ENSC 4

Three approaches to environmental policy

1. Lawsuits: Individuals suffering external costs from pollution can sue the polluters in court 2. Command-and-control policy: the regulating agency (such as the EPA) prohibits certain actions or sets limits, with punishment for violations. 3. Economic policy tools: To some, government mandates are viewed as restrictions on freedom.

Clean Air Act

1970- law that established national standards for states, strict auto emissions guidelines, and regulations, which set air pollution standardds for private industry

What is "Clear power plan"?

2015 "Clean power plan" to cut CO2 emission from power plants by 32% from 2005 level by 2030. à many industries were against this

Carbon Trading

A carbon trading system is one in which permits are traded for the emission of carbon dioxide.

hydraulic fracturing (fracking)

A mixture of water, sand, and toxic chemicals is pumped into rock formations at extremely high pressure to fracture sediments and release oil or gas.

invisible hand

A phrase coined by Adam Smith to describe the process that turns self-directed gain into social and economic benefits for all

Paris Agreement (2015)

Agreement made between the United Nations countries to cut down on the emissions of greenhouse gases in an attempt to slow down global warming. More wealthy and producing countries have to cut down more.

Briefly explain how does carbon capture and storage technology work.

Carbon capture involves trapping the carbon dioxide at its emission source, transporting it to a storage location (usually deep underground) and isolating it

What is the first and second largest source of GHG emission in US?

Carbon dioxide and methane. Electricity and transportation.

What is carbon pricing?

Carbon pricing removes the burden of paying for these impacts from the public and shifts it to the entities responsible for emissions.

Free-rider problem

Common goods create a free rider problem the absence of a incentive for people to pay for what they consume.

Garrett Hardin and the tragedy of commons

Common resources create the problem called the tragedy of commons the absence of incentives that prevent the overuse and depletion of a resource.

Adam Smith

Competition between people free to pursue their own economic self-interest will benefit society as a whole (Adam Smith, 1723-1790)

Review ways to eliminate 1 "wedge" of emissions proposed by scientists

Double the fuel economy of cars Halve the miles driven by car maximize efficiency in all buildings double the efficiency of coal powered plant

Clean Water Act

Federal Law setting a national goal of making all natural surface water fit for fishing and swimming by 1983, banned polluted discharge into surface water and required the metals be removed from waste

Federal policy and three branches of government

Federal policy arises from the three branches of government. Bills introduced by legislators must pass through committees, be voted on by Congress, then signed by the president to become law.

regulatory framework on fracking

Fracking greatly boosts the natural gas that can be extracted from a rock formation, igniting a boom in U.S. gas production. This boom has employed thousands, reduced the price of natural gas, and made natural gas a potential replacement for coal in electricity generation. Policymakers have encouraged fracking, even passing exemptions to major federal laws such as the National Environmental Policy Act, CAA, CWA, the Safe Drinking Water Act. Gas companies do not have to report what chemical additives they use in fracking or test for toxic chemicals present in wastewater.

Cuyahoga River, Ohio, What happened?

Further attention to the problem arose in the 1950s and 1960s, as the heavily-polluted Cuyahoga River in Ohio caught fire multiple times.

Factors affect environmental policy

Human behavior is geared toward short-term needs Businesses opt for short-term economic gain News media have short attention spans Politicians act out of short-term interest

List mitigation measurements to reduce GHG emission and to lessen the severity of climate change

Improving energy efficiency. Switching to clean and renewable energy sources. Preserving forests. Recovering landfill gases. Protecting soil quality.

Rachel Carson and Silent Spring. What was this book about?

In 1962, Rachel Carson published Silent Spring, informing the public of the ecological and health impacts of industrial chemicals like DDT.

United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (1992)

In 1992, many nations signed the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change: a voluntary approach to reduce GHGs emissions to 1990 levels by 2000. •This failed, and emissions kept rising.

Kyoto Protocol (1997

In 1997, the Kyoto Protocol mandated signatory nations, by the period 2008-2012, to reduce emissions of six greenhouse gases to levels below those of 1990. (127 nations agreed) The United States was the only developed nation NOT to ratify it.

Can EPA regulate GHG emission?

In 2007, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the EPA could regulate GHG as air pollutants under the Clean Air Act.

risk of hydraulic fracturing

Leakage of fracking fluids from drilling shafts into nearby aquifers. Movement of methane upward and into aquifers. The production of air pollution due to the release of methane and volatile organic compounds. Contamination of injected water with salts, radioactive elements, and toxic chemicals found in the deep rock. Causing minor earthquakes.

the takings clause of the Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution

No person shall...be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law, nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.

Switching from higher-pollution sources of energy, such as coal, to cleaner ones, such as______?_____, ____?____, and renewables also reduces emissions.

Oil and natural gas

Implementation and enforcement of statutory law is done by ____________.

Once a law is enacted, its implementation and enforcement are assigned to an administrative agency within the executive branch, such as the U.S. Department of the Interior.

Briefly explain why markets can fail when markets do not consider the effects of ecosystem services or external costs

Reasons for market failure include: positive and negative externalities, environmental concerns, lack of public goods, underprovision of merit goods, overprovision of demerit goods, and abuse of monopoly power.

Four fundamental assumptions of neoclassical economics

Resources are infinite or substitutable, Costs and benefits are internal, Long-term effects should be discounted, Growth is good

What is "regional greenhouse gas initiative"?

States in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, including Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, and Vermont run a joint cap-and-trade program.

Statutory laws are created by __________.

Statutory law, or legislation, is created by Congress

Briefly explain how subsidies can promote environmentally sustainable activities?

Subsidies are forms of financial government support for activities believed to be environmentally friendly. Rather than charging a polluter for emissions, a subsidy rewards a polluter for reducing emissions

Briefly explain what did the National Environmental Policy Act accomplish?

The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) was enacted to: declare a national policy which will encourage productive and enjoyable harmony between man and his environment; to promote efforts which will prevent or eliminate damage to the environment and biosphere and stimulate the health and welfare of man

Which treaty was successful in reducing GHG emission?

The Paris Agreement

Carbon taxation

The carbon tax on the emission of carbon dioxide or the carbon content of fossil fuels.

Briefly explain how GPI differ from GDP.

The major difference between the genuine prosperity index (GPI) and gross domestic product (GDP) is that GPI purports to make up for the shortcomings of GDP. GDP is purely an indicator of the amount of economic activity in a country. GPI tries to measure the quality of life in the country as well as the amount of economic activity.

carbon pricing

The term used for putting a price on carbon

Which country (nation) has the world's largest cap-and-trade program?

The world's largest cap-and-trade program is EU emission Trading Scheme (2005 ~)

EIS

This process forces government agencies and businesses to do a cost-benefit analysis of any new dam, highway, or other building project. EISs must be made publicly available and public comments are considered.

What was the central aim of Paris Agreement?

To strengthen the global response to the threat of climate change by keeping a global temperature rise this century way below 2 degrees celsius above pre industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase further to 1.5 degrees celsius.

There are three international treaties/agreements to reduce emissions of GHG at a global level

United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (1992) and Kyoto Protocol (1997), Paris Agreement (2015).

Ecolabeling

a labeling system that tells consumers which brands are made with processes that do not harm the environment

Market equilibrium

a situation in which quantity demanded equals quantity supplied

examples of external costs

air and water pollution texting while driving chemical runoff that affects fish stocks

What is environmental ethics?

application of ethical standards to relationships between human and non-human entities

biocentrism

ascribes intrinsic value to both human and nonhuman life. certain living things also have value.

List two primary approaches to carbon pricing

carbon trading and carbon taxation

What's external costs

cost borne by someone not involved in a transaction. Ex. when people buy fuel for a car, they pay for the production of that fuel (an internal cost), but not for the costs of burning that fuel, such as air pollution.

neoclassical economics

economic theories and approaches that studies how people make decisions to allocate resources like time, labor, and money in order to maximize their personal benefit

Ecosystem service

essential services support the life that makes economic activities possible

Greenwashing

exploiting a consumer by disingenuously marketing products or services as environmentally friendly, with the goal of gaining public approval and sales

Examples of goods and service with non-market values

include beach visits, wildlife viewing, or snorkeling at a coral reef.

Environmental justice

involves applying a standard environmental policy and practice to all people, regardless of their income, race, or ethnicity.

anthropocentrism

is a human-centered view; nonhuman things are given little or no intrinsic value. only humans have rights

Geoengineering?

is a risky idea that involves taking steps to directly alter the Earth's climate.

ecocentrism

judges actions based on their effects on ecological systems, including nonliving elements. whole ecological systems have value.

Carbon capture and storage

refers to technologies or approaches that remove carbon dioxide from emissions and then store it belowground under pressure in deep salt mines, depleted oil and gas deposits, or other underground reservoirs.

How does "fee-and dividend" work?

the government transfers the carbon tax, or "fee," a tax refund, or "dividend," given to taxpayers.

NEPA

uThe National Environment Policy Act (NEPA) of 1970 created an agency called the Council on Environmental Quality and required an environmental impact statement (EIS) be prepared for any major federal action that might impact environmental quality.

Contingent valuation

uses surveys to determine how much people are willing to pay to protect or restore a resource.

Safe Drinking Water Act

(SDWA, 1974) set maximum contaminant levels for pollutants in drinking water that may have adverse effects on human health

Examples of ecosystem service

*Soil formation *Pollination *Water purification *Nutrient cycling *Climate regulation *Waste treatment