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 : 70 countries are debtors 83 are creditors (Jamaica's net debt is 0) Total claim/HCD: Mt CO 2 Total GCD: CO 2 Total ned CD: CO 2

The case study: Carbon debt Top ten total Carbon Debt (MtCO 2 ) 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)

The case study: Carbon debt Top ten per capita Carbon Debt (tCO 2 ) 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)

The case study: Carbon debt Top ten total Carbon Claim (MtCO 2 ) 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)

The case study: Carbon debt Top ten per capita Carbon Claim (tCO 2 ) 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)