Ecological Debt History meaning and relevance for environmental

Ecological Debt History, meaning and relevance for environmental justice

The background Rio Earth Summit 1992 – – – Environmental movements 500 years of colonialism and resistance Third world debt trap

The movement SPEDCA and ENRED Jubilee Debt Campaign Copenhagen Climate Summit Cochabamba People's Summit

The activist argument Socio-ecological subsidy Cancellation of South's financial debt North's consumption is unsustainable The ecological debt must be paid

The academic concept The ecological debt of country A consists of 1. the ecological damage caused over time by country A in other countries or in areas under the jurisdiction of other countries through its production and consumption patterns, and/or 2. the ecological damage caused over time by country A to ecosystems beyond national jurisdiction through its consumption and production patterns, and/or 3. the exploitation or use of ecosystems and ecosystems goods and services over time by country A at the expense of the equitable rights to these ecosystems and ecosystem goods and services of other countries or individuals (Paredis et al. 2008: 149).

Three applications Ecological debt as a. . . Biophysical measure – – Ecological footprints Environmental space Social metabolism Climate/Carbon Debt – Srinivasan et al: ”The mounting climate damages impressed upon poor nations will in the end far exceed the current foreign debt”

Three applications Ecological debt as a. . . Biophysical measure Legal instrument – – Several examples form UN agreements Litigation processes – ”There will be a general obligation of industrialised nations under international law to compensate developing nations for damage resulting from anthropogenic climate change” (Tol and Verheyen 2004: 1109).

Three applications Ecological debt as a. . . Biophysical measure Legal instrument Distributional principle – – Historical responsibility Objections: • • • The beneficiary argument Non-responsibility for past emissions Problems of ignorance

The case study: Carbon debt Definition: (a) over-emission of CO 2 by country A over time with respect to a sustainable level; i. e. emission levels that overshoot the absorption capacity of the atmosphere and are thus causing ecological impact in other countries and ecosystems beyond national jurisdiction; (b) over-emission of CO 2 by country A over time at the expense of the equitable rights to the absorption capacity of the atmosphere of other countries or individuals. (Paredis et al. 2008: 150)

The case study: Carbon debt Carbon Debt (CD) = HCD + GCD Historical CD = intra-generational interstate debt referring to inequalities between countries and populations historically and today Generational CD = inter-generational debt that our generation owes to coming generations, i. e. emissions above the sustainable level

The case study: Carbon debt Calculations for 154 states 1850 -2011: 70 countries are debtors 83 are creditors (Jamaica's net debt is 0) Total claim/HCD: 291 239 Mt CO 2 Total GCD: 190 137 CO 2 Total ned CD: 481 376 CO 2

The case study: Carbon debt Top ten total Carbon Debt (Mt. CO ) 1. USA (323, 983) 6. Canada (24, 098) 2. Russia (73, 057) 7. France (18, 726) 3. Germany (64, 866) 8. Ukraine (16, 646) 4. UK (55, 398) 9. Poland (16, 071) 5. Japan (27, 998) 10. Australia (12, 486) 2

The case study: Carbon debt Top ten per capita Carbon Debt (t. CO ) 1. USA (1, 040) 6. Estonia (719) 2. UK (876) 7. Canada (702) 3. Belgium (808) 8. Trinidad & Tob (690) 4. Germany (793) 9. Kuwait (571) 5. Czech Rep (753) 10. Kazackhstan (563) 2

The case study: Carbon debt Top ten total Carbon Claim (Mt. CO ) 1. India (100, 923) 6. Ethiopia (7, 008) 2. China (49, 414) 7. Vietnam (6, 245) 3. Indonesia (15, 733) 8. Kongo (6, 245) 4. Bangladesh (15, 488) 9. Phillipines (4, 590) 5. Nigeria (8, 892) 10. Burma (4, 584) 2

The case study: Carbon debt Top ten per capita Carbon Claim (t. CO ) 1. Indonesia (645) 6. Sierra Leone (99) 2. Nepal (110) 7. Guinnea Bissau (97) 3. Lesotho (110) 8. Afghanistan (94) 4. Bangladesh (101) 9. Sri Lanka (92) 5. Cambodia (100) 10. CAR (91) 2