project originally conceived by five young people, designed to mobilize youth across the country. The tour took place from May to August 1992 and visited ten to twelve communities in British Columbia, Ontario and Quebec. The principle behind the program was a popular education and theatre tour to facilitate community empowerment on environment, development and social justice issues. The tour also educated Canadians about issues that emerged out of UNCED and encouraged a deeper appreciation of how these issues affect the lives of Canadians at the local community level, as well as the lives of others around the globe.
OTHER RELEVANT INTERNATIONAL
SUSTAINABILITY-RELATED
FORA
Action for Solidarity, Equality, Ecology, and Development (A SEED) A SEED was established by young people in 1991 to provide an altemQt’veanalysisof the UNCED proceedings and to forge strong alliances among youth commuted to a sociallyjust and ecologicallyviable world. A SEED operates as a decentralizednetwork which strengthens and supports local, regional, and national, youth movements. The organizationis active in organizing campaigns and disseminatinginformationrelated to environmentand development issues. Asian Students Association (ASA) The ASA is an independent and non-aligned regional body of 46 national student organizationsfrom 26 countries in the Asia-Pa@@ region. ASA is workingfor change in the areas of human rights, democracy, development,third world, and solidarity. United Nations of Youth International Secreta.riat (UNOY) The UNOY wasfounded to “help create a unitedand transformedworld” through giving youngpeople a voice in the UnitedNationsand otherpolicy and decision-makingbodies. To this end, the UNOY works “to build a global youth movement, a youth alliancefor peace and cooperationn, and responds to the challenge “toforge a global partnership#. There are UNOY nets (national and local branches) working in community based projects. UNOY also hosts events,including internationalconferences. Youth for Development and Cooperation (YDC) The IDC is an internationalyouth organ&ion whose aim is to strengthen youth structures working on North-Southcooperation in order to promote development, the protection of the environment, internationaljustice and cooperation. The YDC sets up programs for the purpose of developmenteducationandpolitical campaigning on NorthSouth issues. Wide ranging activitiesinclude: seminars, workshops, training courses, campaigns, publications, simulationgames and research on developmentquestions.
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SUGGESTED READINGS AND INFORMATION SOURCES
Government of Canada. Canada’s Green Plan, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1990). . Canada’s Green Canada, 1992).
Plan
and
the
Earth
Summit,
(Ottawa:
Environment
. Canada’s National Reuort: United Nations Conference on Environment and Development Brazil. June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991). International Development Research Centre (IDRC). Agenda 21: Abstracts. Reviews. and Commentaries, (Theodora Carroll-Foster, editor), (Ottawa: IDRC, 1.993). International Institute for Sustainable Development. 1993).
Youth Sourcebook, (Winnipeg: IISD,
Keating, Michael. Agenda for Change: A Plain Language Version of Agenda and the Other Rio Agreements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993). National Round Table on the Environment and the Round Table for Youth Kit, (Ottawa: NRTEE, 1993).
Economy
(NRTEE).
21
Model
World Commission on Environment and Development. Our Common Future, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987). Youth
Action/Action Jeunesse Working Group. A Pronosal for a Youth Initiative For a Post UNCED Era, Statement of Intent, (Ottawa: Canadian Youth Foundation, May 26th, 1992).
Youth
‘92. Canadian Youth Declaration on (Ottawa: Canadian Youth Foundation, 1992).
Youth
‘92. In the Spirit of Youth -- A Summarv Guide to the Canadian Youth Declaration on Environment and Development, (Ottawa: Canadian Youth Foundation: 1992).
Environment
and
Development,
Youth ‘92. The World Youth Statement and Plan of Action on Environment and Develonment, (Ottawa: Canadian Youth Foundation: 1992).
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Information Sources: Action for Solidarity, Equality, Ecology, and Development (A SEED) - North American Hub, c/o Student Environmental Action Coalition (SEAC), PO Box 1168, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA, 27514-1168, tel(919) 967-4600, fax (919) 967-4648. Asian Students Association (ASA), 353 Shanghai Street 4/F, Kowloon, Hong Kong, tel852-388-0515, fax 852-782-5535. Canada World Youth (CWY), 2330, rue Notre Dame Ouest, Montreal, Quebec, H3J lN4, tel (514) 931-3526, fax (514) 939-2621. Canadian Federation of Students (CFS), 600-170 Metcalfe Street, Ottawa, Ontario, K2P lP3, tel(613) 232-7394, fax (613) 232-0276. Canadian Unified Student Environmental Network (CUSEN), 5 1 Queens Crescent, Kingston, Ontario, K7L 3N6, tel (613) 548-3838, fax (613) 5450350. Canadian Youth Foundation (CYFâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;), 215 Cooper Street, 3rd Floor, Ottawa, Ontario, K2P OG2, tel (613) 761-9206, fax (613) 761-1441. Cree Nation Youth Council, 2 Lakeshore Road, Nemaska-James Bay (Quebec), Eeyou Ashee, JOY 3B0, tel(819) 673-2600, fax (819) 673-2606. Environmental Youth Alliance (EYA), PO Box 34097, Station D, Vancouver, Columbia, V6J 4M1, tel (604) 737-2258, fax (604) 922-2520.
British
Entionnement JEUnesse (ENJEU), 4545 Pierre de Coubertin, CP 1000, Succ. M., Montreal, Quebec, HlV 3R2, tel (514) 252-3016, fax (514) 254-5873. Generation 2000, 347 Bay Street, Suite 800, Toronto, Ontario, M5H 2R3, tel(416) 777-2590, fax (416) 777-2713. International Institute for Sustainable Development,161 Portage Avenue East, 6th Floor, Winnipeg, Manitoba, R3B OY4, tel (204) 958-7700, fax (204) 958-7710. National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy (NRTEE), 1 Nicholas Street, Suite 1500, Ottawa, Ontario, KlN 7B7, tel (613) 992-7189, fax (613) 992-7189. United Nations of Youth International Secretariat (UNOY), Venedien 25, 1441 Ak Purmerend, The Netherlands, tel 31-2990-36093, fax 31-2990-27126.
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World University Service of Canada (WUSC), Box 3000, Station C, Ottawa, Ontario, KlY 4M8, tel (613) 798-7477, fax (613) 798-0990. Youth Action Network (formally World Affairs Canada), 100 Adelaide Street West, Suite 906, Toronto, Ontario, M5H lS3, tel (419 757-3838, fax (416) 752-5386. Youth for Development and Cooperation (YDC), Overschiestraat 9, 1062 HN Amsterdam, The Netherlands, tel 31-20-614-2510, fax 31-20-617-5545.
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CHAPTER 26 Recognizing And Strengthening The Role Of Indigenous Peoples And Their Communities
- Inuit Churnpolar Conference -
THE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM Indigenous Peoples represent a significant part of the world’s population with unique contributions to make to the achievement of the goals of Agenda 21, based on ways of life directly dependent on the utilization of wild living resources. Indigenous Peoples have evolved a holistic, traditional scientific knowledge of the land, natural resources and environment they interact with and depend on to maintain their well-being. Frequently the lands and resources of Indigenous Peoples are viewed as “free for the taking” for a variety of historical and political reasons. Consequently, it is critical that Indigenous Peoples and lands are recognized and protected from environmentally-unsound activities. Moreover, national and international efforts to implement environmentally sound and sustainable development should recognize, accommodate, promote, and strengthen the role of Indigenous Peoples and their communities. In order to bring together the people and resources required to achieve the goal of sustainability and the aims of Chapter 26 with respect to “recognizing and strengthening the role of Indigenous Peoples and their communities”, cooperation is needed. The support of sympathetic donors and the sharing of information through networks is essential to enable Indigenous Peoples to document the identity and composition of Indigenous communities, their needs and aspirations, their specific concerns regarding their social and natural resources, their vision for managing these resources, and their views as to how working relationships would be developed between their organizations and national and international decision-making bodies. It may also be necessary to begin by acknowledging historical injustices which have contributed to inequities
l%e In& Chxunpolar Conference (ICC) is an organ&&ion formed in 1977 by the I&it of Greenland, Chadiz, and Aih& to advance the interests of Ihit intematSona&. As of 1992, Siberian Inuit are jldl members of the ICC. The views expressed in this chapter are the views of the ICC wti input from a number of stakeholders, and do not necessariy represent the views of the Prqjet de sociM.
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of existing situations; and then taking steps to obtain remedies. Access to resources and the power to make decisions are fundamental to the realization of the potential contribution of Indigenous Peoples to the advancement of sustainable and equitable development, and to support their objectives for the protection of their lands and resources. The process of empowerment to which Agenda 21 is committed involves local capacity building by means of research and training in order to achieve greater participation in decision-making and strategic choices regarding resource management. Development agencies should also recognize that policies need to be developed that take into consideration the specific socioeconomic and political circumstances, of North and South Indigenous groups. Research is needed, supported by networking amongst like-minded donors, so that these communities can identify their membership, their needs, and their concerns regarding social and natural resources. Time and resources are required for elucidation of Indigenous Peoplesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; frameworks and goals for resource management and sustainable and equitable development. In addition, resources are required for the development of institutional and procedural working relationships in order to build linkages between Indigenous Peoplesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; organizations and national and international bodies which affect Indigenous Peoplesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; utilization of resources, whether advisory or decision-making in nature. A key concern with respect to recognizing and strengthening the role of Indigenous Peoples and their communities is the documentation, application, interpretation and preservation of the knowledge which Indigenous Peoples have about their ecosystems and about the nature of environmental change in these environments. There is an increasing recognition of the importance of Indigenous knowledge, (sometimes referred to as traditional knowledge or traditional ecological knowledge), but experience with its use is limited. In addition, the application of traditional ecological knowledge is inhibited by other considerations related to the political and economic exigences of a particular situation. Further, there is a need for a opportunities for Indigenous Peoples to enunciate their epistemologies, and to play a primary role in determining the future of Indigenous knowledge resources in relation to western science-based systems.
PROGRAM AREAS AND OB.IECTIVES The objectives of Chapter 26 include the empowerment of Indigenous Peoples and their communities; strengthening of their participation in national policy, law and program formulation, including their capacity to initiate proposals; and supporting partnership by ensuring the involvement of Indigenous Peoples and their communities at national and local levels in programs intended to support sustainable development, such as resource management programs and conservation strategies.
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Program areas in support of these objectives include: recognition of the rights to lands and resources of Indigenous Peoples; documentation of values, traditional ecological knowledge and management practices of Indigenous Peoples which contribute to sustainable development; strengthening of national processes for resolving disputes over lands, resources and management affecting Indigenous Peoples; support for alternative environmentally sound economies; developing with governments national arrangements to consult with Indigenous Peoples, and enhancement of capacity-building for Indigenous communities through the exchange of information and experiences. Specific measures recommended include:
for governmental
and non-governmental
implementation
(a)
adoption or strengthening of appropriate policies and legal instruments at the national level to protect Indigenous Peoples;
00
recognition that lands of Indigenous Peoples must be protected from environmentally unsound or inappropriate practices;
w
encouraging the understanding of Indigenous Peoplesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; knowledge and environmental management experience;
Cd)
recognition of the essential nature of harvesting for Indigenous Peoples;
(e)
creation and support of national dispute resolution mechanisms for land and resource dispute settlement; development of alternative environmentally-sound
ecological
means of production;
enhancement of capacity-building for Indigenous communities based on Indigenous ecological knowledge; ratification and application of relevant international conventions and support for adoption of a declaration on the rights of Indigenous Peoples by the United Nations General Assembly; protection of intellectual and property rights of Indigenous Peoples, including rights to customary and administrative systems and practices; encouragement of active participation of Indigenous Peoples, particularly women, by the United Nations, international development and finance organizations, and governments; organization of annual inter-organizational coordination meetings between governments and Indigenous organizations;
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provision of technical and fmancial assistance for capacity-building for sustainable development; strengthening of research and education programs relevant to the concerns of Indigenous Peoples, especially the application of Indigenous knowledge to contemporary development challenges; contribute to the resource management and conservation strategies of Indigenous Peoples and other program areas of Agenda 21 including programs to collect, analyze and use data and other information in support of sustainable development; apply technology to increase efficiency of Indigenous Peoplesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; resource management systems; involve Indigenous Peoples at national and local levels in resource management, conservation strategies and planning processes; development of national governmental arrangements for consultation with Indigenous Peoples to reflect Indigenous knowledge and other knowledge in resource management, conservation and development programs; and, cooperate at regional levels where appropriate to address common Indigenous issues in order to strengthen participation in sustainable development.
CANADIAN POSITIONS AT RIO 1.
Official Canadian Position Canada was the first delegation to advocate the recognition of â&#x20AC;&#x153;Indigenous Peopleâ&#x20AC;? in Agenda 21, and was responsible for many of the references to their interests within Agenda 21 (eg. in the chapters on oceans, and forests, and in the Rio Declaration). The Canadian Delegation has worked with Indigenous groups to include these references. Canada did not support the inclusion of an international debate on Indigenous rights to selfdetermination in the UNCED process.
2.
Non-Governmental Orpanizations It should be noted that Indigenous organizations in Canada, in general, do not consider themselves to be non-governmental organizations - rather they view themselves as the legitimate representatives of their constituents.
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With respect to environmental and other NGOs, a wide range of relationships and attitudes toward Indigenous Peoples can be found, from the sympathetic to the overtly hostile. One of the watershed issues which draws the differences between supportive and unfriendly environmental NGOs is that of harvesting, particularly of marine mammals. Until issues like whaling are understood and addressed as matters of sustainable development for Inuit and other Indigenous Peoples, mistrust and concern will impede some forms of cooperation. Indeed the issue of utilization of wild species is a central concern for all Canadians, as approaches to sustainability based on wise use of wild species will affect many other societal decisions, including land-use, non-renewable resource exploitation and small-scale eco-development options. Other significant issues in the NGO sector include support for aboriginal selfgovernment, rights to lands and resources, and freedom of religion and self-expression related to cultural self-determination. 3.
Business and Industrv A variety of joint ventures are underway in the realms of economic development and regulatory affairs. There are many training and/or research projects and programs related to Indigenous Peoples within business and industry. Increasingly, Indigenous Peoples are initiating joint ventures, including training and research components.
4.
IndiPenous The following are 5 priorities for Indigenous Peoples which need to be addressed.
1)
Support and recognition for Indigenous Peonies cultural and territorial rights: In any international forum, Indigenous Peoples have always pressed for the recognition of their cultural and territorial rights as the basis of development and self-determination.
2)
Support for the development of Indigenous Peoplesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; non-government organizations This is essential for development, capacity building, local control and a new relationship, because Indigenous Peoples need their own institutions to interact and communicate with Western NGOâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s and other international organizations.
3)
Support for the development of Indigenous knowledge institutions This is necessary in order to study, document and support Indigenous Peoples in the use of Indigenous knowledge. These institutions must be controlled and managed by Indigenous Peoples.
4)
Support for the development of Indigenous Peoplesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; financial institutions This involves support of Indigenous development and values similar to the concept of the Indigenous Peoples Fund being supported by the Inter-American Bank. These institutions must be controlled and managed by Indigenous Peoples.
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Sup-art for the develonment of the “New Partnershin” based on resnect and a new ethic An example of this would be the proposed International Treaty discussed below and for Western institutions to develop new policies such. as “listening and learning” from Indigenous Peoples. Indigenous groups in Canada have called for: 0
protection of the human rights of Indigenous Peoples, including cultural rights, as a central priority;
0
funding and development of Indigenous regional and international development institutions;
0
development of an Indligenous Peoples’ Lean Fund;
0
establishment of a research and development institution dedicated to Indigenous Peoples ecological knowledge, managed and controlled by Indigenous Peoples;
0
establishment of a new partnership between Indigenous Peoples and western governments, NGOs and development agencies; and,
0
development of a wider awareness and appreciation of Indigenous Peoples’ concerns about political, development and environment issues.
CO-S 1.
MADE BY CAPJADIANS Legallv-bindiw
Documents
None. 2.
Political Pronouncements None.
3.
Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NGO Treaties At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organization Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Oca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant
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role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. these treaties, one addressed the issues discussed in Chapter 26.
Of
Intemaional TreatyBetween NGos and Indigenous Peoples The Proposed International Treaty - Northern Non-Governmental Organizations’ and Indigenous Peoples’ Development, June 1992, states the following areas must be recognized and addressed by northern NGOs entering into development activities: transfer of values - must minimize the damage done by the imposition of western values; community control, management and ownership - development must be under their control in accordance with their values and institutions; community-based planning - pre-planning must be conducted with community participation; Indigenous knowledge - development should be based on Indigenous knowledge spirituality - development should recognize it; respect - development should note respect for community, Mother Earth, other people? sharing - reciprocity at all levels; technology - ensure culturally appropriate technologies are controlled by Indigenous Peoples and intellectual property rights are protected; sustainable development - Indigenous knowledge in this area should be shared; capacity building - to allow Indigenous Peoples to develop on their own; destabilizing Indigenous societies - discontinuation of disruptive practices such as westemized schools, religions, etc.; western models - will not be used; Indigenous non-government organizations - northern NGO’s will support their creation through funding and training; new Indigenous institutions - northern NGO’s support the development of new regional and international development organizations which will include the research and collection of Indigenous knowledge for the improvement of resource management systems and for educational purposes; Iindigenous financial institutions - managed and controlled by Indigenous Peoples and which have the power to deal with international agencies to obtain more financing and support; northern NGO accountability - must establish greater accountability measures to Indigenous Peoples; and, cons&z&ions and harmonization - northern NGO’s must develop policies which provide consultative mechanisms with Indigenous Peoples and to harmonize their policies with Indigenous Peoples’ priorities, values and culture and with Indigenous Peoples’ consent.
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The basic principles of
this
21
treaty are:
(1)
Territory - “Indigenous peoples have inalienable rights to their territories and the resources and biodiversity that they contain.”
(2)
Self-Determination - “must be recognized and respected given to their traditional systems of self-govem.ment. ”
(3)
(4)
Economy and Environment - Indigenous peoples have: had an intimate relationship with nature, based upon respect, interdependence and equilibrium . . [they] have developed economic, social, cultural models that respect nature without destroying it. w Education, Culture and Spirituality
Kari-oca
The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the l&i-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference. Under the Earth Charter, Indigenous Peoples demand and/or suggest 109 changes to the following areas: Human Rights and International Law; Lands and Territories; Biodiversity and Conservation; Development Strategies; and Cultnre, Science and Intellectual Property. The opening section of the Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter which was adopted at the Kari-Oca Conference May 25-30 1992, is devoted to addressing issues related human rights and international law, which reflect directly on the theme of Chapter 26, “Recognizing and Strengthening the Role of Indigenous Peoples and their Communities”. Within this section, the signatories call upon the United Nations, state governments and international legal instruments to recognize Indigenous governments and legal systems, as well as Indigenous Peoples” right to selfdetermination. Moreover, Indigenous Peoples assert their right to their traditional and spiritual ways of life, as well as the right to decide the direction of their communities. It is also stated that, as well as health rights which include the recognition and respect of traditional knowledge held by Iindigenous healers. “Indigenous Peoples should have the right to their own knowledge, language, and culturally appropriate education, including bicultural and bilingual education, through recognizing both formal and informal ways, the participation of family and community is guaranteed.” (paragraph 25)
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The subsequent section addresses issues related to lands and territories. Also directly related to the theme of chapter 26, within this section it asserts the inalienable rights of Indigenous Peoples to land and resources, which confirms that Indigenous Peoples have always had ownership and stewardship over their traditional territories and moreover, that this be respected is demanded. Within this section it also states that: “Where Indigenous territories have been degraded, resources must be made available to restore them. The recuperation of those affected territories is the duty of the respective jurisdiction in all nation states which can not be delayed, within the process of recuperation the compensation for the historical ecological debt must be taken into account. Nation states must revise in depth their agrarian, mining and forestry policies. ” (Paragraph 35) The representatives of Indigenous Peoples from the four comers of the world signed the Kari-Oca Declaration and the Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter. This represents 500 years of survival. DEFICIENCIES. GAPS AND CONSTRAINTS WITHIN CHAPTER 26 There is no specific mention of the conflict between anti-harvesting interests including NGOs and the governments which support these NGOs, and Indigenous Peoples, who are directly dependent on harvesting for physical and cultural survival. This is a critical issue which must be dealt with as Indigenous Peoples have been and continue to be penal&d internationally by the abuse of international conservation initiatives which have been co-opted by anti-harvesting interests.
COMPARISON BETWEEN CURRENT CANADIAN GovERmnmT COMMITMENTSMADE
POLICY AND
There is much to do to bring empowerment, participation and partnership with respect to the roles of Indigenous Peoples in sustainable and equitable development in Canada to higher levels, but a number of fundamental changes have occurred, particularly in the north where comprehensive landclaims have established a foundation for such empowerment. Specific claims concerning historical agreements in southern Canada are slowly being addressed as well. These steps will contribute to the question of adequate lands and resources for Indigenous Peoples to some extent. Self-government for Indigenous Peoples has also progressed to some extent. Gaps continue to exist however between Indigenous perspectives on living resources and ecology, based on Indigenous knowledge; and western approaches to land ownership and management of fish and wildlife. Current governmental initiatives to address long-standing issues with respect to aboriginal fisheries and migratory birds are welcome, despite the inherent difficulties.
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CANADIAN ACTIVITIES EVOLVING THROUGH THE SUSTAINABILITY PROCESS A wide range of local, regional and national activities and programs are being planned and implemented which involve Indigenous Peoples and their organizations in the sustainability process. The Arctic Environmental Strategy, which is part of Canadaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Green Plan, is a key program for northern Indigenous organizations, because it provides program funding to Indigenous groups to conduct their own projects and programs. Other sections of the Green Plan have been used by Indigenous groups in southern Canada to support sustainability-related projects. Efforts have also been made by Canada to include Indigenous Peoples in significant policy development processes such as the development of federal environmental assessment legislation domestically; and the Canadian implementation of the Biodiversity Treaty. There is increasing interaction between Indigenous Peoples and the private sector on a wide range of issues affecting their respective interests. Of particular note are joint efforts underway in the realms of economic development and regulatory affairs. With the evolution of Indigenous self-government and the settlement of land claims, Indigenous Peoples in clanada will have an increasing and substantive role in the management of land and resources, and the financial resources to be important economic players and partners. Within this scenario, new and innovative approaches are possible. Business and Indigenous Peoples can and must work together to ensure that new regulatory and development regimes meet the needs of both parties. For example, the: land management framework being developed for Indigenous-owned land in Nanauvt has involved a lengthy and substantive review, to ensure a workable and appropriate regime is put in place. It is essential for both parties that these efforts are successful. Training and/or research programs are another area for business-Indigenous cooperation. Industry now recognizes the special cultural and lifestyle concerns which require different approaches to preparing for, and engaging in, industrial employment and activities. Earlier programs aimed at meeting these cultural and lifestyle differences have had mixed success, but they are widely recognized as requiring more work and attention and are, ones which, from everyoneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s perspective, are essential,, Finally, the financial resources which Indigenous Peoples in Canada are acquiring through land claims settlements make them potential partners for joint ventures, candidates for private sector activities in support of resource-based operations, and actual operators of such enterprises. For example, northern mining operations may contract Indigenous-owned and operated companies for mining-related services. Moreover, Indigenous capabilities in these fields are growing as well through captive economic development corporations (e.g., the Taltan First Nation in northern B.C., or Indigenous businesses in northern Saskatchewan). The numbers and capacity of such corporations will increase in the future.
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OTHER RELEVANT INTERNATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY-RELATED M)RA The Finnish Initiative, or Rovaniemi Process, involving the eight Arctic states, including Canada, and representatives of the Indigenous Peoples of the Arctic; resulted in adoption of a Declaration and Arctic Environmental Protection Strategy in Rovaniemi in 1991. Subsequently the Ministers issued a Declaration and Report at Nunuk in September 1993, which recognized the need to include Indigenous Peoples in the development and implementation of the strategy, particularly with respect to sustainable utilization of living resources, and monitoring and assessment.
SUGGESTED READINGS AND INFORMATION SOURCES Berkes, Fikret (ed). Common Property Resources, (London: Belhaven Press, London, 1989). and David Feeny. “Paradigms Lost. Changing Views on the use of Common Property Resources”, Alternatives Vol. 17, No. 2, 1990. Bodley, John. Tribal Peoples and Development Issues: A Global Overvies, (California: Mayfield Publishing Company, 1988). Brunmee, Jutta. “Common Interest - Ethos from an Empty Shell? Some Thoughts on Common Interest and International Environmental Law”, ZaoRV Heidelberg Journal of International Law, Sonderabdruck aus Band, 49-Nr4, 1989. Burger, Julian. The Gaia Atlas of First Peonies: A Future for the Indinenous World, (New York: ,Doubleday, 1990). D’Amato, A. and SK. Chopra. “Whales: Their Emerging Right to Life”, American Journal of International Law, 85:21-62, 1991. Dasmarm, Raymond F. “Ecosystem People”, I.U.C.N. Bulletin. Reprinted 1976 in Parks Vol. 1 No.1, 1975. Doubleday, Nancy C. “Aboriginal Subsistence Whaling: The Right to Hunt Whales and the Implications for International Environmental Law”, Denver Journal of International Law, Vol. 17 No.2:373-393, 1989. Freeman, Milton M.R. “The Alaska Eskimo Whaling Commission: Successful Co-management under Extreme Conditions”, in E. Pinkerton (ed), Co-onerative Management of Local Fisheries, (Vancouver: University of British Columbia Press, 1988). , Eleanor E. Wein and Darren Keith. Recoverinn Rights. Bowhead Whales and Inuvialuit Subsistence in the Western Canadian Arctic, (Canadian Circumpolar Institute and Fisheries Joint Management Committee, 1992).
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Government of Canada. Canada’s Green Plan, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1990). Canada’s Green Canada, 1992).
Plan
and
the
Earth
Summit,
(Ottawa:
Environment
Canada’s National Renort: United Nations Conference on Environment and DeveloDment Brazil. June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991). Inter Press Services. Storv Earth: Native Voices on the Environment, (San Francisco: Mercury House, 1993). International Development Research Centre (IDRC). Agenda 21: Abstracts. Reviews. and Commentaries, (Theodora Carroll-Foster, editor), (Ottawa: IDRC, 1993). Inuit Circumpolar Conference. Principles and Elements for a Comnrehensive Arctic Policv, (Ottawa: Inuit Circumpolar Conference, 1992). Johnson, Martha. Lore: Capturing; Traditional Environment Knowledee, (Derte Cultural Institute and the International Development Research Centre, 1992). Keating, Michael. APenda for Change: A Plain Language Version of Agenda and the Other Rio Agreements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993).
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Livingston, John A. The Fallacv of Wildlife Conservation, (Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 1981). Lynge, Finn. Ethics of a Killer Whale or: The Ethics of Killing a Whale, (1991). “Of Moose and Men - and Whales. A Question of Rights”, in George Blichfeldt (ed) Bigger Than Whales, a Special Publication for the International Whaling Commission Meeting, Glasgow, (Reine, Lofoten, Norway: High North Alliance, 1992). .
Lovelock, James E. Gaia. A New Look at Life on Earth, (New York Oxford University Press, 1979). .
Healing Gaia - Practical Medicine for the Planet, (New York: Harmony Books, 1991)
Merchant, Carolyn. The Death of Nature, (San Francisco: Harper and Row, 1980). Rydell, Robert. “Human Curiosity’, Science 259:108-109 (1993), review of Philips Vemer Bradford and Harvey Blume, Ota. The Pvgmv in the Zoo, (New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1992). World
310
Conference on Environment and Development. Oxford University Press, 1987).
Our Common Future,
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Information Sources: Apikan Indigenous Network, 154 Aylmer Avenue, Ottawa, Ontario, KlS 2Y4, tel(613) 7307059, fax (613) 730-5621.
Assembly of IFirst Nations (AFN), 55 Murray Street, 5th floor, Ottawa, Ontario, KlN 5M3, tel (613) 236-0673, fax (613) 238-5780. I&it Circumploar Conference (ICC), 170 Laurier Ave. West, Suite 504, Ottawa, Ontario, KlP 5V5, tel(613) 563-2642, fax (613) 565-3089. limit Tapir&at of Canada @‘PC), 170 Laurier Ave. West, Suite 510, Ottawa, Ontario, KlP 5V5, tel (613) 238-8181, fax (613) 234-1991. Native Women’s Association of Canada (NWAC),9 Melrose Avenue, Ottawa, Ontario, KlY lP8, tel (613) 722-7033, fax (613) 722-7687. United Nations Commiss ion for Sustainable Development, Department of Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development, Room S-3060, United Nations, New York, NY, 10017, USA, tel (212) 963-5959. United Native Nations, 736 Granville Street, 8th Ploor, Vancouver, British Columbia, V6Z lG4, tel(604) 688-1821, fax (604) 688-1923.
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CHAPTER 27 Strengthening the Role of Non-Governmental Organizations: Partners for Sustainable Development
- Theodora Carroll-Foster THE NATURE OF TElE PROBLEM Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) have played and continue to play a vital role in the shaping and implementation of participatory democracy. Due to their wide range of experience over many decades, NGOs are increasingly well positioned to play an important role in helping society move away from unsustainable development patterns. A major attribute of NGOs has been their independent and autonomous nature, which is also a precondition of real participation. But a problem is arising, as FGOs become increasingly dependent on governments for funding, their independence may be eroded and their voices may be checked. In recent years, the NGO community has developed a global network, that could be tapped, enabled, and strengthened in support of both government and private sector efforts to achieve the common goals of sustainability. NGOs and environmental NGOs (ENGOs) combined, possess well-established and diverse experience, expertise and capacity which could be useful in mobilizing support and deriving solutions for sustainability efforts. With their expertise and abilities in such. areas as education, poverty alleviation and environmental protection, NGOs and ENGOs could be more greatly involved in both United Nations’ and national governments’ mechanisms for making policies and decisions on sustainable development and for reviewing and evaluating how Agenda 21 is implemented. But they continue to meet with resistance, albeit somewhat diminished, on the part of both governments and UN agencies. In Canada, over 150 development NGOs areformally registered with the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) , and hundreds of ENGOs (large and small) exist across Canada. Many have developed links with NGOs in developing count&s, such as with the Third World Network based in Penang, Malaysia.
Theodom Car&l-Foster is the Coordinator/Advisor of the Agenda 21 Unit at the Intematibnal Development Research Centre (IDRC). l’%e views expressed in this chapter are those of the author, with input from a number of StakehoiVers, and do not necessady reflect the views of the IDRC or the Projet de soci&&
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A number of regional networks, such as the South Asia Partnership, have been established to handle regional or transboundary issues and to share information. The scope and strength of the NGO movement, which encompasses over and above the development and environmental NGOs, women’s organizations, business associations, civil society groups, and not-for-profit agencies, was demonstrated at the Global Forum, the NGO event that was held in parallel with UNCED at Rio in June 1992. PROGRAM AREAS AND OBJECTIVES In order to ensure that the full potential contribution of NGOs is realized, the Chapter recommends four specific objectives which governments and international bodies should undertake within the areas of communication and cooperation:
(1)
mechanisms to allow NGOs to play their partnership role responsibly and effectively in the process of environmentally sound and sustainable development, should be developed by governments and international bodies;
(2)
a process to review formal procedures and mechanisms to involve NGOs at all levels (policy-making, decision-making, implementation) should be initiated by the UN system and governments;
(3)
a “mutually productive dialogue” should be established at the national level between all governments and NGOs regarding their respective roles in environmentally sound and socially responsible sustainable development by 1995; and,
(4)
NGOs should be promoted and allowed to participate in the conception, establishment, and evaluation of official mechanisms and procedures to review Agenda 21 implementation.
In order to achieve the above, the United Nations system was called upon to enhance NGO participation in inter-agency meetings and UN conferences, especially in Agenda 21 follow-up. Governments were urged to involve NGOs in national measures to implement and monitor Agenda 21; expand NGOs’ involvement in formal and informal education, and public’ awareness; and to provide NGOs with all necessary data and information for their effective contribution.
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CANADIAN POSITIONS AT RIO 1.
Official Canadian Position At Rio, the official Canadian position involved four key objectives:
(1)
to seek support internationally for the principle of NGO involvement as social partners and for the review of official procedures and mechanisms for the substantive involvement of NGOs at all levels, from policy and decision-making to implementation both nationally and internationally (including within UN institutions);
(2)
to seek to strengthen the commitment of governments to develop productive dialogue with independent, self-organ&d groups of NGOs and to recognize and empower them in implementing environmentally sound and sustainable development;
(3)
to seek to strengthen support for NGO funding at the international level so as to continue the networking of NGOs internationally, especially for monitoring and reporting on the state of the global environment; and,
(4)
to avoid approval of new institutions for achieving these objectives.
Overall, Canada preferred to work with existing institutions at the international level and with its own mechanisms internally within the country. It did not see the need for new institutions, but rather envisaged existing institutions becoming more inclusive of and responsive to NGOs. 2.
Non-Governmental Organizations The two primary objectives of NGOs were:
0
that UNCED recognize that the term â&#x20AC;&#x153;NGOâ&#x20AC;? can not effectively be used as a generic word which encompasses all non-government groups, especially given their diverse interests, roles and abilities; and,
0
that there be consistent multi-sectoral participation, including NGOs, in policy making, management, and all other program areas addressed within Agenda 21. Specifically, NGOs wanted their expertise, experience, and capacities, to be recognized and have a significant active role in the global movement towards sustainability.
In the past, under United Nations terminology, the definition of NGO has meant any independent non-government group -- including profit, non-profit, indigenous, labour and other groups. Canadian NGOs were actively supportive and involved with the international NGO lobbying of UNCED which strongly advocated for the need to Projet de sod.&& Planning for a Sustainable Future
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recognize and address different types of NGOs. Indeed, as a result of this international lobbying, NGOs were successful in adding to the originally proposed list of Agenda 21 issues an additional 10 chapters (numbers 23-32) which focused on the roles of nine specific major groups of society in the global movement toward sustainability. As such, it can be said that the two main objectives of Canadian NGOs were met. Regarding the content of Chapter 27, NGOs were pleased with terminology such as:
0 0 0
l
recognizing that NGOs play “a vital role in the shaping and implementation of participatory democracy” ; NGO credibility arises from the “responsible and constructive role they play in society”; NGOs possess “well-established and diverse experience, expertise and capacity” which is * important to the review and implementation of environmentally sound and socially responsible sustainable development”; and, NGOs are/have a “global network, that should be tapped, enabled, and strengthened in support of the efforts to achieve the common goals (of sustainability).
However, Canadian NGOs were, in general, disappointed in the lack of specific concrete programs and resources which would enable active participation of NGOs in postUNCED follow-up. Many of the NGOs’ concerns and agreements on specific sustainability issues were encapsulated in the NGO Treaties (also known as Citizen’s Commitments, or Protocols), which were agreements between north and south NGOs on actions which they indicated they were prepared to carry out. These were developed at the NGO Global Forum at Rio, which parallelled the UNCED meeting. 3.
Business and Industry With regard to the content of Chapter 27, business concerns were related to recommendations for strengthening the role of NGOs, because it seemed that the granting of new rights to such groups (i.e., to participate in decision-making processes) would not be available to others in society. Such proposals were viewed as risky to the democratic process, unless properly framed; Business thought that it was questionable whether significantly enhancing the ability of NGOs to access legal action, except in specific instances of a clear failure by government to act to protect the environment, would bring about corresponding environmental improvements. Moreover, business believed that the enforcement of environmental laws and regulations should be a job for governments, which are politically accountable for their actions, and which have the responsibility to make decisions that are simultaneously good for the environment and the economy. NGOs, by contrast, are not seen as being accountable or responsible to the larger community, but only to themselves or their immediate constituencies.
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4.
Indipenous While Canadian Indigenous representatives supported the need for a strong role for NGOs, it should be noted that Indigenous organizations in Canada, in general, do not consider themselves to non-governmental organizations - rather they view themselves as the legitimate representatives of their constituents - and as such, focused their attention on Chapter 26 The Role of Indigenous People and their Communities.
COMMITMENTS MADE BY CANADIANS
1.
Legally-bindiw
Documents
None. 2.
Political Pronouncements Although specific political pronouncements about the inclusion of NGOs were not made, in practice and in generally accepted principle, NGOs are increasingly being included in a systematic and systemic way. This was evidenced in the support of NGOs during the UNCED process.
3.
Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NGO Treaties At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organ&&ion Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Oca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. Of these treaties, four addressed the issues discussed in Chapter 27. Code of Conduct for NWs The NGO Code of Conduct outlines ethical and accountability agreements NGOs could sign in order to build up constituency bases and truly serve the people within their communities. For groups working together on various campaigns, their treatyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s overriding principle is that there be consultation among NGOs before anyone takes a position that might affect another. In the case of an NGO working outside its own country, Northern and Southern groups should collaborate on the basis of equal partnership and a recognition that each group has the major responsibility for activities within its own country.
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Trtqy for NW Cooperationand Sharing of Resources NGOs commit in this treaty to certain actions, including responding to specific requests of other NGO signatories of the treaty, such as conducting research and advocacy. NGOs also suggest that they participate in two or more of the following activities a~uaUy: personnel exchange programs with other NGOs; workshops or skills and resources training sessions; raising public awareness in respective countries about specific activities; and assisting NGO partners in their fund raising. NGOs assert that they will strive to share the equivalent of at least one percent of their annual budgets with other NGOs. No new global mechanisms will be formed to administer the treaty. Rio Framework Treaty on NW GlobalDecision-Making Within the Rio Framework Treaty on NGO Global Decision-Making, certain objectives were outlined by NGOs, which relate directly to strengthening the role of NGOs as partners in sustainable development (the subject of Chapter 27). The three general objectives of the treaty are:
0
to strengthen existing networks and global alliances to promote and further the recognition of NGOs, as well as participatory democracy and the empowerment of all oppressed peoples;
l
to reinforce the recognition of all NGOs as one of the key elements of sustainable development; and,
0
to strengthen NGO’s rights and means of influencing the decision-making processes by using existing legal instruments and international commitments, as well as by promoting new and more progressive ones.
Overall, the alternative NGO treaties are far-reaching and cover many aspects of the North and South NGOs’ concerns. Internaiiond TreatyBetween NWs and Indigenous Peoples The Proposed International Treaty - Northern Non-Government Organizations’ and Indigenous Peoples’ Development, June 1992, directly addressed the need for recognizing and strengthening the role of Indigenous Peoples and their communities in the sustainable development process. The treaty states the following areas must be recognized and addressed by northern NGO’s entering into development activities:
0 l
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transfer of values - must minimize the damage done by the imposition of western values; community control, management and ownership - development must be under their control in accordance with their values and institutions;
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community-based planning - pre-planning must be conducted with community participation; Indigenous knowledge - development should. be based on Indigenous knowledge spirituality - development should recognize it; respect - development should note respect for community, Mother Earth, other PeoPW sharing - reciprocity at all levels; technology - ensure culturally appropriate technologies are controlled by Indigenous Peoples and intellectual property rights are protected; sustainable development - Indigenous knowledge in this area should be shared; capacity building - to allow Indigenous Peoples to develop on their own; destabilizii Indigenous societies - discontinuation of disruptive practices such as westernized schools, religions, etc.; western models - will not be used; Indigenous non-government organ&&ions - northern NGO’s will support their creation through funding and training; new Indigenous institutions - northern NGO’s support the development of new regional and international development organ&ions which will include the research and collection of Indigenous knowledge for the improvement of resource management systems and for educational purposes; Indigenous financial institutions - managed and controlled by Indigenous Peoples and which have the power to deal with international agencies to obtain more financing and support; northern NGO accountability - must establish greater accountability measures to Indigenous Peoples; and, consultations and harmonization - northern NGO’s must develop policies which provide consultative mechanisms with Indigenous Peoples and to harmonize their policies with Indigenous Peoples’ priorities, values and culture and with Indigenous Peoples’ consent. Kari-oca
The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference. They developed and adopted a 109~point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter. DEF’ICIJZNCIES.GAPS AND CONSTRAINTS WITHIN CHAPTER 27 The most obvious gap within Chapter 27 is that the chapter does not provide suggestions as to how to effectively implement the strengthening of the roles of NGOs. No real agreements, processes, or mechanisms were put in place to ensure that the general objectives of what governments should do are actuahzed. In addition, the need for substantial new financial resources for NGOs is largely ignored. Projet de soci&~: Phnning for a Sustainable Future
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The chapter’s statement that governments need to “strengthen legislative measures necessary to enable the establishment of consultative groups by NGOs” and “ensure NGOs the right to protect the public interest through legal action” does not address or consider that these two principles assume that countries are all given to democracy or at least democratic participation by their citizens and communities. As such, the chapter side-steps the issue that many governments are very suspicious of NGO and peoples’ movements, and that these governments often put up road blocks, including persecution, to halt the momentum and action of NGOs. The chapter also does not address the nature of some NGOs who may prefer to work on (and often feel that their role is) monitoring and challenging the governments. Such NGOs often feel that working with governments would be a form of coercion and control. Other NGOs prefer to work with governments in a participatory, consensus building approach. Indeed, one of the main deficiencies of the chapter is that it still treats NGOs in a monolithic way, assuming that NGOs have a common cause, agenda and approach. Given the huge diversity of NGOs this is usually not the case. Even “non-profit NGOs” are tremendously diverse. They have different foci and range -- from local to national to international foci. They represent different sectors of society, not only those already noted as different major groups within Agenda 21 (women, youth, labour, etcetera) but also religion, disabled, environmental, developmental, academic, media, etcetera. They have varied approaches, plans, interests, outlooks, and actions. Finally, the chapter does not adequately define many of the words, such as “NGO” or “partnership,” on which the whole thrust of the text hinges. As such, much of the chapter is wide open to interpretation.
COMPARISON BETWEEN CURRENT CANADIAN GoCOMMITMENTS MADE
POLICY AND
The Canadian government has consistently made efforts to integrate NGOs and their perspectives in the UNCED process. Specifically, Canada supported NGO involvement and participation by:
0
providing a set grant for NGO consultation, coordination, participation and travel during the UNCED preparatory process which was chaneled through the Canadian Participatory Committee for UNCED (CPCU);
0
seeking NGO input during the government’s development and preparation of positions on the UNCED issues; and,
l
providing seats on its delegations to the Preparatory Committees, as welf as to UNCED itself, for NGO, business and indigenous representatives.
Canada has continued to seek NGO participation in post UNCED international fora, such as the United Nations Commission for Sustainable Development.
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In Canada the Canadian government is supportive of an active and multisectoral initiative at the national, provincial, and municipal levels. Examples include: the Projet de societ.6; the National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy; provincial Round Tables; etc. However, many NGOs are concerned with the minimal financial support provided by government for such input and involvement by NGOs.
CANADIAN ACTIVITIES EVOLVING TKROUGH THE SUSTAINABILITY PROCESS Canadian NGOs at the local, regional, national and international level continue to be actively involved in all of the sustainability issues, including those issues not addressed by UNCED. Some focus on one or two issues, some focus on the inter-relationships between specific issues, and others take holistic approaches. NGOs are involved in education, lobbying for change, networking, research, consensus building, etcetera -- a huge range of programs and initiatives. Some NGOs are responding to either, or both, UNCED and the Global Forum in a variety of ways. Some NGOs promote the products, others critique the products, others use them as educational tools or as a basis for new and/or continued discussions. Other NGOs have not responded in any way to either conference, but continue to work on sustainability issues in the manner that they have done over past decades. Some NGOs prefer to work alone, other are continuing to build partnerships with other NGOs, and others are building partnerships with institutions and/or business and/or governments. During the UNCED process, the Canadian Participatory Committee for UNCED (CPCU) was formed to facilitate and coordinate the active involvement of Canadian NGOs in the prepatory process leading up to and including UNCED. It was comprised of many existing umbrella networks representing environmental, developmental, public policy, indigenous, labour, women, youth, peace and interfaith groups. Some of its activities included: communication to and among its member networks; national review and strategy session in preparation for PrepCom IV and Rio; facilitating input to the governmentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s process of developing positions for UNCED; preparing and distributing reports on the status of the UNCED Process; and developing a crossCanada pubic mobilization program. Post-UNCED, Canadian NGOs are establishing an NGO Forum for Sustainability, a new organizational coalition, to continue the multisectoral policy dialogue undertaken through the CPCU. The purpose of the Forum is to continue to provide a forum for NGOs from different social change sectors in Canada to work together to promote a sustainable future locally, regionally, nationally, and globally. Regarding the NGO Global Forum and its NGO treaties, the Canadian Council for International Cooperation (CCIC) has taken the lead in promoting and distributing the treaties as well as promoting and continuing the North-South NGO dialogue.
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A large number of initiatives are being undertaken by business and industry to move towards more public consultation; including by NGOs/ENGOs, and towards more consensus-building models instead of conflictual negotiations. One example is the Mining Association of Canada’s Whitehorse Mining Initiative which has developed multi-stakeholder processes using the greater involvement of NGOs. In September 1992, the Mining Association of Canada.(MAC) proposed that Mines Ministers initiate a process of multi-stakeholder study and consultation on the development of a “Whitehorse Chapter” and a coordinated strategy for the minerals and metals section. The Mines Ministers agreed to a process to work towards the “Whitehorse Mining Initiative” (WMI), using a planning group of industry, government, labour, environment and aboriginal representatives. A Progress Report on the WMI was made to the meeting of Mines Ministers during the Prospectors and Developers Conference in March 1993. The input from labour, aboriginal and environmental interests, among others, were seen as vital to the results of the Initiative. The WMI intends to take the results of its analysis and find a way whereby the respective goals and objectives of the multi-stakeholders affected by the mining industry can be brought together, as well as showing that the mining industry’s contribution to economic prosperity in Canada is important. Overall the strengthening of the role of NGOs as partners in and for sustainable development is occurring throughout Canada through a diverse array of orgauizations including: the Alberta Round Table on the Environment and the Economy, The Bruce Trail Association, the Canadian, the Clean Nova Scotia Foundation, Lynn Canyon Ecology Centre, Micah Institute of Southern Alberta, Nova Scotia Teachers’ Union, Saskatchewan Eco Network, Women for a Just and Healthy Planet, and the Canadian Environmental Network to name of few. Canada’s support for, and funding of, NGOs is not new. Among industriahzd nations, Canada has been one of the most supportive. CJDA, the International Development Research Centre (JDRC) and the National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy (NRTEE) have long recoguized the importance of involving NGOs in a fully participatory way in their programming. Both CIDA and LDRC have established extensive policies for ensuring NGO consultation and participation, and over the last two decades allocated considerable financial resources to NGO support and development. For example, the IDRC has supported the Third World Network and its initiatives, including the production of research papers on key Agenda 21 topics from a southern perspective. The NRTEE has several NGO representatives sitting as full members of the round table.
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The Green Plan committed the Federal Government to consult actively with the public on environmental issues and to provide funding to NGOs/ENGOs to enable them to expand their public participation activities. As a consequence, the level of participation in government decision-making by and in partnership with NGOs/ENGOs has risen dramatically and is among the most participatory in the world. This has been aided by such umbrella groups as the Canadian Council for International Cooperation (CCIC), various provincial councils, and the Canadian Environmental Network (CEN). The involvement and building of partnerships with NGOs goes beyond NGOs and governments; NGOs and indigenous, NGOs and NGOs; and NGOs and business. Institutions such as the IDRC and the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) have also developed partnerships with NGOs. As well, there are increasing numbers of fora where all of these sectors of society work together in partnership on sustainability issues. Examples include the national and provincial round tables on the environment and the economy; multi-se&oral consultations around government positions to the United Nations Commission for Sustainable Development; and the Projet de So&t&
OTHERRELEVANT
INTERNATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY-RELATED IWRA
Many NGOs have observer status at the United Nations and with various UN agencies. They have established liaison with the World Bank, the Commission for Sustainable Development, the Earth Council, etc., and have developed many regional and global networks. Global Forum 1994 SUGGESTED READINGS AND INF’ORMATION SOURCES Association of Community Colleges of Canada (ACCC) and the National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy (NRTEE). Green Guide - A User’s Guide to Sustainable Development for Canadian Colleges, (Ottawa: National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy, 1992). Cooper, Andrew Fenton and J. Stefan Fritz. “Bringing the NGOs Into UNCED and Canada’s International Policy” in International Journal, (Toronto: Canadian Institute of International Affairs, Autumn, 1992). Cumming, Lawrence. “Between Recession and Redefinition: A Case Study of Canadian Voluntary International Development Organizations”, (Ottawa: Department of Multiculturalism and Citizenship Canada, September 1992). Khor, Martin. “The Earth Summit Ends with Disappointment, Concern and Hope: A Brief Analysis”, (Malaysia: Third World Network, June 1992). Government of Canada. Canada’s Green Plan, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1990). Projet de soc&W: Planning for a Sustainable Future
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Canada’s Green Canada, 1992).
Assessment of Agenda 21
Plan
and
the
Earth
Summit,
(Ottawa:
Environment
Canada’s National Renort: United Nations Conference on Environment and Development Brazil. June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991). “Consultations and Partnerships: Environment Canada, 12 June 1992).
Working Together with Canadians”;
(Ottawa:
Government of Pakistan and International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), “The Pakistan National Conservation Strategy”, Karachi, International Development Research Centre. Agenda 21: Abstracts. Reviews. and Commentaries, (Theodora CarrollFoster, ed), (Ottawa: IDRC, 1993). S&ma
Ltd and EDPRA Consulting Inc. “An Evaluation of CIDA’s Non-Governmental Organization Department’s (NGOD) Program”, (Ottawa: Canadian International Development Agency, Spring 1992).
Yap, Nonita. “NGOs and Sustainable Development”, International Journal, 45 (l), 1990.
Information Sources: Canadian Council for International Cooperation (CCIC), 1 Nicholas Street, Suite 300, Ottawa, Ontario, KlN 7B7, tel(613) 2364547, fax (613) 2362188. The Centre for Our Common Future (Publishers of The Network,a monthly newsletter which monitors and reports on follow-up activities to the Earth Summit and The 23uZZetin, a comprehensive quarterly journal of sustainable development initiatives throughout the world), Palais Wilson, 52 rue des Paquis, CH-1201, Geneva, Switzerland, tel(022) 732 71 17, fax (022) 738 50 46.
The Earth Negotiations Bulletin (successor to the Earth Summit Bulletin) is available on E-mail in the APC computer conference on unced.news. NGO Forum for Sustainability, 63 Sparks Street, Room 603, Ottawa, Ontario, KlP 5A6, tel (613) 238-3811, fax (613) 594-2948. UnitedNations Commiss ion for Sustainable Development, Department of Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development, Room S-3060, United Nations, New York, N.Y., 10017, USA, tel (212) 963-5959.
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CHAPTER 28 Local Authoritiesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Initiatives in Support of Agenda 21
- Gordon Clvford -
THE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM Many of the problems and solutions addressed in Agenda 21 are rooted in local activities. Consequently, the participation of local authorities will be a determining factor in achieving the objectives of Agenda 21. Local authorities, such as municipal governments, are responsible for implementing national, as well as local policies, and providing infrastructure. They are responsible for building and maintaining such structures as: drinking-water systems and roads; overseeing the planning of housing and industrial development; setting local environmental policies; and helping to implement national environmental policies. The chapter draws attention to the important role of local authorities in development, which has often been ignored in the past by planners. The role of local authorities is significant in most of the Agenda 21 chapters. From the perspective of developing countries, one of the greatest difficulties is the lack of power, resources and democracy at the local level.
PROGRAM AREAS AND OBJECThe majority of the objectives and activities proposed in this chapter relate to the areas of networking, information collection or capacity-building within local authorities. Objectives and activities place an emphasis on the need for networking among, strengthening of, and technical assistance to, local authorities.
Gordon CTt#fod is a consulhnt with Consulting and Ami& iknaak. l7u views expressed in this chapter are those of the author who received input from a number of stakeholders and do not represent the views of ConsuiIing and Audit Canada or the hjet de so&M.
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The objectives of the chapter include:
(1)
by 1996, most local authorities in each country should have undertaken a consultative process with their populations and achieved a consensus on “a local Agenda 21”;
(2)
by 1993, the international community should have initiated a consultatke process aimed at increasing cooperation between local authorities;
(3)
by 1994 representatives of associations of cities and other local authorities should have increased cooperation and coordination with the goal of enhancing the exchange of information and experience among local authorities; and,
(4)
all local authorities in each country should be encouraged to implement and monitor programs which aim at ensuring that women and youth are represented in decision-making, planning and implementation.
CANADIAN POSITIONS AT RIO 1.
Official Canadian Position The official Canadian position was comprised of three primary objectives:
2.
(1)
to strengthen partnerships through iucreased coordination among UN agencies, international organizations and international and national representatives of local authorities in the implementation of the recommendations of Section C, Chapter 5 of Agenda 21;
(2)
to avoid solely the designation of UN agencies as the prime agencies responsible for program initiatives related to local authorities; and,
(3)
to secure a formal role for international and national representatives of local authorities in the development and implementation of programs and activities at the local level as they relate to Agenda 21.
Non-Governmental Owanizations Under United Nations terminology, the definition of “NGO” has meant any nongovernmental group including profit, non-profit, indigenous, labour and other groups. Canadian NGOs strongly advocated for the need to recognize and address different types of NGOs. As such, NGOs supported the need to address the role of local authorities as a separate major group. However, NGOs did not develop positions directly related to Chapter 28.
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3.
Business and Tudustrv The position of business and industry groups in Canada was consistent with the official Canadian position.
4.
Indipenous Indigenous Peoples identified the need for the development of protocols which require the involvement of Indigenous Peoples at all levels of discussion and decision-making since international activities always affect Indigenous Peoples. Under Agenda 21, Indigenous Peoples were to be informed, consulted and allowed to participate at the national level for decisionmaking. This includes all geographic locales of Indigenous Peoples (i.e. urban, rural, remote and isolated areas).
CO-S 1.
MADE BY CANADIANS Lepally-bind@
Documents
None. 2.
Political Pronouncements None.
3.
Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NGO Treatiw At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organization Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Oca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. None of these treaties specifically addressed the issue of local authorities, though many of them called for a greater role for communities and NGOs in all levels of decision- making. KaJTi-oca The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference. They developed and adopted a 109~point Indigenous Peoplesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;
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Earth Charter. Local authorities were not directly addressed in the Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter.
DEFICIENCIES.
GAPS AND CONSTRAINTS WITHIN CHAPTER 28
In reviewing this chapter, a number of weaknesses and constraints to the achievement of its objectives are evident. In most countries, national and local governments have different powers and responsibilities. It may be difficult for some national governments to ensure that local authorities implement the actions agreed to in this chapter. In effect, therefore, the Chapter does not address the technical and institutional requirements of effective local sustainable development planning. Local governments could claim compliance by re-working old plans and making new pronouncements which will have little impact upon day-to-day practice. Although national governments recognize in Chapter 28 the need to strengthen local authorities’ ability to implement Agenda 21 activities, the relative strength and independence of local governments is often a politically sensitive issue. National (and regional) governments may be unwilling to devolve the necessary powers to local authorities to collect and manage the finances necessary to meet responsibilities. This could happen even where national governments have affirmed policies of decentralization of authority to local governments. A differentiation which was not made, but which would have been helpful is that local authorities are not, as may be assumed from the Chapter, homogenous. Specifically, the Chapter does not provide an operational definition of “local authorities”. Differences in size and relative power among authorities will prevail and, as such, local authorities are unlikely to be equal and politically neutral partners as the Chapter seems to imply. In the implementation of Chapter 28, it must not be assumed that all local authorities will behave uniformly or will speak with one voice in interchanges with other levels of government or with other sectors of society. In some countries this interchange is facilitated by organizations like Canada’s Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM). Not all countries, however, have similar vehicles through which local authorities can be collectively represented. The chapter ignores issues of central-local government relations which, from the point of view of federations such as Canada, are extremely important in any intergovernmental power sharing negotiation. Absent too, is any discussion of the means through which to enable public participation and consultation in policy making (e.g., a multistakeholder process) at the local level. Yet it is noteworthy that one of the underlying themes of the entire Agenda 21 document is the importance of empowering people at the grassroots level. This empowerment is necessary in order to enable citizens to foster and implement change leading to sustainable development. While recognizing that Agenda 21 does not seek to be a “how to” document, Chapter 28 would
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have been stronger with some discussion as to how local authorities can best “enter into a dialogue with its citizens”. This chapter does not address the matter of local government financing, which is a key to the planning and implementation of the activities in the Chapter and to sustainable economic, social and environmental planning and program implementation at the local level. This chapter recognises the need for “capacity building” in local governments, but does not provide details on what kind of “capacity building” is intended. This lack of specificity diminishes the importance of the main message of Chapter 28, which is that local authorities must play a critical role in promoting sustainable development. There is an implicit assumption in this chapter that local authorities act in the best interest of their citizens, that they are politically neutral and that there are no security risks to citizens in the implementation of the Chapter’s recommended activities. This assumption may be rather spurious to the extent that local governments may be unwilling to allow participation or they may have interests other than meeting the needs of the public. Moreover, it may be politically unacceptable in some countries to allow the kind of democratisation that citizen participation, as called for in this chapter, would require.
COMPARISON BETWEEN CURRENT CANADIAN GOD CO-SMADE
POLICY AND
As noted above, national and local governments often have different and mutually exclusive powers and responsibilities. This situation certainly applies to Canada. As a result, Canadian government policy must be scrutinized in terms of policies emanating from all levels of Canadian governments, In so doing, the commitments inherent in this chapter can be compared to what is being done under the umbrellas of the various levels of government. Many of the activities currently underway in Canada are consistent with Chapter 28’s commitments. However, Canada exhibits certain shortcomings, particularly in the lack of local programs consistent with the fourth objective of this chapter, that all countries should be encouraging local authorities to implement and monitor programs that ensure women and youth are represented in decision-making and plannmg . This weakuess may in part be attributed to jurisdictional uncertainties. Local authorities may for example, feel inclined to let federal or provincial policy dictate how youth and women are represented in decision-making, as federal policy already exists in this area (e.g. Affirmative Action). Since municipalities are essentially creatures of the provinces, they may do less to fulfil this objective than if responsibility in these matters were entirely in the local domain. With regard to the third objective on cooperation, there is hope that Canada’s Federation of. Canadian Municipalities (FCM) will contribute to more activity over the coming years on increasing the levels of cooperation, coordination and information sharing among local authorities in Canada.
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CANADIAN ACTIVITIES EVOLVING THROUGH THE SUSTAINABILITY PROCESS The lead agency representing local Canadian interests is the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM), while provincial interests are handled through the Intergovernmental Committee on Urban and Regional Research (ICURR) or through individual provincial IllilliStries. For Example, the ICURR has produced a Resource Guide to Sustainable Develonment in Ontario. At the municipal level, city governments are involved in myriad programs which involve varying types of local consultation and participation. The OttawaCarleton Greenprint process is but one example of a strategy to incorporate the views of citizens in the shaping of local environmental policy. The Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM), with support from the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) and State of the Environment Reporting, has launched the Canadian Urban Research on the Environment (CURE) Project. This project is Canada’s contribution to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development’s (OECD) Ecological Cities Project. CURE’s objective is to gather and disseminate information about Canadian municipal initiatives to improve the environment and promote long-term urban sustainability in Canada and abroad. The intent is to assist Canadii municipalities to learn from the experiences of other local governments to efficiently improve and enhance their environmental policies, programs and initiatives. FCM will be gathering information from Canadian municipalities in the Fall of 1993. The information gathered from the surveys and interviews will be stored in the CURE database and the results, including lists of municipal initiatives, indicators and contacts will be made available to FCM members and other organizations in published form and on computer diskette in the Spring of 1994. Under the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives, an international local Agenda 21 project has been established to be implemented in 21 cities worldwide. Canada’s contribution, which is funded by the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) and Environment Canada, is administered by FCM. Hamilton-Wentworth has been chosen as Canada’s model city for this project. Along with the Cam-&au Council of Ministers of the Environment (CCME), FCM is developing a primer for municipalities, describing Agenda 21 and how local governments should be involved in its implementation. The relationship among municipalities, NGOs and community-based organizations should be In particular, Canada has a strong tradition of interaction between community noted. associations and municipalities in the development of local public policy. Several of the provincial Round Tables on the Environment and the Economy have supported and published material which supports the development of local round tables. These round tables, in turn may prove instrumental in helping implement sustainable development initiatives consistent with Agenda 21 objectives at the local level.
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In early 1992, CMHC, CIDA, JDRC, and the UN Centre for Human Settlements (UNCHS) completed a worldwide state-of-the-art study on the relationship between sustainable development and human settlements in each region of the world. CIDA is on the Steering Committee, acting as a facilitator and providing financial support to the following programs: Open China Cities Project and Africa 2000 (both managed by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities); the creation of two urban-oriented Centres of Excellence at Canadian Universities; Management Development Program (Sub-Saharan Africa); and the SACDEL program (the Regional Training System for Local Urban Development and Improvement of Municipal Administration in Latin America). CMHC has also been involved in a strategy that approaches sustainable development through the integration of social, economic, and environmental dimensions. SzmainubleDevelopment: l&e Urban Dimension is a CMHC strategy paper that examines the urban issues relating to sustainable development. In addition, CMHC has been developing indicators for the quality of life in municipalities. In June of 1993, Canada announced that Vancouver would become home to Canadaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s first International Centre for Sustainable Cities, which will bring together Canadian specialists to contribute their expertise to help manage the rapid growth of cities worldwide. The Federal government intends to provide $3.5 million in Green Plan funding for the Centre from 1993 to 1995. Teams of Canadian experts in the areas of urban management, planning, transportation, sewage and water treatment will be assembled by the Centre to work under contract for such organizations as the World Rank, the Canadian Jnternational Development Agency, the UN Development Program and the UN Centre for Human Settlements in their various programs related to urban&ion. Canada is party to all of the international organizations listed in the following section and, as such, Canada is already closely involved in meeting the requirements of the second objective of this chapter.
OTHER RELEVANT INTERNATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY-RELATED Fâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ORA International institutional representation by Canada occurs through the following programs and agencies:
0
OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) Group on Urban Affairs and Development Assistance Committee
0
United Nations Centre for Human Settlements (Habitat/UNCHS)
0
Urban Management Program (UNDP, UNCHS, World Rank)
0
United Nations Development Program - LIFE m Program
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International Union of Local Authorities
0
International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives
0
International New Towns Association
0
Canadian International programs)
0
International Centre for Sustainable Cities
Development
Agency (Management
for Change,. bilateral
SUGGESTED READINGS AND INFORMATION SOURCES British Columbia Round Table on the Environment and Economy. Guide to Establishing: a Local Round Table, (Victoria, B.C. : BCRTEE, 1993). An Environmental Handbook for Municipal Officials of Federation of PEI Municipalities. Prince Edward Island, (Charlottetown: 1988). Garcia-Zamor (ed.). Public Particiuation in Development Planning and Management, (London: Westview Press, 1985). Government of Canada. Canada’s Green Plan, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1990). .
Canada’s Green Plan and the Earth Summit, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1992).
Canada’s Develonment
National Remrt: United Nations Conference on Environment Brazil. June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991).
and
International Development Research Centre. Apenda 21: Abstracts. Reviews. and Commentaries, (Theodora Carroll-Foster, ed), (Ottawa:IDRC, 1993). International NGO Forum. Alternative Treaty-Making: A Process in Su~mrt of Sustainable Societies and Global Responsibility, (October 1992). Keating, Michael. Agenda for Change: A Plain Lanauage Version of Agenda 21 and the Other Rio Aareements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993). National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy (NRTEE). Sustainable Development and the Municipality, (Ottawa: NRTEE, 1991) Potter, Robert. Urbanization and Planning the 3rd World, (New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1985).
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Re-port on the Meeting of International Associations of Cities and Local Authorities, Janeiro: January 1992).
(Rio de
Roseland, Mark. Towards Sustainable Communities, (Ottawa: National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy (NRTEE), 1992). World Commission on Environment and Development. Our Common Future, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987).
Information Sources: Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), 1565 Carliug Avenue, Suite 300, Ottawa, Ontario, KlY 4G1, tel (613) 728-6884, fax (613) 748-5130. Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM), 24 Clarence Street, Ottawa, Ontario, KIN 5P3, tel(613) 237-5221, fax (613) 237-2965. International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives, Toronto City Hall, East Tower, 8th Floor, Toronto, Ontario, M5H 2N2, tel (416) 392-1462, fax (416) 392-1478. United Nations Commissâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ton for Sustainable Development, Department of Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development, Room S-3060, United Nations, New York, N-Y., 10017, USA, tel (212) 963-5959.
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CHAPTER 29 Strengthening the Role of Workers and their Trade Unions
THE NATURE OF ‘I’ELEPROBLEM Workers will unquestionably be among those that pay the primary costs of adjustment to sustainable development. Consequently, with experience in dealing with industrial change, trade unions will have a integral role to play in achieving sustainable development and should be involved in the process right from the beginning. Environment and development strategies will affect employment policies, industrial strategies, ‘labour adjustment programs and technology transfers. Therefore, at both national and international levels, tripartism principles provide a strong basis for strengthened cooperation and collaboration between workers, government, and employers with regards to environmental issues and the implementation of sustainable development.
PROGRAM AREAS AND OBJECTn7Es The overall objective of Chapter 29 is “poverty alleviation and full and sustainable employment, which contribute to safe, clean and healthy environments -- the working environment, the community and the physical environment.” The need for workers to be full participants in the implementation and evaluation of activities related to Agenda 2 1, is also given importance. To meet these goals, the following objectives are proposed for accomplishment by the year 2000:
(1)
to promote ratification Organization (ILO);
of relevant conventions of the International
Labour
(2)
to establish bipartite and tripartite mechanisms on safety, health and sustainable development;
(3)
to increase the number of environmental collective agreements aimed at achieving sustainable development;
This chapter is incomplete. It was contributed fo by a number of different stakeholders. The viewspresented in this chapter do not necessahYy represent the views of the Projet de sociM.
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(4)
to reduce occupational accidents, injuries and diseases according to recogniz& statistical reporting procedures; and,
(5)
to increase the provision of workersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; education, training and retraining, particularly in the area of occupational health and safety and environment.
CANADIAN POSITIONS AT RIO 1.
Official Canadian Position The officitit Canadian position generally favoured the original text of this chapter, which had been drafted in close consultation with the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions. It was, however, a specific objective of Canada to seek to support the participation of employees and their representatives (unions) in the decision-making process on environment and development, while at the same time allowing enough flexibility in the language used to accommodate their non-inclusion in some areas, such as those involving national security.
2.
Non-Governmental Ormmizations Not available.
3.
Businessa. Concern from business and industry arose regarding the section of Chapter 29 on the role of trade unions, which appeared to focus on new bureaucratic mechanisms, for example, enhancement of the role of the ILO, tripartite committees, full worker participation, etc. It is not cl.ear that these new mechanisms are the best way to achieve desired results. Moreover, little attention is given to the responsibilities of workers and unions, and to ensuring they have the proper skills to make a valuable contribution to environmental management. Another troubling issue for business and industry was that the document advocates a much greater role for unions in day-to-day corporate decisions, many of which would infringe upon the role of management. For instance, it is suggested that trade unions should participate in environmental audits at the workplace, as well as decisions about technology transfer. It is not clear that unions -- as opposed to specific employees who have under some rigorous training for these purposes -- have the necessary expertise to make such a meaningful contribution.
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4.
IndiPenous Indigenous Peoples identified the needs for the development of protocols which requires the involvement of Indigenous Peoples at all levels of discussion and decision-making since international activities always affect Indigenous Peoples. Under Agenda 21, Indigenous Peoples were to be informed, consulted and allowed to participate at the national level for decision-making. This includes all geographic locales of Indigenous Peoples (i.e., urban, rural, remote and isolated areas).
COMMITMENTS MADE BY CANADIANS 1.
Lxmllv-bindiw
Documents
None. 2.
Political Pronouncements None.
3.
Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NGO Treaties At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organization Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Oca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. None of the alternative NGO treaties dealt specifically with strengthening the role of workers and their trade unions. Kari-oca
The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference. They developed and adopted a 109point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter. There were no explicit references made in the Kari-Oca declaration and Indigenous Peoples’ EIarth Charter to workers and trade unions.
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DEFICIENCIES.5 The significance of Chapter 29 is limited due to the fact that it pushes for implementation of many things which are already on paper and generally ignored with regards to working conditions. The Chapter provides few new insights, primarily emphasiziig existing conventions which have often had little impact on workers’ lives and organization. The Chapter does, however, mention the need to increase workers’ education, training and retraining, which is critical to preparing workers to play an active role in sustainable economic development (SED). In many countries trade unions have little influence and are not big players in the debate. The Chapter does not address, however, the underlying issues obstructing workers’ political and workplace participation as a means to reach overall economic development. It also ignores the factors de&mining the extent in which workers and their organizations can influence aspects such as their technical development, their participation in the managem.ent of their work environments, and their sharing of wealth resulting from their work. Each of these points are critical in terms of strengthening the role which workers can play in SED. Additionally, Chapter 29 deals almost exclusively with organized or organizable labour. The Chapter ignores unorgani& labour, as well as the tension between the goals and needs of unorganizd and organized labour. This is despite the fact that in most developing countries, an important sector of the labour force is small-enterprise workers and workers in the informal sector, who are disenfranchised and do not benefit from participatory and representative forms of labour organization. Moreover, the most severe environmental damage is most likely to result from the actions of informal sector workers, and unorganized rural and formal sectors workers. With regards to the design, Chapter 29 is limited as an organizing framework, because it addresses problems a traditional UNCTAD/ILO manner. The Chapter is not written in a particularly realistic way and overlooks important issues such as the general lack of workers’ rights in many countries and the fact that the burden of macro-structural adjustment has fallen largely on workers. Additional pressures on workers may result from new SED and environmental strategies. These would then add to the impacts that structural adjustment programs have already had on workers.
COMPARISON BETWEEN CURRENT CANADIAN GoCO-SMADE
POLICY AND
Not available.
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CANADIANACTIVlTIES
EVOLVING THROUGH THE SUSTAINABILITY PROCl233
Canadian workers and trade unions have long been active in economic and environmental issues, especially occupational health and safety, waste management, and the management of toxic chemicals. They have introduced workplace environmental committees through unionmanagement committees into business, industry, and educational institutions. Both the Federal and provincial governments have worked with labour unions in developing workplace environmental education programs. Specifically, the Canadian Labour Congress has developed a Union Environmental Action Course for Canada. Parts of this initiative have been used to develop programs internationally and have been incorporated into IL0 environmental education initiatives. As well, governments and labour unions have developed a consultative process on such matters as environmental protection, pollution prevention, and waste management.
OTHER RELEVANT INTERNATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY-RELATED FORA l
International Confederation of Free Trade Unions
SUGGESTED READINGS AND INFORMATION SOURCES Canadian Chamber of Commerce (CCC) and National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy (NRTEE). Focus 2000: A Small Business Guide to Environmental Management, (Ottawa: NRTEE, September 1991). Jntemational Development Research Centre (JDRC). Ape&a 21: Abstracts. Reviews. and Commentaries. (Thcodora Carroll-Foster, editor), (Ottawa: IDRC, 1993). Schrekcr, Ted with Hugh Mackenzie and John Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Grady. Sustainable Development: Getting There From Here A Handbook for Union Environment Committees and Joint LabourManagement Environment Committees, (Ottawa: Canadian Labour Congress and the National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy, 1993).
Information Sources: Canadian Labour Congress, 2841 Riverside Drive, Ottawa, Ontario, KlV 8X7, tel(613) 5213400, fax (613) 521-4655. International Confederation of Free Trade Unions, Boulevard Emile Jacqmain, 155, B-1210, Brussels, Belgium. tel32-2-224-0211, fax 32-2-218-8415. UnitedNations Commiss xon for SustainableDevelopment, Department of Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development, Room S-3060, United Nations, New York, N.Y., 10017, USA, tel(212) 963-5959.
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CHAPTER 30 Strengthening the Role of Business and Industry
- George Miller THE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM Business and industry have a crucial role in bringing about environmentally sustainable economic development. Private sector economic initiative within a market framework is the chief contributor to the prosperity that makes possible advances in the social and physical well-being of populations. At the same time, the very prosperity of developed nations, and particularly the discrepancy in terms of prosperity and consumption patterns between the North and the South, is regarded by some as a problem largely attributable to the power of business and the untrammelled operation of trade and market forces. Moreover, many current environmental problems are attributable to industrial and developmental activities that have taken place in the past. In the absence of appropriate scientific knowledge, technology, legal and regulatory frameworks (including enforcement), and enlightened management, industrialization can create environmental impacts that thrcatcn the very prosperity, and well-being that are its goals. Resolving there contradictions is the important task for business leaders, governments and nongovernmental organizations. It is vital to identify paths of economic development that harness and enhance the capacity of business and industry to generate wealth, while providing for improved equity of economic opportunity (across and within nations) and for environmental sustainability. And the task is urgent. Because of the communications explosion, the world economy is inevitably growing ever more integrated and interdependent. Trade and investment flows are multiplying in quantity and diversity. Global economic restructuring is taking place at an unprecedented rate Our global challenge is to direct this economic change into the optimum path.
George Miller is the President of the &liking Associdon of CaRada The views expressed in this chapter are those of the author who received input from a number of stakeholdem, and do not necessady represent the views of the Mining Association of Canada or the Projet de so&W.
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PROGRAM AREAS AND OBJECnvEs Chapter 30 of Agenda 21 is written with a particular focus on business and industry, emphasizing initiatives that originate, or could originate, in that sector. Other chapters of Agenda 21 deal with institutional arrangements, the regulatory and enforcement roles of governments, and many other mechanisms and instruments designed to influence or control the operations of business enterprises in the direction of sustainable development. Accordingly, those chapters should be kept in mind when reading this chapter. The following two program areas are outlined in Chapter 30, along with their corresponding objectives. 1.
Promo&w Cleaner Production Where production technology and management use resources inefficiently, they create environmental problems, and need to be replaced with technologies, engineering and management practices and know-how that minimize waste throughout the product life cycle. The objective of cleaner production implies striving for optimal efficiencies at every stage of the product .hfe cycle. Chapter 30 suggests that cleaner production technology will make enterprises more competitive. Objective: Governments, business and industry, including transnational corporations, should aim to increase the efficiency of resource utilization, including increasing the reuse and recycling of residues, and to reduce the quantity of waste discharge per unit of economic output. Suggested activities include: strengthening partnerships; implementation by governments of economic instruments and normative measures, such as laws, legislations and standards; voluntary private initiatives; intemalization of environmental costs into accounting and pricing mechanisms; adoption of codes of conduct and reporting on performance; technological cooperation between enterprises; cooperation with workers and trade unions; improved environmental awareness of employees; increased education and training; and strengthened information dissemination on cleaner production methods.
2.
Promotine ResDonsibIe Entremeneurshk Entrepreneurship, particularly amonsg small and medium enterprises (SMEs), is a potent driving force for innovation, efficiency, rural development and other goals, such as providii opportunities for women. These enterprises can play a useful role in sustainable development. Objectives: To encourage the concept of stewardship in the management and utihzation of natural resources by entrepreneurs; and to increase the number of enterprises that subscribe to and implement sustainable development policies.
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Suggested activities include: encouragement of sustainably managed enterprises by regulatory, incentive and administrative means; establishment of venture capital funds for sustainable development projects; training in environmental aspects of entrepreneurship; apprenticeship schemes; worldwide corporate policies on sustainable development; and easy transfer of environmentally sound technology to developing country affiliates.
CANADIAN POSITIONS AT RIO 1.
Official Canadian Position The Preparatory Committee meetings addressed the role of business and industry in the context of the role of major groups. Canada sought to clarify confusion surrounding the definition of NGOs, address a perceived lack of equity in the treatment of different groups, and promote a more balanced portrayal of industry activities and responsibilities. The Federal government worked to ensure that the right to protect the public interest through legal action continues to be the responsibility of governments. Canada also promoted a shift away from what should be done Q industry and toward what can be accomplished with and by industry. In particular, Canada sought to:
2.
0
place greater emphasis on voluntary actions;
a
underscore the need for further research into concepts and methodologies to gradually intemalize environmental costs in pricing mechanisms; and,
0
ensure that rights of access and participation apply equally to all major groups.
Non-Governmental Owanizations Under United Nations terminology, the definition of NGO has meant any nongovernmental group including profit, non-profit, indigenous, labour and other groups. Canadian NGOs strongly advocated the need to recognize and address different types of NGOs. As such, non-profit NGOs supported the need to address the role of business and industry as a separate major group. In general, NGOs did not develop positions directly related to Chapter 30. However, NGOs were actively involved in lobbying on Agenda 21 chapters which related to the operations of business groups in the direction of sustainable development. Womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s groups, in particular, developed positions on a wide range of issues connected to the functions of business and industry. They brought forward positions favouring an International Code of Environmental Conduct for business and industry; undertaking to boycott industries whose practices and products are harmful to the environment and
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health; promoting recycling; and requiring all states and corporations who produce toxic chemical agents to dispose of toxic wastes domestically. 3.
Business and Industry Business input to UNCED strongly supported the concepts of cleaner production and responsible entrepreneurship and management. Two pre-UNCED conferences, one in Rotterdam in 1991, and one in Rio immediately prior to the Earth Summit, provided opportunities for Canadian business people to advocate stronger measures on the part of business and industry to protect the environment. In addition, business members of the Canadian delegation at UNCED and the Preparatory Committees emphasized the scope that exists throughout Agenda 21 for a balanced mix of government-initiated and industry-initiated measures to pursue the goal of sustainable development. A record of environmental action by business and industry worldwide (and a collection of best examples, including Canadii examples, for others to follow) was provided by a publication issued by the International Chamber of Commerce in anticipation of UNCED. A further commentary on broad approaches to sustainable development by business was published under the sponsorship of the Business Council for Sustainable Development. The Council, on which two Canadian executives served, was established by Stephan Schmidheiny prior to UNCED on the request of Maurice Strong. Both publications strongly support the themes of Chapter 30. Canadian business has been a leader in the development of voluntary programs for environmental protection. The Responsible Care program of the Canadian Chemical Producersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Association has been adopted by the world chemical industry. The Canadian Standards Association, with strong industry input, has moved quickly to develop comprehensive standards for environmental management and has recently undertaken to provide the secretariat for a similar project by the International Standards Organization.
4.
Indipenous Indigenous Peoples identified the need for the development of protocols which requires the involvement of Indigenous Peoples at all levels of discussion and decision-making since international activities always affect Indigenous Peoples. Under Agenda 21, Indigenous Peoples were to be informed, consulted and allowed to participate at the national level for decision-making. This includes all geographic regimes urban, rural, remote, and isolated areas wherever Indigenous People live.
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COMMITMENTS MADE BY CANADIANS 1.
Legally-Bind&
Documents
None. 2.
Political Pronouncements None.
3.
Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NGO Treaties At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organization Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Oca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. Although not addressing Chapter 30 specifically, a few of the alternative NGO Treaties created at Rio addressed issues raised in this chapter. These fall under the heading of “Combatting the Predatory Economic System” and include: Treaty on Alternative Economic Models; Treaty on Consumption and Lifestyle; Transnational Corporations (TNCs); and Alternative Treaty on Trade and Sustainable Development. For the majority of these treaties, NGO support was expressed by a loose coalition of individuals and groups. Representatives of a number of Canadian non-governmental organizations were involved in designing and supporting them. Taken together, these treaties strongly attack the “dominant free market/free trade economic system” which is blamed for “today’s crises in environment and development”. Consumption and lifestyle are to be transformed by the six “R”s of Revalue, Restructure, Redistribute, Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle. NGOs in Rio sought more regulation of TNCs through international mechanisms and offered to collaborate with other sectors of society to build up a countervailing power. Under new rules based on open, participatory democracy, not market forces, international trade would “improve the well being of people while promoting just and environmentally sound development.” Moreover, “national health, social and environmental standards should not be considered unfair barriers to trade. When conflicts arise, international agreements should settle them on the basis of maximum protection of the environment.” According to this view, the GATT (and its proposed expansion into the Multilateral Trade Organization), works in explicit opposition to the above principles, instead of supporting the broadest deregulation of TNC behaviour. NGOs at the Global Forum agreed to work together with civil society and governments to replace the GATT with an alternative, democratic International Trade
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Other treaties with implications for Organization @TO) based on these principles. business and industry dealt with energy, waste, nuclear energy, and climate change. Kari-oca
The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference. They developed and adopted a 109point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter. Indigenous members of the Canadian Delegation were involved in the development of the Declaration and Charter and supported its principles. Among other items in the Charter, Indigenous Peoples:
0
maintained the right to be free from pressures by multinational (transnational) corporations on their lives and lands;
0
demanded the return off affected lands and the revision of agrarian, mining and forestry policies;
0
desired a prohibition on deposition of toxic wastes and the mining, testing and .- dumping of nuclear materials; and,
0
called for cancellation of concessions and incentives for logging, cattle raising and mining.
DEF’ICIENCm.
GAPS AND CONSTRAINTS WITHIN CHAPTER 30
No one can refute the primary elements of this chapter. Cleaner production, as well as support and development of the entrepreneurial spirit in business, and especially in SME’s, is critical One of the to the development of national and international environmental programs. deficiencies of the chapter, however, seems to be the use of “sustainable” as the term analogous to “cleaner” or “more efficient”. Considerable leeway has been provided for the attainment of these goals which allows Government, Industry and the multinationals flexibility of approach. This is definitely needed; however, a diversity of paths may not provide maximum results for minimum of time and financial commitments.
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Highlighting multinational corporations, distinct from business and industry, suggests that they have a major and distinct role to play. Although multinationals, because of their size and global reach, have a substantial part to play in the implementation of the objectives of this chapter, they must also support, in a trickle down fashion, these objectives with their entrepreneurial suppliers and customers.
COMPARISON BETWEEN CURRENT CANADIAN GOVERNMENT POLICY AND CO-SMADE The objectives of this chapter are supported in general terms by the Federal government through the Green Plan. No formal commitments were made with regard to this chapter by the Canadian government but the tone and direction of the Green Plan aligns very well with the Chapter’s objectives.
CANADIAN ACTIWTDZS EVOLVING THROUGH THE SUSTAINABILITY PROCESS The Federal government has programs in place which are consistent with most, if not all, of the recommended activities that fall under federal jurisdiction. While many of these programs are funded from the Green Plan, a number of departments fund initiatives directly. The provincial governments also have programs in place which are consistent with the recommended activities. The concern here is the proliferation of initiatives at all levels with little overall coordination or focus. Business and industry are tackling many initiatives consistent with the proposed program areas. These initiatives will continue into the future as business and industry pursue the goals of sustainable development. Among these activities are environmental policies or codes of sectoral associations under which the member companies (including Canadian multinationals) undertake to meet best-practice design standards for facilities built in Canada or abroad. A considerable number of initiatives have evolved, parti&y as a result of Agenda 21, but primarily in response to current and perceived future needs. Examples of such programs would include: Federal Government The movement of the Federal and provincial governments toward pollution prevention, and away from regulatory “end of pipe” solutions, has been a major step in the direction of Chapter 30 objectives. It has placed a different focus on assessments for potential pollution problems, and set the stage for tools such as life cycle assessment, full cost pricing and industrial ecology considerations. In some cases, the integration of pollution prevention philosophies has also led to cost savings for industry.
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Government of Ontario The Federal and provincial governments are cooperating with industry on joint initiatives in the automotive field -- under the Automotive Manufacturing Pollution Prevention. Project -- and the metal finishing industry - under a pollution prevention agreement. Current discussions are also being held with the dry cleaning industry. As well, discussions are under way on the newly emerging concept of Industrial Ecology (modelling industrial systems after ecological systems), and how it can be incorporated into the industrial environment. Business and Industry Business and industry have joined together to support environmental developments. The Canadian Environmental Council (CEC), sponsored by the Canadian Standards Association (CSA) has brought together association presidents, s&or government representatives and environmentalists to direct the development of voluntary guidelines for Environmental Auditing and other initiatives nationally and, Management Systems, Environmental internationally - through the CSA’s representation on the International Standards Organization ~SQThe Canadian Chemical Producers’ Association (CCPA) has successfully implemented a leading Responsible Care Program. Under this program, members of the CCPA commit to manage chemical products and operations throughout their life from development to disposal. As of November 1993, more than thirty chemical associations around the world have adopted, or are in the process of adopting, Responsible Care. Additional phases for integration into down line companies and for an independent verification system are also currently under development. Several major associations led by the Canadian Chamber of Commerce are currently developing a program specifically geared to helping small and medium enterprises (SME) in Canada to develop environmental management systems appropriate to their size. Attempts are currently under way to develop North American standards on environment and in environmental law, both programs spearheaded by Canadian organizations.
OTHER RELEVANT INTERNA’JXONAL SUSTAINABILITY-RELATED FORA International following:
0
348
fora that address issues of business and sustainable development include the
Business Council on Sustainable Development Q3CSD) Xhe BCSD is a global group of 48 CEOsjkom major corporationsformed to provide a businessperspective on sustainabledevelopmentissues during the UNCED process.
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International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) The ICC is a non-governmentalorgan&ion serving world business. It has produced a Business Charter for Sustainable Development which includes 16 Principles for EnvironmentalManagement. International Network For Environmental Management (INEM) Ihe BWM, based in Germany, has been very active in establishingpartners globally to provide a untfkd business approach to environmentalintegration. lhe INEM is an organization that attempts to assist businesses to upgrade their environmental managementsystems. Although it is based in Europe, IhEM solicits Canadianmembers as well. United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) At UNCED it was recommended that a new high-level CWmiision for Sustainable Development be created. lhe Commissionwill monitor the progress and problems of governmentsand UN agencies in the implementationof the decisionsof Agenda 21 and draw attentionto urgent new an emerging issues in sustainabledevelopment. The CSD includes business representation. World Industry Council on the Environment (WrCE) WCE aims to be the voice of world business and sustainable development. It was created in February 1993 and currently includes in its membership CEOs from 90 companies. In October 1993, WICE issued its “ParisDeclarationawhichclearly outlines businessprinciples on sustainabledevelopment.
SUGGESTED READINGS AND INFORMATION SOURCES Canadian Petroleum Association. Environmental Code of Practice, (Calgary: Canadian Petroleum Association, 1990). Conklin, David W., Richard C. Hodgson and Eileen D. Watson. Sustainable Development: A Manager’s Handbook, (Ottawa: National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy, 1991). Government of Canada. Canada’s Green Plan, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1990). . Canada’s Green Canada, 1992).
Plan
and
the
Earth
Summit,
(Ottawa:
Environment
Canada’s National Renort: United Nations Conference on Environment and Develonment Brazil. June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991). International Development Research Centre. Agenda 21: Abstracts. Reviews. Commentaries, (I’heodora Carroll-Foster, cd), (Ottawa: IDRC, 1993).
and
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International Institute for Sustainable Development (ESD). Business Strategy for Sustainable Development: Leadershin and Accountabilitv for the â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;9Os, (Winnipeg: IISD, 1992). Keating, Michael. Agenda for Change: A plain language version of Agenda and the other Rio Agreements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993).
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Mining Association of Canada. Guide for Environmental Practice, (Ottawa: Mining Association of Canada, 1990). Schmidheiny Stephan with the Business Council on Sustainable Development.. Chanping Course; A Global Business Persnective on Develonment and the Environment, (MIT Press, 1992). Willums, Jan-Olaf and Uhlrich Goluke. From Ideas to Action: Business and Sustainable DeveloDment, ICC Report on the Greening of Enterprise, (International Environmental Bureau of the International Chamber of Commerce, May 1992). World Commission on Environment and Development. Our Common Future, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987). ICC Industry Forum on Environment and Development, Rio de Janeiro, May 27-28, 1992. Second
World Industry Conference Rotterdam, 10-12 April, 1991.,
on
Environmental
Management
(WICEM
II),
Information Sources: Business Council on National ksws, Royal Bank Centre, 90 Sparks Street, Suite 806, Ottawa, Ontario, KlP 5B4, tel(613) 238-372â&#x20AC;&#x2122;7, fax (613) 2368679. Canadian Chamber of Commerce, 55 Metcalfe Street, Suite 1160, Ottawa, Ontario, KlP 6N4, tel (613) 238-4000, fax (613) 238-7643. Canadian Chemical Producers Association, 350 Sparks Street, Suite 805, Ottawa, Ontario, KlN 7S8, tel(613) 237-6215, fax (6X3) 2374061. Canadian Electrical Association, 66 Slater Street, Suite 1210, Ottawa, Ontario, KlP 5H1, tel (613) 230-9263, fax (613) 230-9326. Canadian Manufacturers Association, 130 Albert Street, Suite 302, Ottawa, Ontario, KlP 5G4, tel(613) 233-8423, fax (613) 2336048.
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Canadian Petroleum Products Institute, 275 Slater Street, Suite 1000, Ottawa, Ontario, KlP 5H9, tel(613j 232-3709, fax (613) 2364280. Canadian Pulp and Paper Association, 1155 Metcalfe Street, Montreal, Quebec, H3B 4T6, tel(514) 8666621, fax (514) 866-3035. Conference Board of Canada, 255 Smyth Road, Ottawa, Ontario, KlH 8M7, tel(613) 526 3280, fax (613) 5264857. International Chamber of Commerce, 38, Cows Albert ler, 75008, Paris, France, tel(33-1) 49-53-28-28, fax (33-l) 42-25-86-63. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 161 Portage Ave. E., 6th Floor, Winnipeg, Manitoba, R3B OY4, tel(204) 958-7700, fax (204) 958-7710. Mining Association of Canada, Suite 1105,350 Sparks Street, Ottawa, Ontario, KlR 7S8, tel (613) 233-9391, fax (613) 233-8897. National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy, Suite 1500, 1 Nicholas Street, Ottawa, Ontario, KlN 7B7, tel(613) 992-7189, fax (613) 992-7385. United Nations Commissâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ion for Sustainable Development, Department of Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development, Room S-3060, United Nations, New York, N.Y., 10017, USA, tel (212) 963-5959. World Industry Council on the Environment, 40, Cours Albert ler, Paris, 75008, Paris, France, tel (33-l) 49-53-28-91, fax (33-l) 49-53-28-89.
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CHAPTER 31 The Scientific and Technological Community
- Environment Cad
-
THE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM The principal problem addressed by this chapter is how to enable the scientific and technological (S&T) community to make a more open and effective contribution to the decision-making process concerning environment and sustainable development. It is suggested that a more cooperative relationship needs to be developed between the S&T community on the one hand, and the public, decision-makers, and governments on the other hand. The S&T community (defined as â&#x20AC;&#x153;. . . including among others engineers, architects, industrial designers, urban planners, other professionals and policy makers . . . â&#x20AC;&#x153;) need to better communicate with decision-makers. This communication would help decision-makers understand the roles the S&T community could play, and facilitate access to the best available knowledge to help develop strategies for sustainable development. In addition, more effective dialogue would help scientists and technologists set research priorities and propose solutions for pressing problems. For the problem of sustainable development to be managed, the role of S&T in human affairs needs to be better understood. For this to happen, communication, information flows and knowledge will have to be strengthened at the local through to international levels. This has to be a two-way communication. For example, the public must be assisted in communicating their views and needs concerning S&T and how it might be better managed to benefit their lives. Action is required to help create a greater awareness by the S&T community of its ethical responsibilities. Principles, codes of practice, guidelines, and legal instruments recognized by society as a whole are needed to ensure that these responsibilities are honoured.
The views expressed in this chapter reflect input from a number of stakehoMers and do not necessarily represent the views of the Government of Ganada or the Prqjet de sociktk.
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PROGRAM AREAS AND
OBJECTfvEs
The following two program areas, along with their corresponding objectives, are outlined in Chapter 31.
(1)
Improving communication and cooperation among the scientific and tee-hnological community and decision-makers and the public Governments should review the responsiveness of the S&T community to environmental concerns and sustainable development through a process of consultation. Such consultations should include councils, committees and panels of scientists, technologists and decision-makers, NGOs and the public, which would contribute to capacity building of organizations and professional networks. The proposed objectives are to extend and open-up the decision-making process and to broaden the range of issues where cooperation can take place.
(2)
Promoting codes of practice and guidelines related to science and technology The objective of this chapter is international acceptance of codes of practice and guidelines, relating to S&T and the integrity of life-support systems. The proposed codes of practice should be based on the an ethical awareness and sense of responsibility on the part of scientists and technologists.
CANADIAN POSITIONS AT RIO 1.
Official Canadian Position No specific Canadian brief and objectives were prepared for negotiation of this chapter at early PrepCom meetings. During the negotiations at the fourth PrepCorn, Canada proposed changes to strengthen links between the independent research sector and industry to include the government research sector. The need for and value of internationally accepted principles and codes of ,practices, emphasized in the final version of the chapter, are fundamental to Canadian actions. The basis for the Canadian position relative to this chapter was the Green Plan. Within the Green Plan, scientific and technological information is recognized as fundamental to sound environmental choices, effective policy and regulations, education and information that increases public awareness, participation and understanclmg of environmental problems.
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Non-Governmental Orpanizations The International Conference on an Agenda of Science for Environment and Development into the 21st Century, (ASCEND 21), convened by International Council of Scientific Unions (ICSU) and held in Vienna in November 1991, explicitly dealt with this matter at the international level. The Conference confirmed that the-scientific community is willing and able to enter into partnerships with organ&ions to address such topics as environmental ethics. It was also recognizcd that science must improve public awareness and encourage greater participation to ensure that public concerns and Indigenous understanding are taken into account.
3.
Business and Industrv Although there were no comments from Canadian industry that relate directly to this chapter, there were some made during the PrepCom period that endorsed the principles underlying this chapter. Business and industry interests accept that science-based research and decision-making are essential, and that industry must participate in establishing the direction of research and integrating planning and communications.
4.
IndiPenous Indigenous Peoples identified the need for the development of protocols which requires the involvement of Indigenous Peoples at all levels of discussion and decision-making since international activities always affect Indigenous Peoples. Under Agenda 21, Indigenous Peoples were to be informed, consulted and allowed to participate at the national level for decision-making. Indigenous Peoples identified the urgent need to establish Indigenous knowledge institutions controlled and managed by Indigenous Peoples. This way a greater appreciation of Indigenous science can develop to compare and contrast with developments in Western science and technology.
CO-S 1.
MADE BY CANADIANS Lwaliy-bindinp Documents None.
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Political Pronouncements During his disclosure of the National Statement of Canada on June 11, 1992 at UNCED,
the .Minister of the Environment, Jean Charest, stated, “We have also substantially increased our f’undiig in science and technology, monitoring and reporting systems and information and education. This represents a major investment in our futures” 3.
Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NGO Treaties At the same time as I&ICED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organization Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Gca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. The following alternative treaties are most relevant to the subject matter of Chapter 31: the Treaty on Technology Banks; the Dra# Protocolon ScientificResearch Components for the Conservationof Biodiversity;and the Citizens’ Commitmentson Biotechnology
The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference).’ The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference. They developed and adopted a 109~point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter. Under the section, “Culture, Science and Intellectual Property”, there are several references to the interests and concerns of Indigenous Peoples, regarding their own educational systems, Indigenous wisdom, traditional knowledge, rights to intellectual andcultural property guarantees, and to government committed funds for education, training and participation in sustainable and equitable development at all levels. The final paragraph in this Declaration calls on the UN to promote research into Indigenous knowledge and to develop a network of Indigenous sciences.
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DEF’ICIENCIES. GAPS AND CONSTRAINTS WITHIN CHAPTER 31 This chapter encourages environmentally ethical behaviour and standards for professionals, and the need for consultative processes between the S&T community and governments, NGOs and the public. Somewhat less clear is just what is understood by “the S&T community”. Within this broad term are numerous multi-sectoral, private and public niches with different industry and association standards and regulations to which they must abide. To imply, therefore, that this huge and varied community speaks with one voice, as does this chapter, is misleading and perhaps makes the Chapter somewhat more ambiguous that it would otherwise be. The Chapter calls for explicit action by governments to review issues, communicate about S&T, and encourage introduction of codes of practice and guidelines. There is a need to clarify the role of non-government sectors. The Chapter would have been stronger if it had gone beyond the role of government in resolving this problem.
COMPARISON BETWEEN CURRENT CANADIAN GOCOMMITMENTSMADE
POLICY AND
As mentioned above, the Green Plan was the basis for Canada’s negotiating position for this chapter. The Green Plan includes a multi-year environmental science and technology action plan that will provide: funds for research into global and domestic environmental issues; scholarships to encourage academic research in the environmental sciences; revitalization of Federal government research facilities and additions to their scientific staff; and assistance with technology transfer and government-industry partnerships necessary to bring new technologies to market. Science Forum I, held in December 1992, brought together Environment Canada’s research community and senior management in recognition of the need to address the management of science in the Department, the research priority-setting and decision-making processes in the Department, and how to more effectively integrate science and policy making. The primary objective of this forum was to examine the current portfolio of research and development (R&D) within Environment Canada in light of emerging and existing issues and approaches, with a view to providing a science-based consensus on strategic direction for R&D within the Department.
CANADIANACTWITIES
EVOLVING THROUGH THE SUSTAINABILITY PROCESS
Many Canadian professional associations (e.g., law, medical, engineering, academic, and other “liberal professions”) are ethically committed and sensitive to the environment and sustainable development. In addition, many of these associations have already established committees for the environment which could be engaged in the development and implementation of codes of practices and guidelines.
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Environment and sustainable development are being included within many technological disciplines. For example, a number of Canadian universities are degrees in environmental science and engineering. Many Canadian businesses have environmental, scientists or technologists on staff to ensure understanding compliance with regulations.
OTHERRELEVANT
scientific and now awarding and industries of issues and
INTERNATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY-RELATED FORA
l
United Nations Commission for Sustainable Development
0
Global Change Program
0
Inter-American Institute
SUGGESTED READINGS AND INFORMATION SOURCES An Agenda of Science for Environment and Development into the 21st Century, University Press, 1992).
(Cambridge
Bill, Richard. Svnooses of the S&T Chauters of Agenda 21, (Ottawa: Office of the Science Advisor, Environment Canada, 1992). Clifford, Gordon. “A qualitative review of the economic implications of Agenda 21”, (Ottawa: External Affairs and International Trade Canada, 1993). Dwivedi, O.P. An Ethical Approach Administration, 1992).
to Environmental
Protection,
(Canadian Public
Government of Canada. Canada’s Green Plan, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1990). .
Canada’ s Green Plan and the Earth Summit, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1992). .
Canada’s National Re-port: United Nations Conference on Environment Develoument Brazil. June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991).
and
. IndustrvbCED Commitments as of 26 Februarv 1992, (Ottawa: Department of Industry, Science & Technology, 1992).
Institute for Research on Environment and Economy (IREE). A Oualitative Assessment of UNCED Potential Economic Implications, (Ottawa: University of Ottatia, 1992).
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International Development Research Centre (JDRC). Agenda 21: Abstracts. Reviews. and Commentaries, (Theodora Carroll-Foster, ed), (Ottawa: JDRC, 1993). Keating, Michael. Agenda for Change: A Plain Ianpuage Version of Agenda 21 and the Other Rio Agreements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993). World Commission on Environment and Development. Our Common Future, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987).
Information Sources: Industry, Science and Technology Canada, 235 Queen Street, Ottawa, Ontario, KlA OH5, tel(613) 954-2788. InternationalDevelopment Research Centre, 250 Albert St., P.O. Box 8500, Ottawa, Ontario, KlG 3H9, tel(613) 2366163. Office of the Science Advisor, Environment Canada, Jules Leger Building, 25 Eddy Street, Huh, Quebec, KlA OH3, tcl(819) 953-9607, fax (819) 953-0550. United Nations Commiss ion for Sustainable Development, Department of Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development, Room S-3060, United Nations, New York, N.Y., 10017, tel(212) 963-5959.
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CHAPTER 32 Strengthening the Role of Farmers
- Vi&d Aidun TFIE NATURE OF THEIPROBLEM Occupying one-third of the Earth’s land surface, farming is the central activity for much of the world’s population. Indigenous Peoples, rural dwellers and family farmers have been the stewards of much of the Earth’s resources. There is growing concern, however, about the sustainability of agricultural production systems. Although farmers depend on their physical environment for their sustenance, many of the world’s current farming methods and systems are not sustainable. One of the greatest problems farmers are faced is the difficulty of adjusting their methods and being able to produce enough food for over six billion people by the year 2000. In fact, over-exploitation and improper management, increased total farm production, increased population growth, international debt and falling commodity prices, have all limited farmers’ access to resources and means of production.
PROGRAM AREAS AND OBJECTIVES Sustainable agriculture is not possible without the full participation of farmers. Moreover, a “farmer-centred” approach, the key to the attainment of sustainable agricultural production methods for both developed and developing countries, calls for not only the promotion of sustainable farming practices and technologies, but also for a decentrahzed decision-making and participatory approach in the design and implementation of resource and agricultural policies. In order to meet these ends, a number of specific objectives or actions for governments are proposed in the chapter:
(1)
to encourage a decentrahzed decision-making process through the creation and strengthening of local and village organizations that would delegate power and responsibility to primary users of natural resources;
V&d A&m is a Resource My& at the Canadian Fedemtion of Agriculture. The views expressed in thik chapter are thme of the author, with input from a number of stakeholders, and do not necessat3y represent the views of fhc Canadian Fedemtion of Agricuhre or the Pmjet de soci&&
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(2)
to support and enhance the legal capacity of women and vulnerable groups with regard to access, use and tenure of land;
(3)
to promote and encourage sustainable farming practices and technologies;
(4)
to introduce or strengthen policies that would encourage self-sufficiency in lowinput and low-energy technologies, including Indigenous practices, and pricing mechanisms that intemalize environmental costs;
(5)
to develop a policy framework that provides incentives and motivation among farmers for sustainable and efficient farming practices; and,
(6)
to enhance the participation of farmers, men and women, in the design and implementation of policies directed towards these ends through their representative organizations.
CANADIAN POSITION AT RIO 1.
Official Canadian Position The official Canadian position established two main objectives:
2.
(1)
seek to strengthen recognition of the full and equal participation of both men and women in planning, decision-making, management, implementation and evaluation processes at international, national, regional and local levels; and,
(2)
seek to strengthen recognition of the importance of womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s access to land and training and to ensuring that tbeir knowledge base is taken into account.
Farmers/Amicultural Producers Farmers have both a vested interest and a deep concern with ensuring the sustainability of agriculture. Farming feeds the world more than any other profession. Farming is ultimately dependant upon the environment. Farming, more than any other sector worldwide, provides a livelihood and accounts for the survival of millions of people. Often these Again, it is farming above all people are among the poorest and most marginal&d. other activities, that is most afffected by many environment and development issues, (i.e., biodiversity, climate change, water resources, technology transfer, poverty debt, and population), addressed during UNCED.
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Given the integral relationship of farmers in the management of the earth’s natural resources, and the enormous responsibility to humankind this carries, agricultural producers feel a deep sense of concern. Concern not because of the enormity of their stewardship role and responsibility but concern centring around the lack of recognition afforded farmers as the primary stewards of the Planet’s environment and natural resources. Concern that the constraints under which they feverishly work to feed the ever growing world’s population are not being fully considered. And concern that the enabling environment, critical for a healthy and dynamic agricultural sector, is not being adequately addressed. For these reasons, producer groups are seeking recognition of the fundamental role played by farmers in the management and conservation of the Earth’s natural resources. Farmers feel an urgent need to be empowered with the ability to effect the changes that are needed. Agricultural producers are pleased that their interests and concerns are being addressed in the Chapter on Strengthening the Role of Farmers. In the text, special emphasis is placed on the involvement of farmers in the search for, and promotion of, sustainable agriculw practices. Agricultural groups support this notion and believe it is only through consultation with farmers, through their representative organizations, that an appropriate policy framework, necessary to achieve sustainable agricultural development, can be created and the real needs of the farming community addressed. If success in this area of sustainable agricultural development is to be achieved, farmers believe it will only occur when a farmer-centred, consultative approach is taken which regards farmers as the key to the solution, and not part of the problem. 3.
Business and Industrv Canadian business and industry supported the position of the official Canadian position in regard to Chapter 32.
4.
IndiPenous Indigenous some form institutions knowledge
Peoples advised governments that many Indigenous Peoples are involved in of farming. There is an urgent need to establish Indigenous knowledge controlled and managed by Indigenous Peoples to disseminate this valuable to other Indigenous Peoples.
The territories and lands of Indigenous Peoples need to be protected, developed and restored to ensure sustainability. In addition, their rights to these lands need to be recognized and protected.
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Documents
None.
2.
Political Pronouncements None.
3.
Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NGO Treaties At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organ&&ion Forum (Global Forum]1, and the Kari-Oca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. Among these treaties one deals specifically with sustainable agriculture. Sust&.able Agriadhue
Treaty
The NGOs in Rio agreed that it is necessary to break the â&#x20AC;&#x153;predatory modelâ&#x20AC;? in agriculture in favour of new patterns of sustainability. These must be equitable and participatory. They must put the control of natural resources and means of production into the hands of the people who work the land. Sustainable agriculture respects ecological principles of diversity and interdependence, producing diverse forms of foods, fibres and medicines. It maintains ecological balance - including the 4self-sufficiency and stability of rural communities., Key to attaining this model is the cooperation of peasant, farmer, rural community and social groups in restoring, maintaining and developing sustainable farming systems. International networks can further strengthen and support local ones. Specific actions would then include preservation of genetic resources and biodiversity, aggressively advocating democratic and equitable redistribution of land based on control of the land by workers. Increased agriculture production should have as its goal the improvement of regional food supplies and the alleviation of poverty.
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Kari-oca
The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference, where they also developed and adopted a 109~point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter. Within Kari-Oca, Indigenous Peoples’ commitment to sustainable and bio-regional agricultural practices is made clear. In the section titled “Lands and Territories” it states, “Indigenous peoples should encourage their peoples to cultivate their own forms of products rather than to use imported exotic crops which do not benefit local peoples.” (Statement No. 44) Additionally, in the section titled “Biodiversity and Conservation” it states, “If we are going to grow crops, these crops must feed the people. It is not appropriate that the lands be used to grow crops which do not benefit the local peoples. ” (Statement No.70).
DEF’ICIENCIES. GAPS AND CONSTRAINTS WITHIN CHAPTER 32 Farmers the world over are cognizant of the fact that they must conserve their physical environment because of their dependence on it for their livelihood. It is the wish of every farmer to leave future generations an enhanced resource base for them to steward and develop. In many cases, however, this is no longer possible. Farmers are often working under such severe social and economic pressures that their ability to farm in an environmentally sustainable manner is being undermined. The largest constraint currently existing is one of realization that it is only economically viable agriculture that will be capable of achieving the objectives of environmental sustainability. In order for this to be achieved, farmers - men and women -- must receive fair prices for their products, be given fair and equitable trading conditions which includes environmental considerations, a sound infrastructure, and secure land tenure. Farmers are committed to ethical and sustainable agricultural development, the fostering of a healthy physical environment, and to ensuring the revitalization and dynamic future of rural communities. Farmers arc willing to work for a society and for agriculture which, in developing and industrialized countries alike, operates in harmony with nature through the aid of ecological, technical, ethical, and economic knowledge. Farmers cannot achieve this alone. Sustainable agricultural development requires a firm, mutual understanding between the farming sector and society as a whole. This must be a shared endeavour. A shared cooperative effort can only be achieved through open dialogue among the various stakeholders. These include farmers, intergovernmental agencies, various NGOs active in rural areas, and research agencies.
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A further constraint to the implementation of the goals of this chapter are the current deficiencies in research, education, training, andl information dissemination needed to assist farmers in improving their production and management techniques towards more sustainable farming practices. Given the technologically advanced world in which we live, and the fact that farmers must provide for a further 900 million people by the turn of the century, with. fewer farmers and an ever decreasing land base, obkning and disseminating this information to fmers is paramount. The underlying constraint currently limiting the empowerment of farmers and the development The development of a sustainable of a truly sustainable environment is commitment. environment cannot be achieved solely with the commitment of farmers. Governments, industry, and the public must also share a firm commitment to this effort and must demonstrate their commitment. They must demonstrate their commitment to farmers by empowering them as the primary stewards of the environment to effect sustainable change.
COMPARESON BETWEEN COMMITMENTSMADE
CANADIAN GOVERNMEN T POLICY AND
Not available.
C~ADIAN
AC-
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Not available.
OTEER RELEVANT INTERNATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY-RELATED FORA 0
Committee for the Promotion of Assistance to Cooperatives (COPAC)
0
International Federation of Agricultural Producers QFAP)
0
Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)
l
United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD)
a
United Nations Commission for Sustainable Development (CSD)
0
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SUGGESTED READINGS AND INFORMATION SOURCES Canadian Federation of Agriculture (CFA). Consolidated Trade Policy. GATT, (Ottawa: CFA, November 1993). .
“Focus on the Future”, CFA Discussion Paper, (Ottawa: CFA, July 1992).
Policv Position on the Future of Agriculture and Rural Areas, (Ottawa: CFA, February 1992). .
Statement on Sustainable Agriculture, (Ottawa: CFA, 1991).
Government of Canada. Canada’s National Re-port: United Nations Conference on Environment and DeveloDment Brazil, June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991). International Federation of Agricultural Producers (IFAP). DeveloDment of the Rural Areas; An International Persnective, World Farmers Congress, 30th IFAP General Conference, (Qubec City: June 1-5, 1992). .
Newsletter (ongoing).
International Development Research Centre (JDRC). Agenda 21: Abstracts. Reviews. and Commentaries, (Theodora Carroll-Foster, ed), (Ottawa: IDRC, 1993). Keating, Michael. Agenda for Change: A Plain Language Version of Agenda 21 and the Other Rio Agreements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993). L’Union des Producteurs Agricoles. L’UPA B l’heure des choix durables. des orentative en matiere d’environnment, (UPA: Longueuil, Quebec, November, 1993). World Commission on Environment and Development. Our Common Future, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987). World Farmers’ Times. (ongoing).
Information Sources: Canadian Federation of Agriculture, 75 Albert Street, Suite 1101, Ottawa, Ontario, KlP 5E7, tel (613) 236-3633, fax (613) 236-5749. United Nations Commisi on for SustainableDevelopment, Department of Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development, Room S-3060, United Nations, New York, N.Y., 10017, tel(212) 963-5959.
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21
CHAPTER 33 Financial Resources and Mechanisms
- M’atthew Kiemn
-
THE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM To ensure the implementation of the activities proposed in Agenda 21, very large investments are needed. Although most of this funding will come from national public and private sectors in both the North and the South, special collective efforts will be required by the international community to ensure that developing countries have the necessary financial and technological resources to meet their Agenda 21 responsibilities. Sustainable development strategies and enhanced and predictable levels of funding in support of longer term objectives are clearly needed to ensure global sustainability. Funding mechanisms therefore must be put in place to provide “new and additional financial resources that are both adequate and predictable” if the objectives of Agenda 21 are to be met. At the same time, this emphasis on additional resources must not be allowed to distract us from the enormous potential which exists to mobilize and redirect existing capital flows towards a more sustainable development trajectory.
PROGRAM AREAS AND OBJECTnTEs Chapter 33 has three primary objectives, which are fundamentally related to the implementation of all the other chapters of Agenda 21:
(1)
to establish measures concerning financial resources and mechanisms for implementation of Agenda 21;
(2)
to provide new and additional financial resources which are both adequate and predictable; and,
Matthew Kierman is the President of the Innovest Group International, S.A. The views expressed in this chapter are ulosc of the author who received input from a number of stakeholders, and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Projet de sociM
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to seek full use and continuing qualitative improvement of funding mechanisms to be
utilized for the implementation of Agenda 21. Some of the key elements for achieving these objectives include: l
0 0 a 0 0 0
reaffirmation of the official development assistance (ODA) O-,07% Gw target; consideration to be given to the concept of an Earth Increment to the World Bank International Development Association (IDA); review of debt relief measures; government reporting to United Nations General Assemb1.y (UNGA) 47 on financial commitments;, no new forms of conditionality to be attached to Global Env.ironmental Facility (GEF) funding; GEF to be restructured; and, developing countries to begin to prepare national plans for sustainable development.
CANADIAN POSITIONS AT RIO 1.
Official Canadian Position Canada has been committed to addressing the financial resources question and, in particular, making a funding txxnribution that will be both fair and equitable as well as realistic - given domestic economic realities. With regard to the funding of Agenda 21, the starting point for the Canadian position was that more effective use should be made of existing bilateral and multilateral ODA as well as private sector financial flows. Canada did not support the establishment of a separate Green Fund, in part because it was felt that this might detract from efforts to integrate environmental considerations more comprehensively within &l aspects of ODA spending. Canada did, however, support the replenishment of the Global Environment Fund, and committed itself to pay its f&, proportional share. Canada views the GEF as the forerunner of the permanent financial mechanism for implementing both the climate change and biodiversity conventions. GEF is therefore viewed as â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;being of major and strategic importance. In addition to GEF, Canadian Green Plan resources have been dedicated to support the following major international environmental initiatives:
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United Nations Environment Program (IJNEP) Fund; and,
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United Nations Development Program (UNDP) Capacity â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;21..
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Non-Governmental Owanizations Canadian NGOs c-a&d on Canada to meet its ODA targets. They were clearly disappointed with Canada’s refusal to commit to specific timetables for meeting its ODA commitment. Canadian NGOs also urged for Canada not to redirect current development aid flows to cover the costs of Agenda 21, but rather to commit to new and additional resources to cover these costs. Likewise, they expressed concern that the mere pledging of new monies through the Breton Woods institutions will not solve, but rather exacerbate current environment and development problems. As well, NGOs lobbied for government to look favourably upon a Green Fund, and not just continued contributions through the GEF and ODA, as a good financial source for sustainability projects. On the question of debt, Canadian NGOs urged Canada to support the alleviation of all remaining government and commercially held debt of developing countries. Moreover, that immediate debt relief be provided through expansion of the “Trinidad Terms” to cover multilateral bank debt. A major criticism held by many Canadian NGOs is that Agenda 21 does not direct attention to reducing the global trade in arms, which is worth over $1 trillion U.S. annually. They contend that Canada should move to make aid assistance to lesser developed countries (LDCs) conditional upon a curbing of military expenditures in recipient countries. Canadian NGOs also urged the Delegation to show its support for the peace dividend concept.
3.
Business and Industry On the whole, Canadian business and industry adopted a positive and constructive approach to Agenda 2 1, acknowledging that industry has a major leadership role to play. As society’s principal generator of wealth, employment, and innovation, private industry has the means to make a major contribution. And, as the principal generator of environmental degradation, industry has the resnonsibilitv. Some concern from business arose over the question of new funds. Concern was also raised over the tendency to regard economic instruments as a source of generating new public and private financial resources to finance environmental needs. This is based on the premise that any inclination to design economic instruments for their revenue raising potential should be resisted. Rather, they should be designed in such a way as to actually influence changes in corporate and consumer behaviour.
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ImWenous Indigenous Peoples identified the need for support for the creation of Indigenous Peoples’ financial institutions which hold Indigenous values and promote Indigenous development. This can be modelled after the concept of the Indigenous Peoples’ Fund that is being supported by the Inter-American Development Bank. These institutions- must be controlled and managed by Indigenous Peoples. In addition to financial institutions there is a need to support the creation of Indigenous Peoples’ non-government (local, regional, national and international) organizations oriented towards development. These are essential to Indigenous Peoples for the purposes of fulfilling their development, capacity building and local control needs. Moreover Indigenous NGOs are vital for the establishment of new relationships, in terms of interaction and communication, between them and the Western1 NGOs and other international organizations.
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Legally-binding Documents None.
2.
Political Pronouncements The Green Plan provides the framework for sustainable development in Canada, and also creates the context for Canada3 international initiatives in this area. The Canadian Prime announced the following commitments at the Earth Summit:
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Canada will convert $145 million in debt held in Latin America countries into environment and sustainable development projects;
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Canada will allocate $16.6 million to the Brazilian Rainforest Pilot Program, created under the auspices of the G-7;
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Canada’s annual contribution to the UNEP will double over the next five years from $1.1 million to $2.2 million;
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Canada will provide $2 million to a $10 million program under the UNDP to help developing countries prepare national sustainable development plans;
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Canada will expand the mandate of the International Research Development Centre (IDRC) to emphasize sustainable development issues, particularly in the context of developing countries. And in a domestic environment of acute fiscal restraint, IDRC’s annual fundiig of $115 million will be preserved and dedicated in large part to the implementation of Agenda 21.
0
Canada will allocate $10 million to work with Brazil, Mexico, and Malaysia to establish sustainably managed forests along the lines of the model forests concept now being developed in Canada.
Prime Minister Brian Mulroney also reaffirmed Canada’s commitment to achieving the target of providing 0.7% of Canada’s annual GNP to ODA. 3.
Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NGO Treaties At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organization Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Oca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. Of these treaties, one addressed the issues discussed in Chapter 33. NW Debt Treaty
As part of the NGO Debt Treaty, one pledge made was to, “(h)old Northern countries accountable to the minimum level of Overseas Development Assistance (ODA) at 0.7% of Gross National Product; while working to ensure that financial flows to the South support ecologically, socially sustainable, and participatory development; with the ultimate goal of eliminating the dependence of the South on this form of assistance.” KZWi-OCa
The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference, where they also developed and adopted a 109~point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter. Of these, one referred directly to the subject matter of this chapter.
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Statement number 107 declared that, “(A)t local, national, international levels, governments must commit funds to new and existing resources to education and training for Indigenous Peoples, to achieve their sustainable development, to contribute and to participate in sustainable and equitable development at all levels, particular attention should be given to indigenous women, children and youth.”
DEF’ICIENCIES. GAPS AND CONSTRAINTS WITHIN CHAPTER 33 One major and fundamental conceptual weakness of Chapter 33 of Agenda 21 is its exclusive focus on “new and additional financial resources”. As Rio amply demonstrated, any attempt to generate new and incremental funding in the current global economic climate is likely to be extremely difficult, time-consuming, and unproductive. Moreover, in focusing on incrementality, the Chapter overlooks the considerable opportunities which could be crested far more readily by leveraging existing resources more strategically and effectively. A thorough review of mainstream capital markets and their activities is vital. In the specific context of global finance, a concerted effort is needed to harness the power of the mainstream capital markets and redirect at least some of their considerable momentum in the service of sustainable development objectives. Most contemporary analyses of environmental problems focus on industrialists, regulators, or consumers, with varying degrees of responsibility assigned in each case. In fact, however, it is capital markets which provide greater leverage on environmental isam than any of the three sets of actors usually deemed to play key roles. The conditions upon which both debt and equity financing are made available, ultimately determine the quality, environmental and otherwise, of the resulting projects. Subsequently, attention must be placed on changing the basis upon which money is loaned and invested for necessary resources to be made available for Agenda 2 1, and other sustainability related initiatives. In doing so, the need for Agenda 21’s “new and additional financial resources’” would be reduced accordingly. The most promising vehicles for accelerating this necessary transformation might include the following:
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changing federal and. provincial tax regimes to encourage a longer-term, sustainable investment perspective;
2.
creating and using indicators of corporate financial performance which are broader, more comprehensive, and more strategic than the traditional accounting indicators (foremost among the new indices would be some systematic method of appraising companies’ capacity for strategic environmental management);
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a recognition by the Canadian banking and financial industries of the need to move beyond a “disaster-avoidance” mind-set towards a new paradigm of investment analysis which systematically seeks out environmentally-driven onnortunities;
4.
greatly improved “information transparency” and reporting requirements for corporate environmental performance. These requirements generally fall under the jurisdiction of provincial securities regulators;
5.
new venture capital instruments to promote the development environmental technology companies; and,
6.
the creation and implementation of a national, 21st century economic development strategy which consciouslv utilizes environmental regulation and legislation as catalysts for developing environmental industries and technologies.
of early-stage
In addition to its focus on new and additional resources, the Chapter is also inadequate in a number of other ways. Firstly, it does not discuss any prioritization of program areas, given the huge sums needed to fully implement Agenda 21. Secondly, the feasibility or practicality of raising funds from the mentioned sources is not addressed. Thirdly, there was no discussion regarding the tremendous sums of money spent through military and defense budgets ($ 1 trillion per year) and the need for the reallocation of military expenditures by both developed and developing countries to sustainable development.
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For some years, Canada has committed itself to providing 0.7% of its annual GNP to ODA. Moreover, at Rio Prime Minister Brian Mulroney reaffirmed Canada’s commitment to achieving this target. In 1991-92 however, Canada committed only 0.49% of its GNP to ODA due to economic pressures. More recently, economic considerations have again affected Canada’s ability to reach the ODA target of 0.07% of GNP. Canada’s current investment in both national and international organ&&ions such as the IDRC, IISD, CIDA, World Bank, IDB, ADB should, however, be noted. These existing financial resources and mechanisms are of particular importance for meeting the challenges of Agenda 21. Additionally, through the IDRC and CIDA, Canada provides support to numerous international and national NGOs involved in environmental and development activities related to a variety of programs.
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With respect to Canada’s fledgling environmental industry, there is a potential role for the Canadian government to act as a catalyst. A number of encouraging signs are already visible, including federal support for the early-stage development of a key new industry NGO, the Canadian Environmental Industries Association. In addition, plans are well advanced to develop three major new centres for environmental technology innovation and commercialization. All of these initiatives, and others, should be viewed in the context of strengthening- Canada’s competitiveness in a knowledge-based, 21st century global economy.
CANADIANACTIWTIES
EVOLVING THROUGH THE SUSTAINABILITY PROCESS
One distinctively Canadian contribution to the international sustainable development movement has been the creation of a number of high-level Round Tables on environment/economy issues. Round Tables exist at national, provincial, and local levels, and have done much to elevate awareness, debate, problem-solving, and the integration of environmental and economic perspectives. In addition, an extensive network of Canadian NGOs provides financial assistance, both nationally and overseas, to promote and support various types of environment and development programs and activities. Similarly, steps are also beginning to be made within the business community to generate financial remurces and mechanisms for implementing sustainable development strategies. Currently targeting 10% of corporate donations to environmental projects, Falconbridge is an example of such a corporation. They are also aiming to raise this amount to 20% of corporate donations. The Canadian Government, NGOs and business representatives have been monitoring and been involved in the discussion on financial resources at the United Nation”s Commission for Sustainable Development. Within the Canadian NGO community, there is an increasing degree of discussions on where, how and why Canada uses its own financial resources domestically and how Canada could increase its level of financial assistance to developing countries,. NOGs are not only looking at the “traditional” suggestions of increasing financial assistance and rediverting military resources to the South, but are also looking at possibly ways that Canada could structure its financial resource allotments in a more sustainable way. For example, NGOs are focusing not only on finding “new and additional resources” , but they are also concerned that funds do not go through old and obsolete spending patterns which have been found to be ineffective and unsustainable. These discussions range from the international to the nationals to municipal perspectives. In addition to looking at how Canada could increase its level of financial assistance to developing countries, NGOs have also been discussing how Canada could increase its level of financial assistance to the major groups which. were identified within Agenda 21 such as youth, women, NGOs, indigenous peoples, farmers, etc. (see Chapters 23-32) as having essential roles in achieving global sustainability.
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OTHXR RELEVANT. INTERNATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY-RELATED FIXA 0
United Nations Commission for Sustainable Development (CSD)
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Earth Council
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Global Environmental Facility (GEF)
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International Chamber of Commerce (ICC)
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World Industry Council for Sustainable Development @VICE)
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Business Council for Sustainable Development (BCSD)
SUGGESTED READINGS AND INF’ORMATION SOURCES Culpepper, Roy. Managing the Global Commons: The Economic Setting and Financial Options, (Ottawa: The North-South Institute, September, 1991). Government of Canada. Canada’s Green Plan, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1990). . Canada’s Green Plan and the Earth Summit, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1992). . Canada’s National Renort: United Nations Conference on Environment DeveloDment Brazil. June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991).
and
International Development Research Centre (IDRC). Agenda 21: Abstracts. Reviews. and Commentaries, (Theodora Carroll-Foster, editor), (Ottawa: IDRC, 1993). The Global Cash Crunch: An Examination of Debt and Development, Search Series 5; 1992.
Keating, Michael. Agenda for Change: A Plain Language Version of APenda 21 and the Other Rio Agreements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993). Kieman, Matthew.
The Colour of Money, Environment Risk, March 1993, pages 34-36.
Intenmionul Business: the Quick and the Dead, EcoDecision, December 1992, pages k3-47.
MacNeill, Jim, Cox, J. and Runnalls, D. CIDA and Sustainable Develooment: how Canada’s aid policies support sustainable development in the Third World more effectively, (Ottawa,Institute for Research and Public Policy (IRPP), 1990).
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Runnabs, David. “What’s Gone Unsaid at UNCED: Sustainable Development”,
Institutional and Financial Options for
United Nations Association in Canada (UNAC). UNCED: Institutional and Financial Options for Sustainable Development, Briefing Paper 30, (Ottawa: UNAC, 1991). World Commission on Environment and Development. Our Common Future, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987).
Information Sources: Business Council for Sustainable Development (BCSD) Earth Council Global Environmental Facility (GEF), c/o World Bank, 1818 H Street, Washington DC, ” 20433, USA, tel (202) 473-1053, fax (202) 477-0551. International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), 38, Cours Albert ler, 75008, Paris, France, tel (33-l) 49-53-28-28, fax (33-l) 42-25-86-63. National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy, Suite 1500, 1 Nicholas Street, Ottawa, Ontario, KlN 7B7, tel (613) 992-7189, fax (613) 992-7385. United Nations Commission for Sustainable Development (CSD), Department of Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development, Room S-3060, United Nations, New York, N-Y., 10017, USA, tel(212) 963-5959. World Industry Council for Sustainable Development @VICE), 40 Cours Albert ler, 75008, Paris, France, tel (33-l) 49-53-28-28, fax (33-l) 42-25-86-63.
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CHAPTER 34 Transfer of Environmentally Sound Technology, Cooperation And Capacity-Building
- liheodora Carroll-Foster --
THE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM
In order to develop sustainably, all countries need access to training in the use of environmentally sound technologies (E!3T), Moreover, new and efficient technologies will be essential to increase the capabilities, particularly of lesser developed countries, to achieve sustainable development, sustain their own and the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s economies, protect the environment and alleviate poverty and human suffering. The availability of scientific and technological information and access to and transfer of environmentally sound technology are essential requirements for sustainable development. Similarly, the primary goal of improved access to technology information is to enable informed choices, leading to access to and transfer of such technologies and the strengthening of countriesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; own technological capabilities. There is a need for favourable access to and transfer of environmentally sound technologies, particularly to lesser developed countries, which will involve the transfer of necessary technological know-how, as well as the expansion of economic, technical and managerial skills in order to use and further develop such technologies, Joint efforts by enterprises and governments, and suppliers of technology and its recipients, are required to ensure the best possible results from the transfer of (and sharing of) technology.
Theodkm cJbrroll-Fosfe is the Coo&nator/Adpi.wr of the Agenda 21 Unit at the Iktematbnal Development Reseaxh Centre (IDRC), llac views expressed in this assessment are those of the author who received input from a number of sfaketcolders, and do not necessady represent the views of either the IDRC or the Projet de soci&tf,
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Along with finances and institutions, technology transfer is one of the three key cross-cutting issues addressed in Agenda 21. The activities proposed in this chapter of Agenda 21 aim at improving conditions for and processes â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;on information, access to and transfer of technology, as well as on capacity-building and cooperative arrangements and partnerships in the field of technology. Five broad objectives are identified in the chapter:
(1)
to improve access to scientific and technological information;
(2)
to promote, facilitate and finance access to and transfer of technologies;
(3)
to facilitate the maintenance and promotion of indigenous technologies;
(4)
to strengthen endogenous capacity to assess, adopt, manage and apply This could be achieved through, inter alia: human resource technologies. development; strengthening research and the development of institutional capacities and program implementation; and integrating sector assessments of technology needs with countries plans, objectives and priorities as foreseen in the national implementation of Agenda 21.
(5)
to promote long-term technological partnerships between holders and users of technologies; and,
CANADIAN POSITIONS AT RIO 1.
Official Canadian Position Canada has had problems with the concepts of preferential and concessionary terms for technology transfer. The government has generally been more in favour of preferential terms in the context of such technology (e.g., low interest loans through Canadian Official Development Assistance). As a major importer of environmentally appropriate technology, Canada would be put at an economic disadvantage vis-a-vis newly industrialized countries if they were granted preferential access to technology from other developed countries. Canada has wanted language on preferential terms to be consistent with international trade rules, including intellectual property rights. The following were Canadaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s three principle objectives with regard to the transfer of technology: to emphasize education, training and capacity-building in developing countries in order to optimize the effectiveness of technology transfers;
(2)
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to ensure that any proposals, programs, etc. on the transfer of technology reflect the fundamentally commercial nature of transferring technology; and,
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2.
To avoid protracted discussions on terms of access to technology, referring, if necessary, to the need to provide concessional financing rather than concessional transfer of technology.
Non-Governmental Orpanizations Canadian NGOs have cal@d on Canada to support lesser developed countries-proposals for a more preferential and concessionary transfer of environmentally appropriate technology to the South. Canadian NGOs have stated that: current development models of economic growth are environmentally destructive; transfers of technology must include community-based management; technology transfer must be environmentally sound and culturally appropriate, and transferred on favourable terms to developing countries; preferential terms of transfer and trade are required; questions of intellectual property rights, ease of access and the base of lmowledge or prime components of the product or process coming from developing countries without compensation or ownership must be addressed; efforts should be undertaken to promote and protect traditional knowledge of Indigenous groups and local populations regarding all aspects of sustainable development; the impacts of Northern technology on the global ecosystem must be dealt with; the social and environmental impacts and dislocations caused by the transfer of technology from North to South must be addressed; and, â&#x20AC;&#x153;environmentally soundâ&#x20AC;? must be more precisely defined and based upon scientific knowledge. Canadian NGOs were, in particular, disappointed with the Canadian Governmentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s position regarding concessional terms of transfer and trade. They had hoped that Canada would align itself with some of the other industrialized countries that acknowledged the need to provide favourable rates of technology transfer in order to effectively move towards equitable global sustainable development. Instead, Canada, as a major importer of high technology, aligned itself with other nations which were concerned with being placed in a disadvantageous position vis-a-vis international competitiveness should concessional transfers of technology be agreed upon.
3.
Business and Industry Business was concerned that there was a general public misunderstanding of how technology is developed and disseminated. Besides being a piece of information, technology is, in fact, a fundamental business commodity; a broad concept, encompassing successful adaptation of systems and know-how; and is dependent upon the skills and training of users.
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With regards to patent protection, business and industry generally think that the international patent system is _not a “constraint to the availability of environmentally sound technology”. Rather, strong patent protection is necessary in order to encourage the research that will lead to the development of more environmentally sound technologies in the future. What is more often missing in developing countries is the lack of a supportive infrastructure, including educational and technical skills, Fachinery and equipment, a recognition of the need for maintenance training and support, etc. Concern was expressed as to whether a need for clearing houses on environmental technology, as proposed in the Chapter, had been demonstrated. 4.
Indkenous Indigenous Peoples called for Indigenous Peoples’ development policies based on their values. In many cases Indigenous Peoples are synthesizing Indigenous and western science in new ways of understanding. However, Indigenous development should be oriented from the Indigenous perspective and western NGOs should endeavour not to impose their views and values on Indigenous Peoples, but rather encourage technology transfer which is relevant to the needs of the Indigenous world as opposed to those of the consumption oriented western world. Technology transfer must also be investigated from the reverse, that is the role Indigenous knowledge can play in guiding the western world on better sustainable technologies such as for agriculture, medicine, etc. Both governments and NGOs should involve themselves in a new partnership with Indigenous Peoples based on principles such as those incorporated in the Indige.nous Treaty.
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MADE BY CANADIANS
LeaalIv-Bindiw Documents None.
2.
Political Pronouncements None.
3.
Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NGO Treaties At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organization Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Oca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: and NGO
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Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination.
NW
Treaty on Technology Bank -- Solidarity System for Technological Esrchange
The proposed Technology Bank was conceived by NGOs as a way for sharing the wealth of technological, social and cultural experience. Technology could be deposited in the bank to be shared with other groups. This information would give developing countries an advantage in their fight against poverty. Much present, modem technology harms the environment and traditional ways of life; it does not incorporate the creativity of Third World populations. Critieria for the Technology Bank stipulates that it must be: pragmatic; easily adaptable; culturally compatible; small-scale; low cost; self-reliant; energy efficient; sustainable by local resources; and produce only non-toxic biodegradable waste. NGOs believe that such a system would not only stimulate the exchange of information and data, but would include the experience and practical advice of different communities. The system would include a variety of communication methods from personal contact to electronic exchange. It would respect cultural differences by ensuring a genuine transfer and would not be limited only to “scientific” concepts. A code of ethics would be developed for and among users.
The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference, where they also developed a 109~point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter.
COMPARISON CO-MADE
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Canada has largely taken the position of developing and seeking to transfer high technology before determining what sustainability could mean. Canada has made inadequate efforts to promote, fund or legislate the use of known environmentally appropriate technologies at home or abroad. Universities and research institutions generally follow the Government’s lead and money. Accordingly, support for organizations or small businesses developing appropriate technologies for use in Canada or shared with developing countries has been somewhat minimal. Consideration for Indigenous technologies here or abroad has also been rather muted.
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The International Development Research Institute (IDRC) has supported research and technology development in several key areas of “green” or “clean” technology (e.g., water quality management, remote sensing, biological agricultural inputs, and industrial waste management). Research in these areas will continue with emphasis on the development of the human and institutional capabilities needed to diffuse IDRC-supported technologies beyond initial pilot projects. Efforts will also be made to promote technological links between Canadians and their partners in developing countries. In addition, much of the work within this theme will focus on alternative institutional and policy frameworks for the transfer, adoption, and development of environmentally ysoundtechnologies. This will include the evaluation and design of alternative policy instruments and institutions, as well as more concrete actions to build capacity at the enterprise and policy-making levels. The following outputs are expected: conso&dation of IDRC’s role in environment and technology, and as a focal point for discussion and debate among other agencies; promotion of dialogue between stakeholders on some of the technology and innovation related issues that were not resolved at UNCED (e.g., access to technology and intellectual property rights, also gender and science/technology); development and implementation of long-term plans for the diffusion and application of specific environmentally sound technologies, both those developed with IDRC assistance (e.g., fog-catchers and water quality assessment) and those where IIDRC has particular in-house expertise (e.g., remote sensing); development and pilot testing of specific environmentally sound technologies in fields of current IDRC priority (e.g.!, development of natural resource-based products, and agricultural biotechnology) and promotion of enterprises to manufacture and market these technologies, where appropriate; implementation of a number of national and/or regional information systems to provide information on alternative sources and channels of technology supply; a number of training and institutional development activities to strengthen the technology management and innovation capabilities of small and medium-size enterprises (SME) and intermediary support institutions; and, A series of research projects to evaluate the impact of alternative policy and institutional frameworks on technological innovation in general, and on the supply, adoption, and adaptation of specific environmentally sound technologies.
DEF’ICIENCIES. GAPS AND COlWTRAINTS WITHIN THIS CHAPTER 34 No issue is really absent from Chapter 34, but several areas received insufficient attention. l
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There is very little concrete discussion of Indigenous technology in the chapter, despite a general statement regarding its importance.
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Little attention is given to the effects of environmentally sound technology on employment, poverty, income distribution, gender concerns, etc. -- with particular focus on the environmental side of the equation (although not just remediation technology).
l
Overall, the chapter is too sanguine about how easy it is to identify Too little attention is paid to the environmentally sound technologies. complexities of technology/needs assessment, which is presented as almost entirely a technical matter.
l
The implementation of maintenance servicing of and training for technology sustainability, and technology marketing and dissemination were given somewhat short shift.
Overall, the substantive content of the document had greatly improved compared with the earlier drafts of 18 months ago. In particular, it stressed that facilitating North-South technology flow is not sufficient, but must be matched by efforts to build domestic capabilities. Earlier documents had concentrated almost exclusively on the legal/financial barriers to transfer (particularly patents), rather than on links between technology transfer and domestic technology capabilities. Chapter 34 also moved away from a “technology supermarket” view, by stressing that effective transfer demands on-going effort by recipients as well as long-term partnerships between recipients and suppliers. Chapter 34 correctly stresses capacity-building as a complement to technology transfer despite difficulties in terms of programming. But, in actuality, the chapter is more specific about information systems and technology transfer than capacity-building. The chapter’s breadth of coverage results in few references to specific types of technology which could act as an initial focus for international efforts. The broad scope and cross-cutting nature of this chapter, causes overlap with other chapters (e.g., Chapter 37 - National Mechanisms and International Cooperation for Capacity Building, and Chapter 33, Financial Assistance).
COMPARISON BETWEEN CURRENT CANADIAN GoCO-SMADE
POLICY AND
As Canada is a leader in many forms of EST development, matters associated with technology transfer are of considerable relevance. The protection of intellectual property rights associated with development of new technologies, for example, is a concern for Canadian companies with an interest in pursuing export opportunities in ESTs. If, as Agenda 2 1 envisages, the market is to be the main vehicle to introduce new technologies to developing countries, then the private sector will have to be reassured that its proprietary interests in EST research and development will be duly protected. In view of Canada’s interest in encouraging trade across all sectors, Projet & socidtt!: Planning for a Sustainable F&me
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External Affairs International Trade Clanada (EAITC) is placing increasing emphasis on how the field of intellectual property rights is evolving and interfacing with EST trade potential. A distinction has been drawn between “in production” or process-oriented ESTs that represent new and innovative technical developments with relatively little operating history and the “postproduction” ESTs (i.e., end-of-pipe and waste management technologies) that are adaptations of well understood technologies. There is a much greater tendency for the process-oriented technologies to be developed by a single user and not for the purpose of marketing them. Maintaining proprietary control over such technologies may offer competitive advantage and, therefore, access to this technology for others may raise problems. In-production ESTs may also involve innovations in the development of new industrial materials for which there will be a strong proprietary interest. The Canadian government is well aware of the distinction between the two ESTs and the need for properly designed policies for each, so as both to facilitate and promote EST transfer, while respecting proprietary interests.
CANADIAN AC-
EVOLVING THROUGH THE SUSTAINABILITY PROCESS
Alberta - Department of Agriculture University of Victoria, University of British Columbia, University of Waterloo and other academic/research institutions in Canada.
OTHXR RELEVANT INTERNATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY-RELATED FORA l
United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development
l
Earth Council
l
United Nations Centre on Science and Technology for Development
l
Society for International Development, Task Force on Environment and. Technology
(UNCSTD)
SUGGESTED READINGS AND INFORMATION SOURCES Rath, Amitav, and Brent Herbert-Copley, “Technoloav and the International Environmental Agenda: Lessons for UNCED and Bevond”, A Report prepared for the Social Sciences Division of the International IDevelopment Research Centre, Ottawa, February, 1992. Business Publishers, “World Environmental Director-v”, (New York: 199 1). Canadian Participatory Committee for UNCED. CPCU Renort on Canadian Government and NGO Particination at UNCEI), June 1992.
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Friends of the Earth, Ghana and Indonesia. Technologv Transfer: Fiphting Climate Change and Pursuine Euuity Throueh the Transfer of Energy Efficient and Renewable Eneru Technologies, (Friends of the Earth, 1991). Herbert-Copley, Brent. “Technologv. Environment and Development: Options for Canada at UNCED and Bevond”, (Ottawa: IDRC, 1991). International Development Research Centre (IDRC). Agenda 21: Abstracts. Reviews. and Commentaries, (Theodora Carroll-Foster, ed.), (Ottawa: IDRC, 1993). and Earth Council, “Research Priorities in Technolorrv and Environmental-building dgenda 21”, (Ottawa: October 1993).
on
International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD), “Earth Enterprise ToolKit”, (Winnipeg: IISD, October 1993). Juman, C. and M. Sagoff. “Policies for Technolo&, International Conference on an Agenda of Science for Environment and Development into the 21st Century, ASCEND 21, Vienna, 24-29 November, 1991. Keating, Michael. Aeenda for Change: A Plain Language Version of APenda 21 and the Other Rio Agreements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993). Rittner, Don. EcoLinkintz: Evervone’s Guide to OnLine Environmental Information, (Berkeley: Peachpit Press, 1992). Thompson, John. The Environmental Entrepreneur: Where to Find the Profit in Saving the Earth, (Atlanta: Longstreet Press, 1992). United Nations. Transferring: Technologv for Environmentallv-Sustainable Summit in Focus, Number 3, September 1991;
Development, Earth
ODtions to Facilitate Transfer of United Nations Centre on Transnational Corporations. Environmentallv Sound Technologies to DeveloDing Countries on Favourable Terms, July 1991. United Nations Non-Governmental Liaison Service. Resources, E&D File No. 12, February 1991.
Technoloev
Transfer and Financial
World Commission on Environment and Development. Our Common Future, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987).
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Information Sources: Industry Canada, 235 Queen Street, Ottawa, Ontario, KlA OH5, tel(613) 954-2754, fax (613) 995-2633. InternationalDevelopment Research Institnte, 250 Albert Street, Ottawa, Ontario, KlG 3H9, tel(613) 236-6163, fax (613) 238-7230. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 161 Portage Avenue, Winnipeg, Manitoba, R3B OY4, tel(204) 958-7716, fax (204) 958-7710. NGO Forum for Sustainability, 63 Sparks Street, Room 603, Ottawa, Ontario, KlP 5A6, tel (613) 238-3811, fax (613) 594-2948. National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy, Suite 150&l Nicholas Street, Ottawa, Ontario, KlN 7B7, tel(613) 992-7189, fax (613) 992-7385. UnitedNations Commiss ion for Sustainable Development, Department of Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development, Room S-3060, United Nations, New York, N.Y., 10017, tel(212) 963-5959.
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CHAPTER 35 Science for Sustainable Development
- Environment Canada -
THE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM
In order to prudently manage environment and development issues, science must play an important role. Science needs to provide the kind of information that will enable better formulation and selection of environment and development policies in the decision-making processes of governments and other organizations. If science is to provide such information scientific understanding must be enhanced, long-term scientific assessments must be improved, scientific capacities must be strengthened, and the sciences must remain responsive to emerging questions and needs. This chapter attempts to look at over-arching issues of the role of science in managing sustainable development, recognizing that the specific scientific requirements in different areas are discussed more fully in the relevant Agenda 21 chapters. PROGRAM AREAS AND OBJECTIVES The four program areas in this chapter and their more specific objectives are described here. 1.
Strengthening the scientific bask for sustainable management 0 To identify, at the national level, the state of scientific knowledge and research needs and priorities.
2.
Enhancing scientific understanding l To improve and increase the fundamental understanding of the linkages between human and natural environmental systems.
The views expressed in this chapter rejlect input from a number of stakeholders and do not necessarily represent the views of the Government of Canada or ti Projet de soci&L
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3.
Improving long-term scientific assessment 0 To assess current status and trends in major development and environmental issues, in order to develop alternative strategies for longterm policy formulation.
4.
Building up scientific capacity and capability 0 To improve scientific capacities through: education, training and local research facilities in basic environment-related scientific disciplines; increasing the number of women scientists; reducing the exodus of scientists from developing countries; and, involving scientists in multidisciplinary environmental research.
CANADIAN POSITIONS AT RIO 1.
Official Canadian Position It was important for Canada that the final text of the chapter empha&ed the need for a stronger interdisciplinary approach ensuring that social sciences and humanities were incorporated into scientific objectives. Moreover, Canada supported close linkages between scientific research and policy development, while recognizing the increasing gap between policy needs and the ability of science to produce answers. The official Canadian position also sought to strengthen existing institutional mechanisms, rather than creating new organizations. Specifically, Canada supported the new United Nations Commission on Science and Technology for Development, which was recently re-established, as the key UN body for this issue, rather than creating a new advisory or coordinating mechanism. Among other objectives, Canada sought toIestablish long term scientific objectives and principles for cooperation, rather than detailed actions and associated costing. It was thought that the chapter needed to be more: focused, providing a framework for action. Cana,da avoided commitments to specific time frames and to the specific budgets.
2.
Non-Governmental Orzanizations Not available.
3.
Business and Industry The mobilization of science in the movement toward sustainable development is of critical importance to business and industry. Although Canadian business and industry did not make a specific submission for this chapter, they supported tlhe official Canadian position.
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4.
Indipenous Indigenous Peoples identified the need for support of the development of Indigenous knowledge institutions to study, document and support Indigenous Peoples in the use of Indigenous knowledge. These institutions must be controlled and managed by Indigenous Peoples to ensure Indigenous knowledge is collected for ethical purposes. The research from Indigenous knowledge may also prove a healthy way of strengthening the Indigenous Peoples as well as being beneficial in re-orienting the Western world, away from its traditional detachment from the natural world, to thinking and acting more realistically about “sustainable living and development.”
CO-S 1.
MADE BY CANADIANS Lwallv-biudiw
Documents
None.
2.
Political Pronouncements In an address at UNCED June 11, 1992, the Minister of the Environment, Jean Charest, stated that, “we have also substantially increased our funding in science and technology, monitoring and reporting systems and information and education. This represents a major investment in our future.”
3.
Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NGO Treaties At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organization Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Oca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. A number of these alternative NGO treaties are relevant to this chapter. These include, for example, the Treatyfor Environmental Educa-tionfor Sustainable Societies and Global Responsibility, the Treaty on Technology Bank, the Draft Protocol on Scientijk Research Components for the Gmservation of Biodiversity, and the Citizens Commitments on Biotechnology.
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The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference. They developed and adopted a W-point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter. The section of the Charter entitled “Culture, Science and Intellectual Property” states, “indigenous wisdom must be recognized and encouraged”, and that “‘traditions cannot be separated from land, territory or science”. Traditional knowledge must be considered alongside scientific knowledge in trying to better understand ecological systems and human beings interactions with them.
DEF’ICIENCIES.
GAPS AND CONSTRAINTS
WITHIN CHAPTER 33
Chapter 35 clearly emphasizes the need for a stronger interdisciplinary approach ensuring that social sciences and humanities are incorporated into scientific objectives. One of the objectives listed in the section on “enhancing scientific understanding,” is the integration of the physical, economic and social sciences in order to understand better the impacts of economic and social behaviour on the environment and of environmental degradation on local and global economies. It is suggested that research be developed and promoted on human, economic and social impacts on, and responses to, environmental changes. However, the chapter fails to provide much detail as to the specific steps involved in promoting such integration. Canada is p.resently considering the potential of science assessments, risk assessments, and ecological monitoring as integrative tools. In the same section, specific research. priorities are identified for the natural sciences. The text, however, does not list priorities for the social sciences. Identifying priorities might have promoted a consistency of approach and increased the potential for information-sharing among countries.
COMPARISON CO-S
BETWEEN MADE
CURRENT
CANADIAN Go-
POLICY
AND
Chapter 35 of Agenda 21 embodies one of the major principles of Canada’s Green Plan, i.e., that to make wise decisions about our use of the environment, we must know and understand the physical world and its eco-systerns, and the ongoing interrelationships between the natural environment and the economy. Chapter 35 encourages countries to prepare an inventory of their natural and social science data holdings relevant to the promotion of sustainable development. This information could then be used to provide scientific assessments of the current situation and allow for assessments of a range of possible future conditions. Under the Green Plan, Canada
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is establishing a long-term State of the Environment monitoring and assessment capability to study resources at risk, ecosystem responses and the impact of major disruptions on ecosystems. As Chapter 35 suggests, traditional knowledge of the local environment is to be taken into account in these assessments. In addition to a sound knowledge base, Chapter 35 encourages the development and application of quality-of-life indicators as a tool to enable more concise descriptions of the state of complex environmental systems. As part of the Green Plan, Canada is currently developing a national set of environmental indicators that would help to measure progress in achieving environmental goals. Another tool for sustainable development discussed in the chapter is the use of economic instruments. Again, this is consistent with the federal governmentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Green Plan which recommends that economic instruments be further studied as a tool for managing environmental problems. In view of the important role the sciences have to play in dealing with issues of environment and development, Chapter 35 promotes building up scientific capacity and capability. Under the Green Plan, the federal government is committed to revitalizing its research facilities and equipment and to supporting education and training in sciences and technology. Green Plan funds are helping to support the Canadian Global Change Program, which is the national focus for global change information, education and research activity in Canada. Funding is also being provided for programs to help encourage the development, demonstration, commercialization and dissemination of environmentally favourable technologies
CANADIANACTIVITIW
EVOLVING THROUGH THE SUSTAINABILITY
PROCESS
The Canadian Global Change Program The Canadian Global Change Program both promotes interdisciplinary research and strengthens the links between scientific results and decision-making. The Program, established under the auspices of the Royal Society of Canada in 1985, receives Green Plan funding. It involves an interdisciplinary and multi-agency network designed to facilitate research and communicate scientific results and ideas to international and national bodies responsible for research and policy development. Nationally, the Program is linked with key federal-provincial government departments, environmental advisory bodies, the National Round Table on Environment and the Economy; the Steering Committee on the Management of Science and Technology is made up of Federal Assistant Deputy Ministers, and the Canadian Climate Program. The Program is drawing upon the natural, social and medical sciences, and the humanities in its research. Currently, research is being conducted on the following key global change issues: climate change; energy and resource consumption; air and water pollution; stratospheric ozone depletion; population increase; extinction events; and land and soil degradation.
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Canada Signs Apreement on Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research On March 25, 1993, Canada signed the agreement establishing the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research. Canada is one of the founding parties of the Institute, along with 15 other nations of the Americas. Science Forum I Science Forum I, held in Rockland, Ontario, from November 30 to December 3, 1992, was the first time that Environment Canada held a conference attended by researchers, research managers and policy personnel from all parts of the department. Participants discussed emerging issues, how to strengthen interdisciplinary research, and the role of science in departmental decisionmaking and policy. A second conference is tentatively scheduled for the spring of 1994. Environmental Indicators Chapter 35 recommends the development of quality-of-life indicators as a necessary tool for sustainable development. In Canada, work is continuing on the development of a national set of environmental indicators. Selected environmental issues, based on consultations and cooperation with various federal partners, are being targeted for indicator development and improvement over the next few years. To date, work has been initiated in the following issue areas: stratospheric ozone depletion, state of wildlife, toxic contaminants in the environment, state of forests, energy use, climate change, water use, state of marine fish, urban air quality, and biodiversity . Canada is also actively engaged in international indicator development, in particular, in work related to OECD’s country environmental performance reviews. Canada’s thorough review and provision of written comments on the OECD’s Draft Synthesis Report was cited by the Chairman as an example that other countries were encouraged to follow. Currently, Canada is chairing three technical working groups to elaborate the indicators under the issues of climate change, stratospheric ozone depletion, and forest resources. State of Environment Renortinq Chapter 35 recommends assessments of the current status and trends in major development and environment issues. Canada’s first national report on the environment was published in 1986. The second national report was released in April 1992. A variety of innovative products based on the report are being pursued including a CD-ROM version and a Teacher’s Kit. Work is under way on the third report, which will include a chapter on lifestyle choices and their implications on the environment in a global context. Many provinces have also developed State of Environment reports at the provincial level. Biodiversity Chapter 35 recommends the study of the role of biodiversity and the loss of species in the functioning of ecosystems and the global life-support system. Canada was the first industrialised country to ratify the Biodiversity Convention. The Biodiversity Convention Office is overseeing the implementation of the various requirements of the Convention and is focusing on the development of the Canadian Biodiversity Strategy.
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At the international level, Canada continues to play an active role in global efforts to ensure implementation of the Convention. Canada has been instrumental in revising guidelines for national biodiversity assessments, is participating in various expert fora on key policy issues and interim activities, is formulating a proposal for financial arrangements under the Global Environmental Facility, and is assisting developing countries to develop their capacity to conserve biodiversity and use biological resources in a sustainable way. Capacitv-Building Chapter 35 states that one way of building up scientific and technological capacity is through education and training and another is through the development of incentives to encourage research and development. Green Plan funding is available for a number of programs involving environmental research. One example is the Eco-Research Program, which consists of three main components: research grants, university research chairs, and doctoral fellowships. The basic aim of the program is to strengthen Canadian research and training focusing on environmental issues, with particular emphasis on developing greater understanding of critical interactions between humans and the environment and of how these interactions may best be managed. Another example is the Environmental Innovation Program, which provides assistance to qualifying Canadians who have proposals for the research or development of new environmental products or services. Green Plan funding is also available for the development of new environmentally safe technologies. In 1993, for example, under the Technology for Environmental Solutions Initiative, the federal government, in collaboration with the private sector, academia and other governments, established three National Environmental Technology Advancement Centres. The Centres will provide a comprehensive range of technology transfer services for Canadian developers of environmental technology. The primary client will be the small-to-medium-sized enterprises who supply these technologies to the marketplace, and have the greatest need for these services.
OTHER RELEVANT INTERNATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY-RELATED FORA
0
Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research
0
International Geosphere-Biosphere Program
0
Human Dimensions of Global Environmental Change Program, International Federation of Institutes for Advanced Study.
0
Intergovernmental
l
World Climate Program
Panel on Climate Change
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SUGGESTED READINGS AND INFORMATION SOURCES Government of Canada. Canada’s Green Plan, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1990). .
Canada’s Green Plan and the Earth Summit, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1992).
Canada’s National Report: United Nations Conference on Environment Develonment Brazil. June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991). .
and
. A Comnendium of R&D in Environment Canada, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, Office of the Science Advisor, 1992).
Environmental Science and Technologv: An Overview, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, Office of the Science Advisor, 1993). .
A Report on Canada’s Progress towards a National Set of Environmental Indicators, SbE Report No. 90-1, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, Indicators Task Force, 1991). The State of Canada’s Environment, Canada, 1986).
1st National Report, (Ottawa: Environment
The State of Canada’s Environment, Canada, 1992).
2nd National Report, (Ottawa: Environment
Stratospheric Ozone Deoletion, Environment Canada, 1992).
SOE Environmental
Indicator Bulletin, (Ottawa:
Science Forum I, Synthesis Report, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, Office of the S’cience Advisor, 1992). Toxic Contaminants in the Environment, (bttawa: Environment Canada, 1993).
SOE Environmental
Indicator Bulletin,
International Development Research Centre (IDRC). Agenda 21: Abstracts. Reviews. and Commentaries, (Theodora Carroll-Foster, ed), (Ottawa: IDRC, 1993). Keating, Michael. Agenda for Change: A Plain Language Version of Agenda 21 and the Other Rio Agreements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993). World Commission on Environment and Development. Our Common Future, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987).
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Information Sources: Biodiversity Convention Office, Conservation and Protection Service, Environment Canada, 10 Wellington Street, 5th floor, Terrasscs de la Chaudi&-e, Hull, Quebec, KlA OH3, tel(819) 953-6252, fax (819) 953-3557. Royal Society of Canada, Canadian Global Change Program, 355 River Road, Tower B, 16th Floor, Vanier, Ontario, KlG 5J4, tel(613) 991-6990, fax (613) 991-6996. Green Plan Operations, Environment Canada, Terrasses de la Chaudi&re, 10 Wellington Street, Hull, Quebec, KlA OH3, tel(819) 953-7352. National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy, 1 Nicholas Street, Suite 1500, Ottawa, Ontario KlN 7B7, tel: 613-992-7189, fax; 613-992-7385. Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), 2, Rue Andre-Pascal, Paris, Cedex 16, France, tel (33) 1-45-24-93-14.
75775,
State of Environment Reporting, Environment Canada, Emerald Plaza, 1547 Merivale Road, Ottawa, Ontario, KlA OH3, fax (613) 941-9647. United Nations Commiss ion for Sustainable Development, Department of Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development, Room S-3060, United Nations, New York, N.Y., 10017, tel(212) 963-5959.
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CHAPTER 36 Promoting Education, Public Awareness and Training - Carla Doucet -
TED3NATURE OF THE PROBLEM Sustainable development presents a challenge to society. Society must find new ways of developing and must reorient itself from an unsustainable society to a sustainable one. In order for society to reinvent itself it will require education, public awareness and training related to sustainable development. The role of education for human sustainable development is to contribute to making it possible. However, many people, Canadians included, do not understand the close ties between human activities and the environment because they have inaccurate or insufficient information. Education itself is often problematic given its discrete disciplinary approach; sustainable development requires a multi-disciplinary approach. While sustainable development offers hope as a concept, people are often unclear as to what practical action they can take. Education will have to play a key role in bringing about attitudinal and behavioural change related to the environment. The 1991 Annual Report of the National Advisory Committee on Development Education of the Canadian International Development Agency states: . ..making sustainable development a practical reahty is a formidable challenge. Attitudinal changes, especially in industrial&d countries, are critical if the precepts of sustainable development are to be instilled in everyday life. These fundamental changes call for a sustained and wide-ranging process of education. Linking sustainable development issues and public education will help centre the ethical dimension of the issue. There is a need to increase peopleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s sensitivity to, and involvement in, finding solutions for environment and development problems. Education can give people the environmental and ethical awareness, values and attitudes, skills and behaviour needed for sustainable development. To achieve this, education needs to explain not only the physical and biological environment,
CarIa Lhcet is the Policy Advisor for IGkation at the National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy (NRTEE). The views expressed in t3.h chapter are thase of the author who received input from a number of stakeholders, and do not necessarily represent the views of the NRTEE, the Government of Canada or the Projet de so&h!.
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but the socioeconomic environment and human development. Both formal and non-formal education are indispensable to changing peopleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s attitudes so that they have the capacity to assess and address sustainable development concerns. They will also be mutually reinforcing. In order that environment and development education be effective, there is a need for Basic education is the underpinning for environment and fundamental education first. development education. It is hard to achieve environmental literacy without having first achieved basic literacy. Chapter 36 recommends that all countries strive :for universal access to education, and achieve primary education for at least 80% of all boys, and girls, through formal schooling or non-formal education. Adult illiteracy should be cut to at least half the 1990 level, and literacy levels of women brought into line with those of men.. To be effective, environment and development education should deal with the dynamics of both the physical/biological and socioeconomic environment and human (which may include spiritual) development, should be integrated in all disciplines, and should employ formal and non-formal methods and effective means of communication. Finally, the way in which we provide fmancial support for education must be evaluated in order that its structure is consistent with the educational needs of a sustainable society.
PROGRAM
AREk.3 AND OBJECTIVES
Education, raising of public awareness and training are linked to virtually all areas in Agenda 21, and even more closely to the chapters on meeting basic needs, capacity-building (37), data and information, science (31 and 35), and the role of major groups (Z!3). Therefore the objectives and activities in this chapter are deliberately broad. All countries are urged to:
400
1.
Reorient education toward sustainable development, inclkling: 0 the integration of development education as an essential part of learning; 0 the integration of physical, socioeconomic and human dynamics (including demography) in all disciplines transmitted through education; and, 0 the preparation of national strategies and actions for meeting basic learning needs, universalizing access and promoting equity, broadening the means and scope of education, developing supporting policy context and strengthening international cooperative efforts.
2.
Increase public awareness, including: 0 increasing sensitiveness and involvement: and, 0 devolving authority in decision-making.
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3.
Chapter 36
Promote training. To promote sustainable development education, nations should seek to: 0 make environment and development education available to people of all aim 0 include environment and development concepts, including those of population, in aLl educational programs, with analyses of the causes of major issues. There should be a special emphasis on training decision makers; l involve schoolchildren in local and regional studies on environmental health, including safe drinking water, sanitation, food and environmental and economic impacts of resource use; l set up training programmes for school and university graduates to help them achieve sustainable livelihoods; a encourage all sectors of society, including industry, universities, governments, NGOs and community organizations to train people in environmental management; 0 provide locally trained and recruited environmental technicians to give local communities service they require, starting with primary environmental care; 0 work with the media, theatre groups, entertainment and advertising industries to promote a more active public debate on the environment; and, 0 bring indigenous peoplesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; experience and understanding of sustainable development into education and training.
CANADIAN POSITIONS AT RIO 1.
Official Canadian Position Canada had three main objectives at UNCED regarding the promotion of environmental education, public awareness and training: (1)
to seek endorsement of the concept of â&#x20AC;&#x153;environmental citizenshipâ&#x20AC;? as one goal of environmental education;
(2)
to seek to support the sharing of environmental education, training and awareness programs, materials and resources within and between countries; and,
(3)
to avoid committing any support for this area since none has currently been identified in the Green Plan or elsewhere.
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Non-Governmental Organizations Non-governmental organizations recognize that education plays a central role in shaping values and social action. However, because funding for NGOs is usually limited, the value of knowledge depends on how well and widely it is cultivated and shared. NGOs seek to foster education that is based on respect for all life. The life-long learning process should be based on ecologically sound societies that are just, fair, diverse and yet value their interdependence. The NGO position goes further than the official Canadian position to the philosophical underpinnings of education and its role in society.
3.
Business and Industrv Prior to the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), an international business organ&&ion with strong Canadian membership, released a business brief on education for sustainable development. The ICC advocated that the main efforts of industry should be focused on sound in-house programs and cooperative development with suppliers and customers, and where possible with academia. More than 600 companies have expressed their support for the business charter for sustainable development, which has an education component, including: employee education, research, transfer of technology, and fostering of openness to concerns. The Chamber supports a close relationship with academia and work to encourage interdisciplinary studies that promote a cooperative approach to environmental problem solving. The American Council of Education and the Association of European Universities (CRE) support a close relationship between business and post secondary educational institutions. However, there is a need for industry to improve its efforts toward environmental education at the primary and secondary levels. Industry should work with educators at all levels to assure that environmental and economic considerations are integrated into appropriate curricula.
4.
Indigenous Indigenous Peoples support tine development of a “New Partnership” between Indigenous Peoples and Western Peoples based on mutual and equal respect. Moreover, a new ethic as proposed by the International Treaty whereby Western institutions must develop new policies which pronounces “listening and learning” from Indigenous Peoples. This point is also emphasized in the report Our Common Future. Support for lmore public forums, dialogues and conferences between Indigenous Peoples and other stakeholders would be a significant step in generating an understanding and awareness regarding Indigenous knowledge, values and culture related to living sustainably with the Earth. In addition, these values and insights should be incorporated into national strategies, and into resource management plans and policies.
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Education regarding Indigenous ways such as the significance of Indigenous knowledge and its intimate connections to the natural world should be introduced at the primary school and up, to instill a mind-set geared to making this world a better and healthier place for us and future generations.
CO1.
MADE BY CANADIANS Leeally-Bindiw
Documents
None. 2.
Political Pronouncements None.
3.
Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NGO Treaties At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organization Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Oca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. Of these treaties one addressed the issues discussed in Chapter 36. NGO Treaty on Environmental Education for Responsibility
Sustainable Societies
and Global
In this treaty, education is seen as a dynamic process, promoting reflection, amendments. The treaty is devoted to protecting life on earth and recognizes role of education in shaping values and social action. The NGOs which treaty, committed themselves to a process of educational transformation involving themselves, their communities and nations in creating equitable and societies.
debate and the central signed the aimed at sustainable
The treaty is based on four fundamental premises:
(1)
That environmental education for equitable sustainability is a continuous learning process based on respect for all life. Such education affirms values and actions which contribute to human and social transformation and ecological preservation. It fosters ecologically sound and equitable societies that live together in interdependence and diversity. This requires individual and collective responsibility at the local, national and planetary levels.
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That preparing ourselves for the required changes depends on advancing collective understanding of the systemic nature of the crises that threaten the world’s future. The root causes of such problems as increasing poverty, environmental deterioration and communal violence can be found in the dominant socioeconomic system. This system is based on over-production and over-consumption for some and under-consumption and inadequate conditions to produce for the great majority. (3)
That inherent in the crisis are an erosion of basic values and the alienation and non-participation of almost all individuals in the building of their own future. It is of fundamental importance that the world’s communities dlesign and work out their own alternatives to existing policies. Such alternatives include the abolition of those programs of development, adjustment and economic reform which maintain the existing growth model with its devastating effects on the environment and its diverse species, including the human one. That environmental education should urgently bring about change in the quality of life and a greater consciousness of personal conduct, as well as harmony among human beings and between them and other forms of life.
Kari-oca
The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED .by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference. They developed and adopted a 109point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter. In the Charter, Indigenous Peoples stated that they should have the right to their own knowledge, language and culturally appropriate education, including bicultural and bilingual education. It was also noted that in view of their harmonious relationship with nature, Indigenous sustainable development models, development strategies and cultural values must be respected als distinct and vital sources of knowledge. Kari-Oca specifically calls for: l
0 l
.e
404
Indigenous Peoples to have the necessary resources and control over their own education systems; elders to be recognized and respected as teachers of the young people; Indigenous wisdom to berecognized and encouraged; the traditional knowledge of herbs and plants to be protected and passed on to future generations; and,
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0
at local, national and international levels, governments to commit funds to new and existing resources to education and training for Indigenous Peoples to allow them to achieve sustainable and equitable development at all levels. Particular attention should be given to Indigenous women, children and youth.
DEFâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ICIENCIES. GAPS AND CONS-S
WITHIN CHAPTER 36
Chapter 36 recognizes that education is a cross-cutting issue and necessitates a multidisciplinary approach. Three program areas are addressed by the chapter: reorienting education toward sustainable development; increasing public awareness, and promoting training. The beginning of the chapter clearly states that its purpose is to lay out broad proposals related to education. Specific suggestions related to sectoral issues are contained in other chapters. In this way the objectives and proposed activities of Chapter 36 form the basis for all sustainable development activities that may be undertaken related to other chapters of Agenda 21. Activities occurring in relation to other chapters will serve to reinforce the education objectives. Environmental education and training do not end with this particular chapter. They reappear as components of all other chapters of Agenda 21, primarily falling under sections dealing with capacity building, but also under human resources development and similar sections. By emphasizing capacity building, or strengthening a nationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s capacity for environmentally sound sustainable development, the basis for public awareness and environmental education is being laid. Other chapters encourage governments to support the emergence of an informed consumer public and to integrate environmental concerns into the decision-making and implementation process. By improving communication and cooperation these recommendations will have an impact on the implementation of education and public awareness strategies in Chapter 36. Taken as a whole, Agenda 21 provides strong, consistent groundwork for giving the public an understanding of the concepts behind environmental education and the role Canadians play in the world. The chapter focuses on basic education needs - in particular universalizing access, promoting equity and reducing illiteracy - as building blocks for environment and development education. Without this basic education foundation, sustainable development education would not be possible. However, the connection between basic education needs and how they relate to sustainable development awareness is not clearly made by the chapter. Moreover, there is need for an explicit understanding that countries of the north and south do not have the same educational capabilities or needs. The concentration of the chapter is environment and development education. The only mention of sustainable development education is in the first program area title. All further references are to environment and development education. This is not the same thing. At present the north is involved in environment and sustainable development education, with little attention given to development education. It is important that the relationship between development education and sustainable development be explicit. In the north there is a tremendous base of curriculum resources related to environmental conservation. There is an absence of true sustainable development resources and professional development around these resources. Non-governmental Pmjet de soci&d: Prclnning for a Sustainable Future
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organ&&ions could be of assistance to professional associations and government bodies in relation to professional development and training. While calling for the integration of environment and development concepts into all education programs, sustainable development concepts are conspicuous by their absence. Sustainable development education informed by indigenous peoples’ understanding and not solely on northern ‘science’ would be a valuable contribution toward reorienting society for sustainable development. Many of the environmental education programs of the north, while significant in context, may not be appropriate for the needs of the south. Although Chapter 36 does not call for specific joint programs between the north and the south, it is clear that education and public awareness efforts must be coordinated to be effective. Further, any national action will serve to reinforce global action. The concept of establishing National Environmental Education Coordinating Bodies is an important recommendation. If these bodies are multi-stakeholder and have the support of all governments, provincial and federal, there will be much that can be accomplished. Much of what is occurring in Canada in the area of environment and development education is occurring at the local level. A national effort could support and reinforce local activities in addition to providing a global perspective. As well, such a group could help mobilize and facilitate different population groups and communities to assess their own needs and to develop the necessary skills to create and implement their own environment and development initiatives. A national multi-stakeholder environmental education initiative has been launched but it is premature to judge its success. Chapter 36 makes it clear that the Declaration and Recommendations of the Tblisi Intergovernmental Conference on Environmental Education, organ&d by UNEP and UNESCO in 1977, informs the objectives and activities outlined. It is unfortunate that Agenda 21, written 15 years later, is still making the same recommendations. It is time for all sectors of society to show leadership in effecting change. We cannot wait for yet another conference to remind us of what needs to be done.
COMPARISONBETWEEN CO-MADE
CURRENT CANADIAN GovERNMEm
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Responding to the objectives laid out in Chapter 36 of Agenda 21 will require that the federal government work in cooperation and1partnership with the provincial governments. In Canada, education is a provincial constitutional responsibility. As such it is the responsibility of the provinces to implement programs related to the formal education sector. This decentmlized structure for education decision-making means that legally no single policy for environmental (or sustainable development) education can be said to exist in Canada. However, since all provinces and territories support it, either explicitly through official statements or implicitly through including it in curriculum documents, the inference is clear: environmental education forms an integral part of the school curriculum at both elementary and secondary levels.
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This does not mean, however, that the federal government of Canada does not have a role to play in reorienting Canadian society for sustainable development. The federal government can provide leadership, strategic policy imperatives, and even financing through established means of transfer payments. Each of the ten provinces in Canada has developed its own educational structures and institutions and, while similar to one and another in many ways, they reflect the circumstances of regions separated by great distances and the diversity of the country’s historical and culturaI heritage. This is especially true for environmental education. AU provincial ministries of education are responding to sustainable development in various forms. Some provinces have developed concrete plans for including sustainable development in provincial curriculum guidelines. For example the Ontario Ministry of Education has developed new common curriculum guidelines for sustainable development. These guidelines will assist in sustainable development integration into all areas of the curriculum. Provincial Ministries of Education have made major revisions of curricula, particularly in the area of science, including two primary elements: a move away from a traditional disciplinary orientation toward an integrated approach to science; and, an attempt to include more science applications and technology education, with a focus on the social context of science and technology. In addition many provinces are focusing on global education. For example, in Nova Scotia global education is being integrated into social studies courses. However, the responsibility for reorienting society to sustainable development does not fall solely on governments. Non-governmental organizations have significant role to play in the area of education and public awareness, as well as the business community. Professional associations are taking the lead in innovative training programs. For example, the Association of Canadian Community Colleges is designing a program to ‘train the trainer’ around sustainable development. Networks and partnerships at the national level can facilitate action at the provincial level. The government is also funding many public awareness and informal education activities in partnership with other organ&&ions on many fronts. For example, in support of the second objective of the official Canadian position at UNCED, that is the sharing of environmental education, training and awareness programs, materials and resources within and between countries, the Canadian government helped to fund the World Congress on Education and Communication on Environment and Development @CO-ED). The first international event to follow-up on Agenda 21, specifically Chapter 36, the Congress was officially sponsored by UNESCO and the International Chamber of Commerce in cooperation with UNEP. Four North American groups came together to host the event: the North American Association for Environmental Education, the Council of Outdoor Educators of Ontario, The Ontario Association for Geographic and Environmental Education and Canada UNESCO’s Man and the Biosphere Program. These groups combined their annual conferences into one event which built on the momentum and spirit of cooperation begun in the preparation process for the Earth Summit.
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The World Congress itself was a complex affair. It included a conference, an exposition, an arts festival, a curricula and resources fair, a video and film festival, a children’s environmental festival, field trips, and 31 partner events. The congress served as a focal point for bringing together people and educational resource materials from arotmd the world. It brought the experts on environment and development issues together with educators and communicators. It was not structured to lead to international agreements, conventions or resolutions. No formal proceedings were complied, nor was the congress intended to serve as a official process involving national delegations. Rather it served as an opportunity for sharing, networking, and learning in a stimulating and varied setting. An ECO-ED Resources Catalogue has been complied which includes a listing of educational materials from the curricula and resources fair. In addition, new alliances were formed at ECOED and have resulted in concrete actions, including: l
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The World Resources Institute is working with the Latin American &o-Link to translate their guides for teachers. The International Chamber of Commerce has reviewed its policy paper on environmental education as a result of ECO-ED. Several businesses in Colombia and Ecuador established contacts to undertake joint projects with Canadian businesses, and a proposal for a student exchange program between Ecuador and Canada was developed. ECO-ED was featured in the discussions at: Iberoamericano Conference on Environmental Education in Guadalahara, Mexico; Conference on Environmental -Education in the Philippines; and the North American Association of Environmental Educator’s Conference in Montana. For Canada, an important product of ECO-ED was the initiation of a process to form a multi-sectoral environmental education network, now called EECOM.
Other initiatives related to the objective of sharing environmental education, training and awareness programs, material and re~rources within and between countries are being undertaken by various government and non-governmental organizations. Federal agencies have played an important, albeit indirect role, through programs such as the Canadian International Development Agency’s (UDA) Public Participation Program. This program has worked with ministries of education, teachers’ federations, trustees, superintendents, faculties of education and NGOs across the country to facilitate a program of global education that has involved 300,000 teachers and influenced the learning and lives of millions of young Canadians. CIDA, through its support of the International Council for Adult Education (ICAE) has contributed to the government’s commitments by ensuring the follow-up to ICAE’s Treaty for Environmental Education and The benefits of other federal initiatives are not yet clearly known. Global Responsibility. However, a formal mechanism that would allow curriculum developers to benefit from the large pool of government environment knowledge would be beneficial.
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Global education programs are now operating in all provinces in Canada. Education for sustainable development is the logical extension, recognizing that the present interlocking crises that challenge the global community stem from conflict between ecology and economy will need new information and skills of planning and participation and commitment to appropriate action. Significant work is being undertaken in Canada in the area of raising awareness and giving the The public the necessary information to bring about change in attitudes and behaviours. National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy (NRTEE) developed 10 objectives for sustainable development which inform all work carried out by the round table. Fundamental to the objectives is an awareness that the natural world and all its life forms, and the ability if this world to regenerate itself through its own evolution has basic value. Within and among human societies, fairness, equality, diversity and self-reliance are pervasive characteristics of development that is sustainable. Recognizing that key to entrenching sustainable development attitudes and practices in Canada is the education of young people, the NRTEE catalysed Learning for a Sustainable Future @SF). LSF is a program designed to facilitate initiatives by Canadian educators to make sustainable development a reality in Canadian school systems, from kindergarten to Grade 12. The program has five primary phases: fact.iinding and consultation; facilitating the cooperative development of provincial and territorial frameworks; supporting program strategies; identifying models of sustainable development education and coordinating the dissemination of innovative strategies; and establishing and implementing an ongoing evaluative process. Educators in every province and territory have shown their interest in education for sustainable development. Provincial round tables on the environment and the economy, ministries of education, environment and others, business groups, environmentalists, teachersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; federations, trustees and members of the public are forming coalitions to set provincial frameworks for this crucial educational agenda. Learning for a Sustainable Future is well positioned to facilitate this integrated, nation-wide process. In her foreword to Our Common Future, the report of the World Commission on Environment and Development, Gro Brundtland warned: Unless we are able to translate our words into language that can reach the minds and hearts of people young and old, we shall not be able to undertake the extensive social changes needed to correct the course of development. This is the vision that has informed Chapter 36 of Agenda 21 and it has led to a NRTEE proposal called Fostering Responsible Citizenship to Achieve Sustainable Development. Acting as a catalyst, in partnership with ParticipACTION, this program will promote values and attitudes that will support the radical changes necessary to make sustainable development work. The program will operate through the media, community action programs, advertising, employee education, retail promotions, coalitions, award programs, participatory events, speakers programs, targeted resource materials, regional â&#x20AC;&#x153;animatorsâ&#x20AC;?, and professional and volunteer associations.
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The objectives of this program are: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
to create awareness of sustainable development, a sustainable society framework; to portray individual and collective choices; to change attitudes, values and behaviour; to stimulate debate on how to achieve sustainable development; and, _ to provide tools and methods, at the community level, to foster development that is sustainable.
As first steps, the NIUâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;EE and ParticipACTION have established an Interim Technical Advisory Committee of outside experts, and have developed the outlines of a multimillion-dollar comprehensive program that will operate nation wide. Seed funding has been provided by the NRTEE, ParticipACTION, and the Governments of Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Ontario, and a fundraising program is being developed. Once operational this program will help change public awareness and reorient the public toward sustainable development as Chapter 36 has called for.
CANADIAN ACTIVITIES EVOLVING THROUGH THE SUSTAINABILITY PROCESS EECOM: The Canadian Network for Environmental Education and Communication This network was established in April 1993 by representatives from all Canadian provinces and all levels of the educational system, in addition to representatives from government, youth, industry, labour, native, and environment groups. It is the result of a national multi-stakeholder survey conducted in 1992 and discussed by Canadians attenclmg the October 1992 ECO-ED Congress. Some goals of the network include: 0
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encouraging communication and the exchange of information among Canadians involved in environmental education; improving environmental education in Canada through various means; developing a greater awareness of environmental education; facilitating discussion of environmental education issues in local, national and international contexts; and, continuing to expand and strengthen the network.
Coalition of Education Leaders to Promote Environmental Education The national organizations representing all sectors of Canadaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s education community came together to make this joint public statement encouraging further efforts in education to promote environmental citizenship. The following organizations have called upon their own constituencies, governments and the community at large to commit themselves to certain principles of environmental citizenship and to offer educational programs to improve awareness, knowledge, attitudes, skills and the protection of our environment.
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Association of Canadian Community Colleges Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada Canadian Association for Adult Education Canadian Association of Principles Canadian Association of School Administrators Canadian Association for University Continuing Education Canadian Association of University Business Officials Canadian Education Association Canadian Home and School and Parent Teachers’ Federation Canadian School Boards Association Canadian Teachers Federation Royal Society of Canada UNESCO Canada/MAB
These organizations have pledged to work together as well as with environmental educators, other organ&ions and government to encourage education programs which help empower individuals, organizations and communities in enhancing our environment. Canadian Association for School Health (CASH) School based programs in environmental education including health are being established through a community consultation process, led by CASH, The Canadian Network for Environmental Education and Communication (EECOM) and the Canadian Association of School Administrators (CASA). Provincial and national meetings will be held to develop specific programs for schools. Council of Ministers of Education. Canada (CMEC) While not working specifically in the area of sustainable development and environment and development education, CMEC has offered support to Learning for a Sustainable Future, which is developing a cooperative framework for sustainable development education. CMEC has published an occasional paper on environment and school initiatives intended to summarize Canadian activities in schools. Canadian Oreanization for Development Through Education (CODE) CODE is a Canadian non-profit organization that believes development begins with literacy. When’societies become educated, they hold the key to social, economic and cultural growth, as well as independence. For more than 30 years CODE has been sending books to developing countries to promote literacy skills in both children and adults. CODE gives priority to projects that will become self-sustaining. Its programs, in 19 countries, have expanded beyond sending books to helping developing regions establish local publishers and local markets for their own books. CIDA remains CODE’s largest single source of revenue. Centrale de l’enseianement du Ouebec (C.E.Q.) This group has made significant contribution to the development of environmental education in Canada, particularly in Quebec. The C.E.Q. works through a network of partners to provide educational materials that enable schools and students to take action on environmental issues.
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Education and Communication on Environment and Development @CO-ED)
ECO-ED is an acronym for education and communication on environment and development. Roth an event - a World Congress held in Toronto in October 1992 - and -an outreach program of Eco-Links, ECO-EDâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s purpose is to improve the quality and delivery of education and communication about environment and development. The Congress was the first follow-up conference to the Earth Summit and focused on the implementation of the educational aspects of Agenda 21. The on-going network program involves the promotion of informal muhi-sectoral groups devoted to promoting education and communication about environment and development. The ECO-LINKS have been established in Columbia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Hong Kong, Hungary, Indonesia, Mexico, Peru, Philippines, Taiwan, Thailand, Ukraine, and West Africa. International Council for Adult Education (ICAE)
ICAE cooperates with over 100 autonomous national adult education associations representing more that 80 nations. ICAE promotes activities in four main areas: environment, literacy, peace and human rights and women. ICAE launched their treaty on Environmental Education for Sustainable Societies and Global Responsibility at ECO-ED. They have also implemented Learning for Environmental Action Program (LEAP). International Development Research Centre (IDRC) The environmental education activities supported by the IDRC are based on the premise that relevant and applicable knowledge about ecology, eco-systems, ecological alternatives, and the interrelationships and roles of individuals in society will lead to individually practical and/or policy changes. IDRC projects have supported early childhood, basic and secondary education, adult education of indigenous people, women and unskilled workers and a variety of educational approaches, methods, and techniques that can readily be used and replicated in environmental education. IDRC is also involved in a joint initiative with UNESCO and the IMAX film corporation as a response to Agenda 21. The key output will be a 40 minute, 70 mm (big screen) IMAX film on sustainable development. The goal of the film is to raise public awareness of sustainable and equitable development issues, in Canada and other industrial&d countries8, and particularly to give them a better sense of southern perspectives on the issues debated at UNCED. A package of related educational materials would reach audiences, especially children beyond the catchment areas of IMAK cinemas. Teacher guides and press kits will be developed for and by each country with IMAK theatres. International Institute for Sustainable Develonment (IISD) The mandate of the IISD is to promote sustainable development in decision-making - within government, business and the daily lives of individuals. Its scope is international, in recognition of the fact that local, national and global development issues are interconnected and impact upon each other. IISD is working in several areas that follow-up on Agenda 21. In the area of education, it is building a database of sustainable development information.
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MAB/NBT MAB/Net is one of three working groups of the- Canadian Man and the Biosphere Committee, focusing on environmental education, training and communication. MAB/NET promotes sustainable development by: disseminating environmental education information; encouraging the production and facilitating the use of environmental education information; linking interested groups to environmental information sources; acting as a catalyst for new environmental education initiatives; providing professional development; providing training in the use of electronic media; serving as a liaison between Canada and international environmental education agencies; and linking business and commerce to environmental education leaders. The National Capital Region Green School Proiect The Green School Project is a timely and exciting action based opportunity to demonstrate the viability of integrating hands-on environmental education and sustainable lifestyle experiences into the curriculum. It is designed to help prepare young people for their rapidly changing world by developing the values, attitudes, behaviours, skills and commitment crucial for the creation of an environmentally literate society. The goal is to establish a Green School model for Ottawa-Carleton, leading to the development of a region wide green school network. This regional model once established could serve as a blueprint for the rest of Canada. The Green School project is divided into a series of inter-related indoor and outdoor demonstration projects which provide opportunities for learning about the environment through direct involvement in school based ecological restoration techniques. National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy (NRTEE) The National Round Table is engaged in a number of ongoing initiatives, in addition to the proposed national public awareness campaign around sustainable development, related to the education, public awareness and training objectives identified in Chapter 36 of Agenda 21: 0
In partnership with the International Institute for Sustainable Development, it helped provide the impetus and funding to launch the Consultative Group of Centres for Sustainable Development (CGCSD). The CGCSD has set goals of refining research priorities, communicating and sharing information on sustainable development issues, and helping granting councils become more proactive by inviting them into information loops.
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The NRTEE has begun a survey of professional health associations to identify in what ways the National Round Table can assist them in promoting concepts and training around sustainable development.
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The NRTEE has scheduled a workshop the post-secondary level, to consider awareness of sustainable development, help integrate sustainable development
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The NRTEE is organizing a workshop for national news editors to examine ways of incorporating into news stories the economic analysis of sustainable development. In preparation for this workshop a series of outreach meetings were held with editorial boards of national newspapers in Canada.
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directed at sustainable development educators at what university programs can do to heighten how they can function better, and how they can into universities.
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It published Future Links: YouthRound Tables, a brochure written by youth for youth, that describes the principles of sustainable development, and outlines how Canadian youths can establish round tables and operate them with the support of local businesses, environmental groups and individuals.
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It published the Model Round Table for Youth Kit, a guide for a tracher/facilitator to assist youth in establishing round tables of their own. This companion piece to Future Links provides information about sustainable development, the round table process, and activities and case studies, written specifically for teachers or group facilitators.
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At the invitation of the Forum for Young Canadians, a non-profit foundation for the study of the processes of government in Canada, the NRTEE conducted model round table simulations with over 500 hundred high school students from across Canada.
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To catalyse the integration of sustainable development into all areas of post-secondary education the NRTEE was involved in the creation of an Environmental Journalism course at the University of Western Ontario.
The Ontario Green Schools Proiect This project started in January of 1993 and will continue to the end of 1995. It aims to identify and promote noteworthy practices in environmental education in elementary and secondary curriculum. The project will work to develop, implement, evaluate and refiie curriculum and professional development that draw upon identified best practices. All findings and outcomes will be disseminated through articles and conferences and the publication of support materials. Roval Societv of Canada - Canadian Global Chance Program The Canadian Global Change Program was established by the Royal Society of Canada to be the national focus for global change information, education and research activity in Canada, It has produced two publications of significance on Global Change and Education: Global Change and Cdians, and A Teacherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Guide to Global Change and Canadians. Through theses publications the Royal Society is disseminating information about global change and the role that This of direct relevance to the Chapter 36 Canadians can play in making a difference. recommendation that society reorient itself for sustainable development. Societv. Environment and Enerev Develoument Studies (SEEDS) This unique educational foundation has joined the forces of environmental science, industry, and education to provide nearly two million students in over 3WO schools across Canada with programs and material that support energy and environmental studies and encourage environmental action.
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United Nations Association In Canada (UNAC) UNAC has proposed a major three year program devoted to helping make Agenda 21 a reality. Called Action for Agenda 21, this program offers a variety of goals that represents a significant follow-up to the Earth Summit. Action for Agenda 21 would consist of an interrelated set of eight elements, all of which are related to reorienting society for sustainable development, in particular a community sign-on program to make Agenda 21 meaningful for Canadians. OTHER RELEVANT
INTERNATIONAL
SUSTAINABILITY-RELATED
F’ORA
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Association of Canadian Community Colleges, International (ACCC) For the past year ACCC has been workingwiththe Governmentof Mexico and American counterparts to understand better the role that Canadian technical and vocational education can play in NorthAmerica. Several meetings resulted in the establishmentof the Trilateral Task Force on North American Higher E&x.tion Collaboration. Six resolutions have been drawn up for implementationby the end of I993 - the most sigmi@.zntbeing the establishmentof a NorthAmericanDistance Educationand Research Network.
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The Global Tomorrow Coalition This is an American coalitionof groups involvedin thefield of sustainabledevelopment that has encouraged multi-sectoralalliances as a strategyfor implementingAgenda 21. The coalitionhas produced several documentsof relevancefor sustainabledevelopment education.
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l%e United NationsE&xtional, Scientific and Cultural Organ&ion (UNESCO) has been given the responsibilityfor United Nation’sfollow up to Chapters 35 and 36 of Agenda 21 by the United Nations Commission on SustainableDevelopment. At the UNESCO general meeting in November 1993, a design was proposed and a budget allocatedfor environmentaleducation. The result is an innovativeUnitedNationsproject called the “Interdisciplinaryand Inter-Agency Cooperation Project: Environmentand PopulationEducation and Irsfonnationfor Human Development”. The purpose of this project is to take advantage of UNESCO’s unique strength: its work in culture, communications, science and education, all of which are essential to advance environment and developmenteducation. The agenda and budget for this group has already been approved by the general assemblywithpreparationsfor implementationin 1994 already underway. 0
UNESCO/uNEp International Environmental Education Programme (IEEP) IEEP has several publication on environmentaleducation available to institutionson request, and are divide into jive groups: teaching and learning activities; training a&v&s; curriculum and planning activities; general infotmation documents on environmentaleducation; and, final reports of conferences, workshopsseminars and symposia. i%ey also publish a quarterly newsletterin eight languages. The IEEP has provided seed firnding to assist in the development of national strategies for
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environmental education and bus organized ruunerous internationul seminars and workshopsto support the study and developmentof male1 curricula., SUGGESTED READINGS AND INFOIXMATION SOURCES
British Columbia Round Table on the Environment and the Economy. Leamiw For Change, (Vancouver: 1993).
Toward Sustainability:
Council of Ministers of Education, Clanada. Environment und School Initi&ves, (Toronto: Council of Ministers of Education, Canada, 1991). Disinger, J. “Environmental Education for Sustainable Development?” JoumuZof Environmental Education, 21:4 (1990). Government of Canada. Canada’s Green Plan, (Ottawa: Minister of Supply and Services, 1990). Canada’s National Renort: United Nations Conference on Environment and Develonment, (Ottawa: Minister of the Environment, 1991). Grant, Tim, Ed, The Green Teachg, “Teaching About Sustainability”, Printers, Issue 35, Ott-Nov. l993).
(Oshawa: General
Greig , Sue, Graham Pike and David Selby. Earthrights: Education as if the Planet Really Mattered, (London, UK: Kogan Page, World Wildlife Fund, 1987). Greennrints for Changing Schools, (London, UK: Kogan Page, World Wildlife Fund, 1989). Hancherow, Tonya, Ed, ECO-ED Resources, (Toronto: World Congress for Education and Communication on Environment and Development, 1993). Holm-Schuett, Amy. Sustainable Develonment Issues on Education: A Status Renort for NGOs, (Washington DC: Global Tomorrow Coalition, 1990). Jickling, Bob. “Teaching about Sustainable Development: Problems and Possibilities”, (University of Prince Edward Island: Canadian Society for the Study of Education Conference, 1992). Meadows, Donella; Dennis Meadows and Joseph Randers. Bevond the Limits: Confronting Global Collause. Envisioning a Sustainable Future, (London: Chelsea Green, 1992). Nickerson, Mike. Planning for Seven Generations, (Hull: Voyageur Publishing, 1993).
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The Pembina Institute for Appropriate Development. Whoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Who In Environmental Education; A Directorv of Organizations and Agencies, (Drayton Valley: Pembina Institute, 1993). Pike, Graham, and David Selby. Global Teacher. Global Learner, (London, UK: Hodder and Stoughton, 1992). UNESCO. World Education Report, 1991, (UNESCO Secretariat, 1991).
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Information Sources: AIESEC Canada, 1450 City Councillors, Suite 540, Montreal, Quebec, H3A 2E5, tel (514)
987-1325. Association for Canadian Educational Resources, 3665 Flamewood Mississaga, Ontario, LAY 3P5, tel(416) 275-7685, fax (416) 265-7685.
Drive,
Unit 44,
Association of Canadian Community Colleges, 1223 Michael Street North, Suite 200, Ottawa, Ontario, KlJ 7T2, tel (613) 746ACCC, fax (613) 746-6721. Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada, 151 Slater Street, Ottawa, Ontario, KlP
5N1, tel(613) 563-1236, fax (613) 563-9745. Canadian Bureau for International Education, 85 Albert Street, Suite 1400, Ottawa, Ontario,
KlP 6A4, tel(613) 2374820, fax (613) 237-1300. Canadian Education Association, 252 Bloor Street West, 8th Floor, Toronto, Ontario, M5S
lV5, tel (416) 924-7721. Canadian Federation of Students, 600-170 Metcalfe Street, Ottawa, Ontario K2P lP3, tel
(613) 232-7394, fax (613) 232-0276. Canadian Global Change Program of the Royal Society of Canada, Box 9734, Ottawa,
Ontario, KlG 5J4, tel(613) 991-5639, fax (613) 991-6996. Canadian Home and School and Parent Teacher Federation, 331 Somerset Street West,
Ottawa, Ontario, K2P 058, tel(613) 234-7292, fax (613) 567-2135. Canadian InternationalDevelopment Agency, 200 promenade du Portage, Hull, Quebec, KlA OG4, tel(819) 9536060, fax (819) 9534933. Canadian Teachers Federation, 110 Argyle Avenue, Ottawa, Ontario, K2P lB4, tel(613) 232-
1505, fax (613) 232-1886.
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Canadian Youth Foundation, 300-55 Parkdale Avenue, Ottawa, Ontario, KlY lE5, tel(613) 761-9206, fax (613) 722-4829. Council of Ministers of Education, Canada, 252 Bloor Street West, Suite 5-200, Toronto, Ontario, M5S lV5, tel (416) 964-2551. Council of Ontario Universities, 444 Yonge Street, Suite 203, Toronto, Ontario, J&B 2H4,
tel (416) 979-2165, fax (416) 979-8635. CUSO, 135 Rideau Street, Ottawa, Gntario KlN 9K7, tel(613) 563-1264, fax (613) 563-8068. EECOM: The Canadian Network for Environmental Education and Communication,
c/o
EcoLogic, P.O. Box 1514, Antigonish, Nova Scotia, B2G 2L8, tel(902) 863-5984, fax (902) 863-9481. Environmental Childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s
Organization,
202-1592 Southwest Marine IDrive, Vancouver,
British Columbia, tel (604) 263-8110. Environment Canada,
10 Wellington Street, Hull, Quebec, KlA OH3, tel(819) 997-2800.
Global Education Associates, 475 Riverside Drive, Suite 456, New York:, N-Y., 10115, tel
(212) 870-3290. Green School Project, 24 Elm Street, Ottawa, Ontario, KlR 6N1, tel(613) :233 7550, fax (613)
239-5940. InternationalDevelopment EducationResources
Association, 2524 Cyprus Street, Vancouver,
British Columbia, V6J 3N2, tel(604) 732-1496. International Development Research Centre, 250 Albert Street, Ottawa, Ontario KlG 3H9,
tel (613) 2366163, fax (613) 563-0815. International Institute for Sustahu~ble Development @SD),
161 Portage Avenue East, 6th Floor, Winnipeg, Manitoba, R3B OY4, tel (204) 958-7700, fax (204) 958-7710. harniug
for a Sustainable Future, 45 Rideau Street, Suite 303, Ottawa, Gntario, KlN 5W8,
tel (613) 562-2238, fax (613) 562-2244. National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy,
1 Nicholas Street, Suite 1500, Ottawa, Ontario, KlN 7B7, tel(613:) 992-7189, fax (613) 992-7385.
North American Association for Envh-onmental Education, 45373, USA, tel(202) 467-8753, fax (202) 862-1947.
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Ontario Green Schools Project c/o International Institute for Global Education, Faculty of
Education, University of Toronto, 371 Bloor Street West, Toronto, Ontario, M5S 2R7, tel(416) 978-1863, fax (416) 978-6775. SEEDS Foundation, 10169-104th Street, Suite 440, Edmonton, Alberta, T5J lA5, tel (403) 424-0971, fax (403) 424-2444.
UNESCO CanadaMAB, fax (613) 598-4405.
99 Metcalfe Street, Ottawa, Ontario, KlP 5V8, tel(613) 598-4330,
United Nations Association In Canada,
63 Sparks Street, Suite 808, Ottawa, Ontario, KlP 5A6, tel(613) 232-5751, fax (613) 563-2455.
Women and Environments Education and Development Foundation (WEED), 736 Bathurst Street, Toronto, Ontario, M5S 2R4, tel(416) 633-6837, (fax) (416) 633-6825. World Congress for Education and Communication on Environment and Development
c/o International Council for Adult Education (XCAE), 720 Bathurst Street, Suite 500, Toronto, Ontario, tel (416) 588-1211. World University Service of Canada, 1404 Scott Street, Ottawa, Ontario, KlY 4M8, tel(613)
798-7477, fax (613) 798-0990.
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CHAPTER 37 National Mechanisms and International Cooperation for Capacity-Building - Theodora C&roll-Foster and Tim Dottridge --
THE NAlTJRE OF THE PROBLEM
The ability of a country to follow sustainable development paths is determined to a large extent by the capacity of its people and its institutions as well as by its ecological and geographical conditions. In order to develop more sustainably, a country depends on the capacity of its people and institutions to understand complex environment and development issues so that they can make theright development choices. Capacity-building encompasses the country’s human, scientific, technological, organizational, institutional and resource capabilities. A fundamental goal of capacity-building is to enhance the ability to evaluate and address crucial questions related to policy choices and implementation among development options, based on an understanding of environmental potentials and limits and of peoples’ needs. The need to strengthen national capacities is shared by all countries. PROGRAM AREAS AND OBJECTJIVES
Capacity-building is an essential step in preparing national sustainable development strategies and Agenda 21 action programs. Assistance in the form of skills, knowledge and technical know-how can come from the United Nations, national governments, municipalities, NGOs, universities, research centres, and business and other private organizations. The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) has been given responsibility for mobilizing international funding and coordination programs for capacity-building.
Theo&m Ciumll Foster is the Coom?inatorlAdvi$orof the Agenda 21 Unit at the International Development Research Ctnfre (4KDRC.LTim DoWdge is a Senbr Policy Anai’sis at the IDRC. lXe views expressed in this paper are those of the authors who have received input from a number of stakehdders, and do not necessady reflect the views of the IDRC.
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The overall objectives of endogenous capacity-building in this chapter are to develop and improve national and related subregional and regional capacities and capabilities for sustainable development, with the involvement of the non-governmental sectors. The Clhapter suggests:
(1)
promoting an ongoing participatory process to define country needs and priorities in promoting Agenda 21 and to give importance to technical and professional human resource development and the development of institutional capacities and capabilities on the agenda of countries. Also, due recognition should be given of to the use of existing human resources and the enhancement of the efficiency of existing institutions and non-governmental organizations, including scientific and technological institutions;
(2)
reorienting and reprioritizing technical cooperation, including that related to technology transfer and know-how process, with due attention to the specific conditions and individual needs of recipients. Likewise, coordination among providers of assistant to support countriesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; own programs of action should be improved. This coordination should also include NGOs and scientific and technological institutions, as well as business and industry whenever appropriate;
(3)
shifting (or adjusting) time-horizons in program planning and implementation which address the development and strengthening of institutional structures, so that they can respond to new longer-term challenges and not only immediate problems;
(4
improving and reorienting existing international multilateral institutions with responsibilities for environment and/or development matters, to ensure that those institutions have the capability and capacity to integrate environment and development; and,
(5)
improving institutional capacity and capability, public and private, in order to evaluate the environmental impact of all development projects.
Specific objectives under the Chapter include the following:
422
0
each country should aim to complete, as soon as practicable, if possible by 1994, a review of capacity- and capability-building requirements for devising national sustainable development strategies, including those for generating and implementing its own Agenda 21 action program; and,
0
by 1997, the Secretary General of the United Nations should submit to the General Assembly a report on the achievement of improved policies, coordination systems and procedures for strengthening the implementation of technical cooperation programs for sustainable development, and on additional measures required to strengthen such cooperation. That report should be prepared on the basis of information provided by countries,
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international organizations, environment and development institutions, donor agencies and non-governmental partners.
CANADIAN POSITIONS AT RIO 1.
Official Canadian Position
Canada had the following seven main objectives:
(1)
to seek to expand the role proposed for the United Nations Development Program (UNDP);
(2)
to seek to ensure that, if the UNDP was assigned a lead role in this area, then the General Assembly and UNDPâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Governing Council would instruct UNDP to strengthen its own regional capacity;
(3)
to seek to ensure that this document envisages a role for indigenous regional organ&ions -- ASEAN, SADCC, the OAS and the OAU -- which could, in fact, be better placed to achieve some of the objectives set out in this chapter;
(4)
to seek to ensure agreement that the fund be created by reallocating existing resources to it;
(5)
to avoid approval of the creation of a new fund requiring additional Canadian contributions;
(6)
to seek to ensure that the United Nations Environment Program (LJNEP) plays a major role in the planning of this program; and, to seek to ensure that the implementation of fund activities appropriately involves other UN agencies (such as UNJZP, FAO, WMO, UNESCO), as well as international NGOs (IUCN, WRI, WWF).
2.
Non-Governmental Owanizations
NGOs did not develop a specific position on government or international building. 3.
capacity-
Business and Industry
Canadian business and industry provided no specific input with regard to this chapter.
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Indigenous
Indigenous Peoples identified the need to support the creation of Indigenous Peoples nongovernment organizations (local, regional, national and international). These are essential to Indigenous Peoples for the purposes of fulfilling their development, capacitybuilding and local control needs. Moveover, Indigenous NGOs are vital for the establishment of new relationships, in terms of interaction and communication, between themselves and Western NGOs and other international organizations. MADE BY CANADIANS
CO-S 1.
Lwallv-Bind&
Documents
None. 2.
Political Pronouncements
During his disclosure of the National Statement of Canada on June 11, 1992 at UNCED, Minister of the Environment. Jean Charest expressed the importance of renewing and expanding Canada’s cooperation with other countries and international institutions in attaining sustainable development. In his address June 12 1992 at UNCED, Prime Minister Brian Mulroney stated that, “As a well established organization, the IDRC can be active and productive quickly, particularly in the area of research and technology transfer.”
3.
Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-0~11 NGO Treaties
At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were ;also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organ&&on Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Oca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and developlment and produced a parallel set of dlocuments: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 AlternAve NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. Of these treaties, one addressed the issues discussed in Chapter 37. IHowever, the whole NGO treaty process is au attempt to build new mechanisms for cooperation in the search for and the development of alternative policies, strategies and institutions at each level from local through global.
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Treaty for NW
Chapter 37
Cooperation and Sharing of Resources
The Treaty for NGO Cooperation and Sharing of Resources, developed at the Earth Summitâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s NGO Forum, is based on six underlying premises.
(1)
The protection of the environment and the achievement of ecologically sustainable development at every level and in all regions can be more quickly and effectively attained by increasing the numbers and shills of NGOs committed to these objectives..
(2)
The worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s new and emerging NGOs have many significant un-met needs and unrealized capabilities which reduce their ability to achieve their goals.
(3)
All NGOs have valuable experiences, shills, and resources, but effective programs to share them have generally not been implemented until now; an open, collaborative and mutual sharing process is needed, which enables all parties to learn and benefit from each other.
(4)
NGOs with important skills, proven strategies, and other resources should make every effort to share them with their fellow NGOs.
(5)
NGOs which offer to share knowledge, skills, experiences and resources should ensure that such sharing be transparent, accountable and available to as wide an audience as possible.
(6)
NGOs who take part in this sharing process, especially on an international level, must recognize and respect their partnersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; cultural and socioeconomic circumstances and make a concerted effort to overcome barriers, in order to promote an effective exchange.
The primary objectives of this treaty are as follows: a
to promote active cooperation and the exchange of information and resources among NGOs, locally, nationally and internationally;
0
to strengthen the NGO community worldwide; and,
l
to overcome cultural and communication barriers.
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Kiwi-oca
The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCBD by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference, where they also developed and adopted a 10!3-point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter. None of these statements were directly relevant to this chapter. DEF’ICIENCIES. GAPS AND COlVSTRAINTS WITHIN CHAPTER 3’2
This chapter proposes a major role for the UN in coordinating international programs for capacity-building. But, at present, its own capacity to deliver is in question -- relating both to funding problems and the continuing discussion of UN reform. The Chapter deals with capacity-building in a very general way. There is little specificity about the implementation of initiatives for capacity and capability-building, in other words, how to go about the task at hand. NGOs feel “capacity-building” is required, but only a part of the solution. The term “capacitybuilding” implies that someone knows what to do. Within many environmental and development problems we still have to invent the solution. Agenda 21 puts its faith in part in technology transfer (broadly defined). In so doing, it assumes that the solution to our problem is to get the right technology, in the right ~quantity in the right place at the right time. Many NGOs feel that the real problem will require a much more fundamental rethinking and revisioning of local, national, and global structures than is conveyed in the concept of “capacitybuilding”.
COMPARISON CO-SMADE
BETWEEN
CIJRRENT CANADIAN
POLICY
Go-
AND
Submissions from some NGOs point to inadequate funding by the government for both their domestic and international activities. Overall, this would indicate that, due to recent budget cuts, funding is at a lower level than commitments made.
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CANADIAN ACTIVITIES EVOLVING
THROUGH THE SUSTAINABILITY
PROCESS
The Canadian National Stakeholders’ process, also known as the “Projet de societe” and the various levels of roundtables (National, provincial and municipal) are initiatives contributing to capacity-building in Canada, and examples for consensus-building and decision-making in other counties. The International Development Research Centre (IDRC) and the Canadian International Development Agency (CJDA) are both funding a variety of capacity-building initiatives in numerous developing countries. A number of Canadian NGOs and academic institutions have initiated plans and/or implemented projects in Canada and abroad in such areas as forestry, common properties management, development of networks and partnerships on sustainability, education, trade, etc. OTHER RELEVANT INTERNATIONAL
SUSTAINABILXN-RELATED
FORA
Not available. SUGGESTED READINGS AND INFORMATION
SOURCES
Doering, Ronald, L. et al, “EnvironmentalRegulations and the Canadian Pulp and Paper Indust7y= An Ewhation of the Porter Strutegy”, Working Paper No. 5, (Ottawa: NRTEE/JRPP, 1992). Gallon, Gary T., “The Role of Green Economics in Canada”, Environmental International, (Toronto: August 1992).
Economics
Government of Canada. Canada’s Green Plan, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1990). .
Canada’s Green Plan and the Earth Summit, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1992).
Canada’s National Renort: United Nations Conference on Environment Develonment Brazil. June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991).
and
International Development Research Centre (JDRC). Agenda 21: Abstracts. Reviews. and Commentaries, (Theodora Carroll-Foster, ed), (Ottawa: IDRC, 1993). Keating, Michael. Agenda for Change: A Plain Lanauaae Version of Agenda 21 and the Other Rio Ag;reements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993). National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy (NRTEE) , Discussionson DecisionMaking Practicesfor SustainableDevelopment, (Ottawa: NRTEE, 1991).
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Futum
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Chapter 37
South Commission, EnvironmnI and Development: Towardsa CommonStrategyoft@ South in the UNCW Negotiationsand Beyond, (Geneva: South Centre, 1991). World Commission on Environment and Development. Our Common Futurg, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987).
Information Sources: National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy, Suite 1500, 1 Nicholas Street,
Ottawa, Ontario, KlN 7B7, tel(613)1992-7189, fax (613) 992-7385. United Nations Co mmission for Sustainable Development, Department of Policy Coordination
and Sustainable Development, Room S-3060, United Nations, New York, N.Y., 10017, tel(212) 963-5959.
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CHAPTER 38 International Institutional Arrangements - Miriam Wyman THE NATURIZ OF THE PROBLEM
The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) recognized that the United Nations has a critical role to play in implementing the concrete programs of Agenda 21, and that this requires UN restructuring and revitalizing in economic, social and related fields. The implementation of Agenda 21 will only be possible through continuing and coordinated efforts among relevant national and international institutions, both internal and external to the United Nations system. All countries have a vested interest in ensuring these efforts are fruitful. As a result, UNCED recommended that the UN create a new high-level Commission for Sustainable Development CSD) with membership from countries around the world. In its work, the CSD should draw on the expertise of UN organizations, international fmancial institutions and of NGOs, including industry, business and scientific groups. The CSD to monitor the progress and problems of governments and UN agencies in the implementation of decisions of Agenda 2 1, and to draw attention to urgent new and emerging issues in sustainable development. The CSD is a concrete and institutionalized reflection of the commitment of the international community to work towards sustainable development. The CSD has 53 member states, chosen on an equitable geographic basis; seats will be held for terms of one to three years. The CSD will report directly to the Economic and Social Council (JXOSOC) and through it to the UN General Assembly where all member countries have policymaking and other responsibilities to fulfil. The United Nations will consider a special session, no later than 1997, to review progress on the implementation of Agenda 21.
Miriam Wjman is a cons&ant whose work focuses on public involvement in environmeti decisibn-making. She was the womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s sector representative on the Canadian deleg&n to UNCED. The views expressed in this chapter are those of the author who received input from a number of shkeholdem, and do not necessardy reflect the views of the Prcjet de sociM.
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PROGRAM AREAS AND OBJECTIVES The overall objective is the integration of environment and development issues at national, subregional and international levels, including through institutional arrangements in the United Nations system itself. Specific objectives shall be:
(1)
to ensure and review implementation of Agenda 21 so as to achieve sustainable development in all countries;
(2)
to enhance the role and functioning of the UN system in the field of environment and development. All relevant agencies, organ&&ions and programs of the UN system should adopt concrete programs for the implementation of Agenda 21 and also provide policy-guidance for UN activities or advice to Governments upon request, within their respective areas of competence;
(3)
to strengthen cooperation and coordination on environment and development in the UN system;
(4)
to encourage interaction and cooperation between the UN system and other intergovernmental and1 non-governmental sub-regional, regional and global organizations in the field of environment and development;
(5)
to strengthen institutional capabilities and arrangements required for the effective implementation, follow-up and review of Agenda 21;
(6)
to assist in the strengthening and coordination of national,, sub-regional and regional capacities and actions in the areas of environment and development; to establish effective cooperation and exchange of information between the UN organs, organizations, :programs. and multilateral financial bodies which make up the institutional context for the follow-up of Agenda 21;
430
(8)
to respond to continuing and emerging issues relating to environment development; and,
(9)
to ensure that any new institutional arrangements support revitalization, clear division of responsibibties and the avoidance of duplication in the UN system and depend, to the maximum extent possible, upon existing resources.
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Overall, the focus on international institutional arrangements is intended to integrate environment and development issues within the existing structure of the United Nations using a minimum of new resources, to effectively implement and follow-up Agenda 21, to respond to new and emerging issues as Agenda 21 is implemented, and to promote cooperation and collaboration within the UN, between governments, NGOs and the business and scientific communities. CANADIAN POSITIONS AT RIO 1.
Official Canadian Position
At Rio, Canada had five major objectives concerning UN institutional arrangements for dealing with sustainable development. They were: l
to explore options regarding the institutional follow-up to UNCED;
a
to ensure that institutional proposals related to the UN system are developed within existing resources;
a
to encourage the regular preparation of national sustainable development plans, based on the results of UNCED;
0
to promote an expanded role for NGOs in the UNCED follow-up process; and,
0
to clarify the role of the UN system, other international organizations, and regional and sub-regional organizations in implementing the outcomes of UNCED.
These emerged from Canada’s interest in strengthening the United Nations and its multilateral system, in promoting closer cooperation within the UN system, and in maintaining its commitment to inclusiveness, transparency, accountability (“The Rio Way”). 2.
Non-Governmental Orpanizations
Canadian NGOs supported the establishment of the CSD and tabled a number of specific proposals: NGO participation at an equivalent status to member states; promotion of gender, geographic, and sector expertise on the Commission; promotion of alternative dispute resolution, and the integration of environment and development concerns at the highest political levels both nationally and internationally; and finally, promotion of reform to the United Nations system. This was rooted in concern that the UN, the World Bank, the IMF, and the GATT, which manage and control much of the world’s economic system, should introduce a more effective democratic, and participatory process in their decision-making.
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3.
Awesment of Agenda 21
Business and Industry
Canadian business generally supported the creation of the United Nations Commission for Sustainable Development as an appropriate mechanism to encourage the integration of environment and development within international institutions. Canadian business also supported a greater role for non-government organizations within the UN system. Consistent with the Agenda 21 chapter on “Major Groups,” rights of access should apply equally to all non-government organizations, including those representing business and industry. 4.
Indipenous
Indigenous Peoples called for a “New Partnership” between Indigenous Peoples and Western Peoples based on mutual and equal respect. Moreover, a new ethic as proposed by the International Treaty whereby Western institutions must develop new policies which pronounce “listening and learning” from Indigenous Peoples. Governments will have to be proactive and support fmancially Indigenous Peoples’ participation in all areas of Agenda 21.
CO-
1.
MADE BY CANADIANS
Legal&Binditw
Documents
None. 2.
Political Pronouncements
In his address June 12, 1992 at UNCED, Prime Minister Brian Mulroney stated that, Canada “will promote action on the results of this conference by ,the United Nations General Assembly this autumn and (Canada) will endorse the creation of the Sustainable Development Commission. ” The Prime Minister also offered developing countries Canada’s experience and financial assistance with developing sustainability strategies. The Prime Minister annoumxd a ten year financial commitment to Canada’s internationally acclaimed Inte~mational Development Research Centre, and the addition to its Board of Directors of nominees from the UN and the World Bank. In December 1992, Canada appointed an Ambassador for Environment and Sustainable Development.
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3.
Chapter 38
Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca
NGO Treaties At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organization Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Oca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. The NGO treaty process, a major feature of the International NGO Global Forum, represents a significant development in international institutional arrangements. It demonstrates new ways for NGOs to participate in multilateral policy dialogue; it promotes the development of NGO capacity to develop policy alternatives and to represent those multilaterally. Through the International NGO Forum, an International NGO Cooperation Treaty is being developed around the world. This initiative is funded by the Canadian International Development Agency. Kari-oca
The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference. They developed and adopted a 109point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter. The Kari-Oca Declaration and Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter represents a new kind of Agreement among the world’s Indigenous Peoples. Like the NGO treaty process, it is representative of new forms of international institutional arrangements. ’ It is a clear statement of demands and expectations predicated on the rights of indigenous peoples to land, resources, culture, traditional knowledge and practices, and, above all, control over their own destiny. DEF’ICIENCIES. GAPS AND CONSTRAINTS WITHIN CHAPTER 38
Commitments to national reporting and follow-up were not as strong as Canada would have liked. Rather than requiring sustainability plans and strategies, or even reviewing and/or monitoring progress, the chapter now calls for consideration of the information in national reports or periodic communications, and the review of information regarding the progress made in implementing the environmental conventions. This raises concerns about the level of accountability in the Commission’s functions.
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To move toward sustainability, it is :necessary to identify strategic roadblocks to sustainability as well as to articulate ways to resolve those at the global level; this should have been included as one of the purposes of the CSD. There was some feeling that the CSD would carry more weight if it reported directly to the General Assembly rather than through ECOSOC. This relates to concern over the UNâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ability to sustain follow-up in the light of past tendencies among some UN agencies for bureaucratic inaction or lack of innovation under changing conditions. There is a need for improved coordination of environmental and economic concerns. This requires the presence of Finance Ministers alongside Environment Ministers, as well as political commitment at the highest levels. There is concern that UNCED follow-up at the CSD will lie in the hands of a group of Environment Ministers and UN diplomats. While there is reference to continued participation of NGOs, their role remains vague and undefined. NGOs in Canada and abroad want opportunities for substantive: input, and want to ensure that the transparent and inclusive process begun at UNCED continules. The Chapter has largely focused on political organizations and mainly ignored social, scientific and regulatory organizations and institutions, all of which are needed to achieve sustainable development. The Chapter recommends interaction and cooperation between the UN System and other subregional, regional and global institutions; however, there are no guidelines on collaboration between regional and sub-regional organizations with the UN system. There is some regret that the Chapter does not address the institutional fmmework for dispute prevention and settlement and that the CSD will not be a forum for fiutlher development of international environmental law. The Chapter lacks critical analysis of the existing institutional framework. COMPARISON BETWEEN CURRENT CANADIAN GovERNMEbrr CO-MADE
POLICY ANDâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;
Canada called on the United Nations and its agencies to take a leadership role by creating a UN Commission for Sustainable Development and supported this proposal at the UN General Assembly. Canada was elected as a member of the Commission; the initial one year term has been renewed for 3 years. And, Canada is the regional representative ton the Bureau (the executive body) of the Commission for 1 year.
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Throughout the UNCED process, Canada supported an expanded role for NGO, participation. Canada promoted an expanded role for NGOs at the organizational session of the Commission. That commitment was reinforced by having NGO representatives on the delegation to the 47th General Assembly Meeting and to the first substantive session of the Commission for Sustainable Development. NGOs from developing countries and a small number of indigenous groups attended the 47th General Assembly through programmes organ&d by a coalition of Canadian environment and development groups. The resulting “network” continues to monitor developments related to the CSD and to relay information to NGOs around the world. NGOs were influential in introducing language on gender balance and NGO participation into resolutions of the General Assembly which set up the CSD. Canada has doubled its amural contribution to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) to help it play an effective role in promoting international environment conventions and global environmental monitoring. Following UNCED, Canada hosted a meeting of environment ministers from developed and developing nations. They agreed on the need for continuing and direct political involvement in the direction and priorities for the Commission for Sustainable Development and agreed to accelerate the international negotiations on environmental issues. CANADIAN ACTIVITIES EVOLVING
THROUGH THE SUSTAlNABILm
PROCESS
Through its Green Plan, Canada has increased its funding to key international institutions involved in promoting multi-lateral solutions to environmental problems for the next 5 years. Among these organizations are: the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), the World Meteorological Organization, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN), the International Maritime Organization (IMO), and UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee. Canada has initiated a Projet de so&%, a partnership of Canadian stakeholders dedicated to developing a national sustainable development strategy. The Projet is a coalition of national organizations whose mandate is to review the commitments Canada made at UNCED and to establish a draft framework and process for planning a sustainable future. It is based on the belief that moving to sustainability is a collective responsibility in which all levels and sectors of society must identify and implement the changes necessary to ensure economic progress consistent with ecological constraints and considerations of social equity. The goal of the Projet de so&%5 is to play an important role in catalyzing and focusing Canada’s transition to sustainable development. It wiIl achieve this by adopting and fostering a multi-stakeholder approach that links strategy and action, common purpose and individual responsibility.
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Canadian NGOs are establishing an NGO Forum for Sustainability, a new organizational coalition, to continue the multisectoral policy dialogue undertaken through the Canadian Participatory Committee for UNCED. The purpose of the forum is to continue to provide a forum for NGOs from different social changes sectors in Canada to work together to promote a sustainable future locally, regionally and globally.
DIONAL
SUSTAINABEJT’Y-RELATED
FORA
Not available. SUGGESTED READINGS AND INFORMATTON SOURCES
Association canadien des nations unis. “CNUED: Options institutionelles et fmancieres pour la mise en oeuvre d’un developpement durable”, Document d’information 30, (Ottawa: ACNU, 1991). Government of Canada. Canada’s Green Plan, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1990). .
Canada’s Green Plan and the Earth Summit, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1992).
Canada’s National Report: United Nations Conference on Environment Develonment Brazil. June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1.991).
and
International Development Research Centre. Agenda 21: Abstracts. Reviews,, and Commentaries, (Theodora Carroll-Foster, ed), (Ottawa: IDRC, 1993). The Global Cash Crunch: An Examination of Debt and Developme& (Ottawa: IDRC, lb92). Keating, Michael. Agenda for Chamge: A Plain Ian stage Version of Agenda 21 and the Other Rio Agreements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993)., Kimball, Lee A. Forging International Agreement: Strengthening Inter-aovemmental Institutions for Environment and Development, (Washington, D.C.: World Resources Institute, 1992). Manitoba Round Table on Environment and Economy. Towards Institutional Change: Development in Harmonv with our Environment, (Winnipeg, Manitoba: Manitoba Round Table on Environment and Economy, 1992). Runnalls, David. “What Should be Said at UNCED? Institutional Choices for Sustainable Development”, Paper prepared for the Foreign Policy Committee of the National Round Table on Environment and Emnomy (NRTEE), (Ottawa: NRTEE, 1991).
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Chapter 38
Sand, Peter H. Lessons Learned in Global Environmental Governance, (Washington, D.C: World Resources Institute, 1990). Third World Network. “Africa’s Development Crisis: A Critique of Structural Adjustment Programs -- A Need for Structural Transformation”, Briefmg Papers for UNCED #l 1, (Penang, Malaysia: Third World Network, 1991). United Nations Association in Canada. “UNCED: Institutional and Financial Options for Sustainable Development”, Briefing Paper 30, (Ottawa: UNAC, 1991). United Nations Non-Governmental Liaison Service (NGLOS). 1993. The UN Commission on Sustainable Development, E & D File, Vol. II, No. 6, April. World Commission on Environment and Development. Our Common Future, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987).
Information Sources: The Centre for Our Common Future (Publishers of 21zeNetwork, a monthly newsletter which monitors and reports on follow-up activities to the Earth Summit and Z&z Bulletin, a comprehensive quarterly journal of sustainable development initiatives throughout the world), Palais Wilson, 52 rue des Paquis, CH-1201, Geneva, Switzerland, tel(022) 732 71 17, fax (022) 738 50 46. The Earth Negotiations Bulletin (successor to the Earth Summit Bulletin) is available on E-mail
in the APC computer conference on unced.news. NGO Forum for Sustainability, 63 Sparks Street, Room 603, Ottawa, Ontario, KlP 5A6, tel
(613) 238-3811, fax (613) 594-2948. United Nations Commiss ion for SustainableDevelopment, Department of Policy Coordination
and Sustainable Development, Room S-3060, United Nations, New York, N.Y. 10017, USA, tel (212) 963-5959.
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CHAPTER 39 International Legal Instruments and Mechanisms - Elizabeth May Tâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;HE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM
Integrating environment and development in future international law instruments is the post-Rio challenge for governments and institutions around the world. International law on sustainable development, however, has not yet developed to the point that it accurately reflects the delicate balance between these two concerns. Consequently, reforms may be needed to current international environmental laws so as to integrate development concerns and to international economic and trade laws to integrate environmental concerns. International law as a whole, should also be reexamined to better promote the integration of environment and development policies. The participation of all countries in the creation of future international treaties on sustainable development is vital. In the past, many less-developed countries (LDCs) have not been able to adequately participate in this process. Consequently, some earlier international environmental agreements may not reflect or include the concerns or interests of those nations. In the future, financial and technical assistance to LDCs will be necessary, so as to enable them to participate effectively in the elaboration of new laws related to sustainable development, as well as to implement â&#x20AC;&#x153;sustainable developmentâ&#x20AC;? obligations they have subscribed to by treaty. PROGRAM
AREAS AND OBJECTIVES
Chapter 39 makes clear that the review and development of international environmental law should entail two general purposes. The first is to evaluate and to promote the efficacy of that law. The second is to promote the integration of environment and development policies through effective international agreements or instruments, taking into account both universal principles and the particular and differentiated needs and concerns of all countries. To achieve these ends, four general program areas are identified in the chapter:
Elidbeth Map is the Erecutive Dire&r of Cultud Survival Canada and the Siem Club of Canada The views expressed in this chapter are those of the author who has received input from a number of stakeholders, and do not necessarillprejlect the views of the Projet de so&&~.
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(1)
review, assessment and fields of action in international development;
(2)
implementation mechanisms;
(3)
effective participation in international law making; and,
(4)
disputes in the field of sustainable development.
law for sustainable
The chapter negotiation was not without controversy. But most of the contentious issues did not survive PrepCom IV, including: the possible use of unilaterally set environmental standards as barriers to trade; prevention of deliberate large-scale destruction of the environment (the so-called â&#x20AC;&#x153;environmental crimesâ&#x20AC;? provision); negotiation of a nuclear safety convention; and dispute prevention.
CANADIAN POSITIONS AT UNCED 1.
Official Canadian Position
For Canada, as for many countries, this issue was a simple, straightforward issue of marginal importance. Canada did nevertheless, have four specific objectives related to international legal instruments and mechanisms.
440
(1)
Continue to develop progressive international law.
standards in the field of environmental
(2)
Agree with the establishment of a group of legal experts that would explore ways to improve the efficiency of existing legal instruments in the field of environmental law and identify areas where law could be further developed.
(3)
Explore the possibilities of providing technical and scientific assistance in order to help developing countries to participate more efficiently in the negotiation of new conventions, the revision of existing ones and help them respect their obligations arising from these conventions.
(4)
Avoid guaranteeing specific financial assistance.
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Chapter 39
Non-Governmental Owanizations
Canadian NGO’s were not particularly engaged on this issue. However, there were concerns from the environmental NGO community to ensure that international law and accountability keep up with globalization of trade. It is clear that the global&&on of trade is a trend which has not yet been completely realized. Many NGO’s view trade globalization as the dilution of national sovereignty and ability to regulate the activities of trans-national corporations. As of yet, there are not international laws to replace the lack of accountability at the domestic level. A number of Canadian NGO’s are still pursuing the idea of an international body for the reporting of crimes against the environment. Tom Green of the Inn Nation and Herb Hammond, forest ecologist from British Columbia, have circulated a paper based on the precedent of Nurenberg to begin an international registry for crimes against the environment. 3.
Business and Industrv
Canadian business and industry provided no specific input at UNCED with respect to this chapter. 4.
Intienous
Indigenous Peoples identified the need for support and recognition of Indigenous Peoples’ cultural and territorial rights. In any international forum, Indigenous Peoples have always pressed for the recognition of their cultural and territorial rights as the basis of development and their selfdetermination. Recent amendments to international conventions and declaration as well as legal instruments are to this day still inadequate for garnering mutual respect for both worlds. Indigenous Peoples’ rights must be recognized and involved in decision-making and resource management, in the spirit of Agenda 21. CO-S 1.
MADE BY CANADIANS Lepallv-bindiw
Documents
None. 2.
Political Pronouncements
None.
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3.
Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NGO Treaties
At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were alr;o held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organization Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Oca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Earth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coordinating their dissemination. None of these treaties cover the subject matter of Chapter 39.
The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference. They developed and adopted a 109~point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter. The I&-i-Oca Declaration includes many references which bear an issues of international law and human rights. DEF‘ICKENCIE& GAPS AND CONSTRAINTS WITHIN CHAPTER 391
The chapter is inadequate due to the blandness of its language and goals. It does not deal with the specific cases of international law in which environmental and development goals are not The two spheres of international agreements which tend to represent the integrated. environmental and development positions are environmental treaties, such as the ozone protocol, and trade agreements, such as the GAIT. The challenge of integrating such agreements is significant and probably more problematic than the chapter and the lack of (debate surrounding it would indicate. As a first level concern, despite a number of international agreements to protect the environment, arguably starting with the first international atmospheric nucle;u test ban treaty in 1963, environmental law at the international level is still relatively embryonic. By pushing the balance between environment and development in international treaties at this stage there is a risk that environmental laws will be weakened to accommodate development concerns without a corresponding change in the economic agreements to reflect environmental values. The chapter would have been improved had there been a fuller discussion of the two solitudes in international law of environmental and trade priorities. It is actually the case that the trade sanctions within the Montreal Protocol for the protection of the ozone layer could be challenged successfirlIy under GATT. The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade takes no account of the Montreal Protocol in determining what is fair trad ing practice. The North American Free
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Trade Agreement, does include reference to the Montreal Protocol, Base1 Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes, and the CITES Convention, but not to the Climate Change or Biodiversity Conventions. Strengthening the international mechanisms to resolve disputes related to sustainable development agreements at the international level, as suggested in the chapter, is a fascinating possibility. If the term “sustainable development agreement” is intended to encompass trade agreements, substantial progress in developing accountability for transnational behaviour is possible, but the chapter does not address this possibility. COMPARISON CO-MADE
BETWEEN
CURRENT
CANADIAN
GovEImmmr
POLICY
AND
There were no commitments made by the Canadian government with regard to this chapter. However, to follow up the objectives outlined in Chapter 39 of Agenda 21, Canada has continued to be active since UNCED in the development of several international laws currently to control high-seas fishery depletion and desertification. under negotiation; Canadian government officials have continued to pursue possibilities for international instruments to curb deforestation. CANADIANACTWITIES
EVOLVING THROUGH THE SUSTAINABILITY
PROCESS
There have been no major initiatives evolving through Canada’s participation at Rio with regard to the subject of Chapter 39. Negotiations for further conventions are relevant, but no institutional response to this chapter can be found either domestically or internationally.
OTHER RELEVANT
INTERNATIONAL
SUSTAlNABILITY-RELATED
F’ORA
0
United Nations Commission for Sustainable Development
0
Negotiations with UNEP on desertification and at the UN on high seas fishery depletion.
0
International Court of Justice
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SUGGESTED READINGS AND INFORMATION
SOURCES
“Toward Effective International Environmental Law - Trends and Brunnee, Jutta. Developments”, Paper presented to the Sixth CIRL Conference on Natural Resources Law - Law and Process in Environmental Management, Ottawa, May 13-14, 1993. French, Hilary F. After the Earth Summit: the future of environmental governance, Worldwatch Institute Paper 107, (Washington, DC, USA: Worldwatch Institute, 1992). Gehring, Thomas. “International Environmental Regimes: Dynamic Sectoral Legal Systems”, Yearbook of International Environmental Law 35, (1990) 1. Government of Canada. Canada’s Green Plan, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1990). .
Canada’s Green Plan and tlhe Earth Summit, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1992).
Canada’s National Renotirt Environment Development Brazil. June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 19911).
and
“Environmental Security and the Global Change: The Challenge Gunther, Handl. International Law”, Yearbook of International Environmental Law 3, (1990) 1.
to
International Development Research Centre (IDRC). Agenda 21: Abstracts. Reviews. and Commentaries, (Theodora Carroll-Foster, ed), (Ottawa: IDRC, 1993). Keating, Michael. Agenda for Change: A Plain Language Version of Agenda 21 and the Other Rio Agreements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993). Lang,
“Diplomacy ‘and International Environmental Law-Making: wintied. Observations”, Yearbook of International Environmental Law 108, (1992) 3.
Sand, Peter. Lessons Learned in Global Environmental Governance, Resources Institute, 1990).
Some
(Washington: World
Spector, Bertram, ed. International environmental negotiation: insights for Dractice, (Luxenburg: IIASA, 1992). World Commission on Environment and Development. Our Common Future, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987).
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Information Sources: United Nations Commission for Sustainable Development, Department of Policy Coordination
and Sustainable Development, Room S-3060, United Nations, New York, NY, 10017, USA, tel (212) 963-5959.
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Chapter 40
Assessment of Agenda 21
CHAPTER 40 Information for Decision-Making - Robert Vahantin and Heather Creech --
THE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM
The importance of information as a powerful resource to support sustainable development is a theme which recurs throughout Agenda 21. This theme is specifically addressed in Chapter 40, where it is reaffirmed that decisions at any level must be based on sound information. National and international policies required to manage large scale environmental change must be based on sound environmental and socioeconomic data, and on information which is global in scope. Decision makers and other users of information should be able to take advantage of the global information resource, and new information technologies, but this requires equity of access to information in both the North and the South. However, Chapter 40 draws attention to the fact that there is a serious gap in the availability, quality and accessibility of data between developed and developing countries. It points out that there is a general lack of capacity in many areas for the collection and assessment of data, for their transformation into useful information, and for their dissemination. It also emphasizes the need for increased collection of relevant data, for improved coordination among information activities, for improved methods for data assessment and analysis, for application of traditional and indigenous knowledge, and for development of indicators of sustainable development. The Chapter further points out the problems of inadequate management of information, lack of awareness of the value and availability of information resources, shortage of financia resources and trained personnel to manage information, and lack of technology for effective access. It emphasizes the need for transforming existing information into forms more useful for decisionmaking, for developing mechanisms enabling efficient and harmonized exchange of information, for documenting and sharing the sources of available information, and for developing and facilitating electronic networking capabilities.
Rob& Vahuttin is the Director of Inftmation and Commwtication Technology at the Itiernational Development Reseamh Centre (IDRC). Heather Creech is an Infomzation Scientist at the International Ins&&e for Sustain.able Development (IISD). The views expressed in this chapter are those of the authors, who received input from a number of sUeholders, and do not represent the views of the IDRC, the IISD or the Projet de so&W.
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Chapter 40
PROGRAM
rLssessmentof Agenda 21
AREAS AND OBJECTIVES
The following two program areas, along with their corresponding objectives are outlined in Chapter 40: 1.
Bridging the data gap; 0 to achieve more cost-effective and relevant data collection;
a 0 0
2.
to strengthen capacity at all levels to collect and analyze data and information; to develop or strengthen means to ensure that sustainable development planning is based on sound information; and to make relevant information accessible in appropriate forms at the time required.
hnproving availability of information; 0 to strengthen existing mechanisms
0 0
of informatioln
processing
and
exchange; to strengthen capacities in information handling and communication; and to ensure full participation of countries in programs of the United Nations and its organs for the collection, analysis and use of data and information.
CANADIAN POSITIONS AT RIO 1.
Official Canadian Position
As an issue in its own right and as a Chapter in Agenda 21, information was a relative latecomer within the UNCED process. Chapter 40 itself was generally not seen as contentious during the Prepcom process, and indeed Canada did not participate diiectly in the debate on it at Prepcom IV (New Zealand did so on behalf of CANZ [Canada, Australia, and New Zealand], but mainly to encourage including traditional and indigenous knowledge in dahbases). Canadian objectives included:
448
.
strengthening the Chapter by focusing on priority areas already agreed to at the International Forum on Environmental Information for the Twenty-fust Century (including, amongst others, the need to expand the knowledge base, the need for improved monitoring systems, the need to develop more useful forms of environmental reporting, and the need to strengthen institutional partnerships);
0
developing a more coordinated package of information initiatives by emphasizing linkages between Chapter 40 and other Chapters and the need for standardized and consistent approaches to data collection;
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a
strengthening the role of technology in improving environment and development information;
a
strengthening the role of training in collection, dissemination, and maintenance of information; and,
0
establishing the connection between information research and institution building.
At one level, the final Chapter did not achieve the degree of focus, specificity, and coordination which some might have wished, although most elements Canada wanted were integrated into the final document. However, at another level, the Chapter can be seen as a success in raising the profile of both information related issues and the value of information for decision-making. Canada has made important investments in its own information infrastructure and in information technology research and development, and has significant expertise in all of the areas identified within this Chapter. The potential for Canadian leadership, collaboration, and services in these areas is enhanced by the delineation of potential areas of work identified in the Chapter and the framework implicit in it. 2.
Non-Governmental Orpanizations
No specific interventions by NGGs on information issues were identified. It is expected that these groups would generally have been supportive of the official position. Certainly, NGOs would seek improved access to data and information for their own work. All groups would wish to see equitable access to public information. 3.
Business and Industrv
No specific interventions by business on information issues were identified. It is expected that business would generally have been supportive of the official position. Certainly, business would seek improved access to data and information for their own work. While all groups would wish to see equitable access to public information, the private sector would likely wish to restrict access to information which is proprietary or which would give competitive advantages (this position of the private sector was acknowledged by Canada in its statement to the International Forum on Environmental Information). In addition, business would be supportive of the general goals of the Chapter since there are opportunities in the information and information technology sectors, both within Canada and internationally. 4.
Indipenons Indigenous Peoples recommended support for the development of Indigenous knowledge institutions to study, document and support Indigenous Peoples in the use of Indigenous knowledge and strongly believe that these institutions must be controlled and managed by Indigenous Peoples.
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Indigenous Peoples identified the need to support the creation of Indigenous Peoplesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; non-government (local, regional, national and international) organizations oriented to development. These are essential to Indigenous Peoples for the purposes of fulfilling their development, capacity building and local control needs. Moreover, Indigenous NGOs are vital for the establishment of new relationships, in terms of interaction and communication, between them and Western NGOs and other international organ&&ions. COMMITMENTS 1.
MADE BY CANADIANS
Legallv-Bindhw Documents
None. 2.
Political Pronouncements
During his disclosure of the National Statement of Canada on June 11,1992, at UNCED, Minister of the Environment, Jean Charest, announced that the foundation of Canadaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Green Plan has been transparency, accountability and inclusion of all sectors of society into the process. Moreover, the Minister stated that in the Canadian Green Plan the government has committed itself to transforming its decision-making on policies and projects. 3.
Alternative NGO Treaties and Kari-Oca NGO Treaties
At the same time as UNCED, two major international events were also held at Rio: the International Non-Governmental Organization Forum (Global Forum), and the Kari-Oca Conference. At the Global Forum, 3,100 NGOs discussed a number of matters related to environment and development and produced a parallel set of documents: an NGO Farth Charter and 39 Alternative NGO Treaties. Canadian NGOs played a significant role in developing the treaties and took a lead in coorclmating their dissemination. Of these treaties, two addressed the issues discussed in Chapter 40. Clwnmunication,Informution, Media, and Networking Treaty
The NGOs developed a treaty on communication, information, media, and networking which emphasized: (1) that the right to communicate freely is a basic human right and a necessity for sustainable development, and (2) that access to information is essential to informed decision-making at all levels. The treaty also aimed to malke use of indigenous and community heritage as key sources of information.
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NGOs committed to working together on the following objectives (amongst others): 0
to contribute to NGO information networking and to act as two-way communication channels, sending, processing and receiving information to and from their constituencies on a collaborative, fair and non-discriminatory basis;
0
to establish and strengthen the existing communication channels and networks and their connectivity;
a
to share and distribute databases on environment and development issues that will provide the basis for a new set of indicators of sustainable development;
0
to maintain and develop and disseminate an international directory of NGOs and individuals engaged in networking, communication, information activities;
0
to expand the human resources currently working on these issues;
0
to promote effective dissemination of NGO messages through radio, TV, and printed media;
0
to develop and disseminate training materials, training the trainers, and organizing workshops, and seminars;
0
to establish information centres and e-mail nodes in different particularly the South; and,
l
countries,
to translate data and information into different languages and formats
7%~ Women’s Action Agenda 21 of 1991
Women’s organ&ions have taken the position that it is a basic human right to have access to unbiased information about the quality of the environment. These organizations reinforce the belief that only through wide dissemination of information on environment and development issues will humankind be able to confront the challenges facing us today. Kiwi-oca
The second alternative forum at Rio was the International Conference on Territory, Environment and Development (the Kari-Oca Conference). The Kari-Oca Conference was held immediately prior to UNCED by and for the world’s Indigenous Peoples. More than 650 Indigenous representatives participated in meetings and cultural events during the conference. They developed and adopted a 109~point Indigenous Peoples’ Earth Charter.
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DEFâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ICIENCIES. GAPS AND CONSTRAINTS WITHIN CHAPTER 40
The need for new and improved data and information management is one of the most prevalent cross-cutting issues of Agenda 21. Virtually every chapter covers aspects of data collection, information networks, clearing houses, collaboration in the exchange of data and information. Chapter 34 in particular addresses the urgent need to develop, strengthen and improve national, regional, and international information systems as the backbone to sustainable development data and information activities. One of the limitations of Chapter 40 is that it does not develop a framework for the data and information needs identified in the rest of the Agenda. Overall priorities among information objectives and activities, and among the information needs of different sectors and regions cannot be set without this framework. Nor does Chapter 40 provide a critical evaluation of existing systems and institutions dealing with information for sustainable development. Such agents will undoubtedly play a significant role in implementing the objectives of Chapter 40, but no guidelines are set. as to how best they can interact. Although Chapter 40 gives due recognition to local and grassroots information needs, there is the possibility that agencies will focus on large scale meta information systems and networks rather than on immedia,te local needs. With the rapid changes in technology, there is a constant bottom level demand for new equipment, better software and on-going training. The question of the sustainability of small scale information management systems, particularly in developing countries, needs to be addressed. Canada has a growing base of consultants and experts in the design of such systems, and in training, and is therefore well--placed to contribute its expertise to the international community. Finally, Chapter 40 does not consider the fundamental issue of the purpose of data and information gathering and dissemination. The international NGO commun@ is concerned that data and information should not be collected without consideration given to what the information will be used for. The perception exists that these activities are still in large part focused on resource identification and exploitation, and on the ensuing problem:s of environmental degradation. A different focus needs to be brought to the role which information can play to support sustainable development. COMPARISON BETWEEN CURRENTGOMADE
POLICY AND co-
Although no hard or soft commitments related specifically to Chapter 40 were made, there are opportunities for the formation of Canadian government policy to support the objectives and activities of this chapter. Canada lacks at present a national information and communications policy which addresses the technical infrastructure requirements and information needs of government, the private sector, research, and individuals. The content of communications networks is highly regulated, with its traditional focus on the preservation of Canadian culture. Technological developments are closely tied to the industry in the United States. The major infrastructure development on the
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horizon is Canarie, an initiative to increase the capacity of existing routers and connectors along the Canadian backbone of Internet. Canarie is designed to stimulate business applications on Internet, promote research and development on multimedia utilities, and test out ATM technologies (Asynchronous Transfer Mode protocol for increased data transfer capabilities). However, the federal government is offering limited support to Canarie; little more than one third of the funding for Canarie will come from the federal level. Although the Canadian government was once at the forefront of nations with respect to its support for a national communications infrastructure, it may lose pace with the present magnitude of change. Other Canadian sectors, private and public, are investing in information systems, networks and technologies. From the domestic perspective, such costs can be justified by the derived benefits, through better resource management, decision-making, and so on. Canada has much to offer in terms of system design expertise, methodologies, models, and technological expertise (for example, in information systems, software, communications networking, remote sensing, training, etc.) Increased attention to the issues in Chapter 40, both within Canada and internationally, will create demand for products and services which Canada (and in particular Canadian business) can meet competitively. Better information flows can ultimately lead to advantages for Canada in trade for goods and services, resource management, and human resource development. CANADIAN ACTIVITIES EVOLVING
THROUGH THE SUSTAINABILITY
PROCESS
Although Canada is a leader in information technology, only a sample of specific institutional actions to bridge the data gap between North and South and to improve the availability of information are listed below. Many of the information gathering activities are related to reporting processes within Canada. These can be seen as building blocks to support global monitoring and information exchange. Other activities related to Chapter 40 reflect an interest in identifying sources of information supportive of both sustainable development, and the sharing of expertise and resources. Canada’s position at the International Forum on Environmental Information for the Twenty-fast Century focused in part on the need to widen the accessibility of environmental reporting. The State of the Environment Reporting division of Environment Canada has undertaken this challenge. SOE’s Environmental Information Network supports the work of the division. The UNCED Task Group of Environment Canada has undertaken responsibility for identifying and tracking all activities of the federal government and its agencies related to Agenda 21. In February 1993, the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment (CCME) Task
Group on Decision-Making held a workshop on the broader aspects of decision-making related to achieving sustainable development. A set of recommendations emerged from that workshop which are currently being reviewed by CCME’s Strategic Planning Committee.
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Chapter 40
The Federation of Canadian Municipalities has also undertaken to create a database of municipal resources, environmental management expertise and innovations. The database can be used to establish partnerships between Canadian and developing country municipalities. Most of the program activities identified in Chapter 40 fall within the applied research and capacity building mandate of IDRC, Research areas include improving data collection and use; improving methods of data assessment and analysis; establishing compre:hensive information infrastructure and policy; strengthening the use of traditional indigenous knowledge; and producing information services better suited to decision-making. It is the goal of IISD to engage people of all backgrounds from across the world to produce and share information that will help change attitudes and modify behaviour. Its principal project relating to Chapter 40 is the development of the Sourcebook on Sustainable Development database. This database will direct users to the most appropriate and timely print and electronic resources in the area of sustainable development. The database will be accessible through the APC and Internet electronic networks. NirvCentrehVEB is the Canadian node of the APC electronic network:
The Association for Progressive Communications aims to provide a globally-interconnected electronic communications network dedicated to a free and balanced flow of information. Nirv/Centre brings Canada into the stream of computer communications between north1 and south nodes of the APC network, and hosts the exchange of information among environment and development NGO’s in Canada. OTFIER RELEVANT
INTERNATIONAL
SUSTAINABILITY-RELATED
FORA
Canada has been invited to participate in a number of international initiatives related to information management, many of which are focused specifically on environmental information. Several of these are worth noting. l
454
International Forum on Environmental Information for the Twenty-First Century, Montreal, Canada, May 21-1;!41991. At the 1990 meeting of the Group of Seven Summit, Canadaproposed thut environmental informationbe improved on n world-widebasis. It was announced that Canada would take the initiativein organizing the InternationalForum on EnvironmentalInformation in the Twenty-jirstCentury. At the Forum, a frameworkfor a “second generation” of environmental information was developed: this contributed to the strengthening of environmentald&a and informationissuesthroughoutAgenda 21. /EnvironmentCanada. 1991. EnvironmentalInfoomultion Statement]
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Assessm42nt of Agenda 21
0
United Nations Development Program Sustainable Development Network (UNDP-SDN) The SDN initiativewas proposed in I992 to stimulatenational capacity buildingfor sustainabledevelopmentusing infomation and communications. It is anticipatedthat SDN willfacilitate access to the global knowledgebase using such means as information technology and computer based communication.s,workingboth nationallyand globally. /UNDP. 1992. WorMtop on the SustainableDevelopment Network]. Representativesof Canadianagencies and NWs have been invitedto advise and assist withthe deveh?pmentof the SDN through a series of workshopswithdeveloping country’ participants, aud the developmentof a SDN starter kitfor the pilot projects.
0
North American Workshop on Environmental Information, Mexico City, October 20-22, 1993 Together with SEDESOL in Mexico and the United States’ EnvironmentalProtection Agency, Environment Canada organ&d this trilateral workshop on environmental information. Among the main topics discussed were the conceptual framework for environmental indicator development and envirommtal information reporting. Participantsworkedtowardsthe spec@c objective, to develop a set of commonprinciples to guide the purpose, content, information quality control and the monitoring of appropriate environmental indicators as well as the reporting of environmental informationneeded for policy development, Canadapresented the position, agreed to by all participants, that environmentalreporting is a potential tool to bring forward informationthat stimulatesand facilitates the move towards sustainable development decision-making. The workshop concluded with a spirit of encouragement and participation to work towards a North American state of the environment reporting strategy.
SUGGESTED READINGS AND INFORMATION
A.
SOURCES
Information ~olicgand infrastructure
Fields, D., Ruitenbeek, J. “Sustainability and prosperity: the role of infrastructure”, (Ottawa: National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy, 1993). Government of Canada. Canada’s Green Plan, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1990). .
Canada’s Green Plan and the Earth Summit, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1992).
Canada’s National Renort: United Nations Conference on Environment Development Brazil. June 1992, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991).
and
Information Statement, International Forum on Environmental . Environmental Information for the Twenty-first Century, Montreal. May 21-24 1991, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991). Projet de socikttf: Phning
for a Sustainable Future
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Chapter
ALssessmentof Age& 21
40
. Proceedinas: Environmental Information Forum, Montreal, May 21-24,1991, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1991). State of the Environment Reportine in Canada, Paper prepared for the North American Workshop on Environmental Information, Mexico City, October 20-22, 1993, (Ottawa: Environment Canada, State of the Environment Reporting, 1993). .
International m,
Development Research Centre (IDRC). Agenda 21: Abstracts. Reviews. and (Theodora Carroll-Foster, ed), (Ottawa: IDRC, 1993).
Keating, Michael. Agenda for Chance: A Plain Ianeuaae Version of Agenda 21 and the Other Rio Agreements, (Geneva: Centre for Our Common Future, 1993). Ontario Round Table on Environment and Economy (ORTEE). Workshop Report on an Environmental Information Policv for Ontario. (Toronto: ORTEE, 1.992). United Nations Development Program (UNDP). Workshop on the Sustainable Develonment Network, 8-10 October 1992, New York, (New York: UNDP, 1992). World Commission on Environment and Development. Our Common Future, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987). B. Sustainable Development Information Sources
Earth
Negotiations Bulletin, Published Development (IISD), 1992 to date.
by the International
Institute
for Sustainable
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1700, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, V8W 2Y2. Environment Canada, State of the Environment Reporting, 4th Floor, Emerald Plaza, 1547
Merivale Road, Ottawa, Ontario, KlA OH3 International Development Research Centre, Inpormation Sciences and Systems Division,
P.O. Box 8500, Ottawa, Ontario, KlG 3H9. International Institute for Sustainable Development, Communications
Program,
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161 Portage Avenue, 7th Floor, Winnipeg, Manitoba, R3B OY4.
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Projet de sod&?: Planning for a Sustainable Futum
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