Harrison Jowett- Western Politics and the Environment -Sustainable Industry- what's really going on?

Western politics and the environment

The ‘great lockdown’ is having an unparalleled impact on the economy, it has caused a ‘sudden stop’ and forced governments to bail-out employees at an unprecedented rate (i). However, in a way that no crisis has done before, it has presented every industry with an opportunity for growth. As operations stall, there is scope to review processes and adopt more sustainable and efficient practice in order to succeed in the ‘new normal’ that will arise after the pandemic. So, what is actually happening in the public and private sector, and how is the legal sector keeping pace?

To answer this I will ( in this first instalment of 'Sustainable Industry- what's really going on?), examine the progressive approach of Europe, and how it can be directly compared with the political inconsistency further west.

Championing the environmental agenda is not at the forefront of governance. Understandably, the current global priority is on recovery from Covid-19, but this has likely had a lasting impact on the development of renewables, with some figures suggesting that energy investment has fallen by 20% (ii). There are some examples of exemplary behaviour which could be considered when devising recovery plan.

Denmark, for example, are building two energy islands in the North Sea, with the capacity to power 4 million Danish homes; alongside investing heavily in hydrogen production to bring down the cost of alternative fuels (iii). London is also turning more sustainable, following Paris’ example, and embracing cycling in the city and converting roads for the  purpose of encouraging more activity in the population whilst reducing emissions (iv). There is also some interesting work happening with the Nordic Co-operation so I would recommend reading their plans for a post-Covid environment. (v.)

This is clearly comparable to the behaviour seen further west. President Trump, and other ‘Trumpite’ leaders are opting to focus on regressive forms of economic recovery and, in some special cases, ignoring the threat of the virus all together – an attitude that has been labelled disrespectful at best (vi) Even before the virus, the political approach of these leaders is best demonstrated by Bolsonaro’s destruction of the Amazon rainforest, to increase industrial capacity,vii and the US’ trade war with China – fundamentally underpinned by economic competition.viii This has continued to the present day with little or no environmental protections being considered. The lack of news in this area for such a large economy as America is shocking when considering the colossal shift in almost every consumer market for sustainable options.

It is clear that the attitude to sustainability varies with politics. We see radical populist governments ploughing through the environment as if it is not considered within the public interest that they represent. This can be contrasted with the swift uptake of sustainable initiatives within the European bloc. This would be distressing if there were no business indications that sustainability has become a priority in ways that it has never before. Catch up on how they are doing this in my next instalment.

What does Boris Johnson’s “New Deal” say about the Environment? - By Niamh Fuller.

Today (30th June 2020) Boris Johnson announced his “New Deal,” to lift Britain out of “the biggest recession in centuries,”[1]. The “New Deal,” outlines that spending will be focused on the NHS, schools and improving town centres. It has promised £1.5bn for hospital maintenance, £1bn for school rebuilds and £900m for “shovel ready,” local growth projects in England.

Among the many pledges, the deal promises to “build back greener,”. Among the plan’s commitments which will impact the environment are:

· £100m on roads

· £10m on rail in Manchester

· £900m for “shovel ready,” unspecified local growth projects

In addition to this Johnson has promised:

· 75,000 acres of trees to be planted

· £40m for local conservation projects creating 3,000 jobs and safeguarding 2,000 jobs

Despite the deal’s promise of a “greener,” build, it has been initially criticised for not doing enough for the environment[2]. Ed Matthews from Climate Coalition said, “there is very little announced today which will do anything to accelerate the transition to a zero-carbon economy,”. Moreover, it has been highlighted that the plan as outlined does not boost energy efficiency through a national programme of home insulation for £9.2bn which was promised within The Conservative manifesto in 2019[3]. Tanya Steele from WWF commented the deal was “lukewarm,” as it has not met the hopes of a green recovery. These criticisms have also highlighted the delays on the National Infrastructure Strategy (NIS)[4]. The NIS which was to be announced in March 2020 is now to be announced in Autumn 2020 and is to outline economic provisions for major environmental issues such as, energy networks, road, rail, flood defences and waste.

Therefore the “New Deal,” of Boris Johnson while outlining how the UK is set to recover economically from the recession and the COVID-19 pandemic, has not received a warm welcome from environmentalists. The deals green aspects remain unclear and uncertain and have left some of those hoping for green economic recovery concerned and disheartened[5].

[1] Fiona Harvey, “Environmental experts dismayed by details of Johnsons ‘New Deal’”, (London, 30 June 2020), <https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/jun/30/environmental-experts-dismayed-by-details-of-johnsons-new-deal> accessed 30 June 2020 [2] Matt Mace, “Boris Johnson’s New Deal for Britain yet to align with green recovery” (Edie, 30 June 2020), <https://www.edie.net/news/11/Boris-Johnson-s-New-Deal-for-Britain-yet-to-align-with-green-recovery-calls/> [3] The Conservative Party, ‘Get Brexit Done Unleash Britain’s Potential, The Conservative and Unionist Party Manifesto 2019’, (2019). [4] Fiona Harvey n(1) [5] ibid

The Paris Agreement- background: Laurence Chapman

In December 2015, one-hundred and ninety-five agreed on and “adopted the first-ever universal, legally binding global climate deal” (Paris Agreement, EU website, 2015) at the Paris Climate Change Conference, ‘COP21’. The idea was to set out a plan to ensure that climate change did not increase by more than two degrees centigrade.

All countries agreed to meet every five years to keep on top of progress and to update the action plan. There were also initiatives to provide EU funding within Europe and collectively put aside one-hundred billion USD to aid developing countries implement the action plans.

So far, there has been good progress in terms of the signings such as the EU ratifying the agreement on the 5th October 2016.

However, the Paris Agreement subsequently suffered a significant set-back- the withdrawal of the United States of America by the Trump Administration on 1st June 2017. This was because President Trump believed that "the Paris accord will undermine (the U.S.) economy," and "puts (the U.S.) at a permanent disadvantage.” (President Trump Speech 1/06/2017).

However, “in accordance with Article 28 of the Paris Agreement, the earliest possible effective withdrawal date by the United States cannot be before November 4, 2020, four years after the Agreement came into effect in the United States and one day after the 2020 U.S. presidential election" (‘Revolvy’, 2017 ). Therefore, the US will still have to adhere to the agreement, meaning that the Paris Agreement remains strong for now and every other major country is still included. Moreover, “Donald Trump says US could re-enter Paris climate deal” (The Guardian, 29/01/2018). President Trump said that his country could join the international accord if it had a “completely different deal” but called the existing agreement a “terrible deal”.

This possibility of the USA re-entering the Paris Agreement could strengthen the results as the USA is such a major and influential nation on the world stage. However, it would require a large change which would only occur in when the next Paris Climate Conference is held.