Environmental Audit CommitteeWritten evidence submitted by the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health, Northern Ireland

1. Summary

Rio + 20 was a missed opportunity and a failure of collective leadership by politicians.

The UK Government contributed to this failure internationally and is not doing enough to promote sustainable development.

The Rio Declaration is long on “recognising” the challenges and solutions but woefully short on practical measures to implement appropriate policies and practices.

If designed and applied sensitively, the proposals for Sustainable Development Goals, GDP Plus and sustainability reporting can all form useful parts of a programme of action.

Internationally and nationally (and locally) other elements of a programme of action designed to move people and our plant onto a path of sustainable development include: a green economy, action on climate change including promotion of renewable sources of energy and phasing out of reliance on fossil fuels, recognition that there is no “one size fits all” and establishment of a UN High Commissioner for Future Generations.

One bright spot at Rio was the vibrant, richly diverse lobby of politicians, including a very effective business lobby for policies promoting sustainable development, which will hopefully translate into more effective “people power” pressure for sustainable development.

2. People Around the World Have Been Let Down by a Major Failure of Collective Leadership

The Brazilian government changed the dates for the Rio+20 conference from 4–5-6 June, 2012 to 20–21–22 June, 2012. This was done to allow for more Heads of State to participate in the summit, especially those of the Commonwealth, as the new dates would not clash with Queen Elizabeth’s Jubilee. The new date was also said to be better logistically for Asian countries as they wouldl already be in Latin America for the G20 meeting.

Shamefully, most world leaders stayed away from Rio, including the UK’s Prime Minister, thereby showing a serious lack of commitment to sustainable development. Instead, the admittedly serious challenge of tackling the global economic crisis is dominating all other considerations of sustainability. We would argue that in dealing with the economic crisis the world is best served by leaders who make plans for a very different model for development for the future, a sustainable development model.

3. The UK Government has Let People Down, in the UK and Globally

This prevalence of short-term thinking about economic factors to the exclusion of the other limbs of sustainable development—environmental and social—is a clear feature of UK governance and political debate also. It is time for the UK Government to recognise that long-term growth requires investment in all three pillars of sustainable development.

In the run-up to Rio+20, many actions undermined the UK Government’s commitment to be the “greenest government ever”. The removal of the Sustainable Development Commission in March 2011 was an early example of the lack of long-term planning within government.

Going forward, post-Rio+20, we need a much clearer commitment to sustainable development within the UK Government. Rhetorical promises of the “greenest government ever” will not do. Right at the heart of government we seem to have different approaches, with the Chancellor making a number of pronouncements that contradict his government’s stated ambition.

4. The Rio Declaration

The summit was intended to be a catalyst for major change, encapsulated in a declaration that would articulate renewed commitment to the aims of the original Earth Summit, expressing an ambition to make a real difference and detailing practical steps that the world community could agree to take together. Sadly, the eventual Rio Declaration, The future we want, fell far short of these hopes and offers little in terms of enablers or practical steps that nation states can employ.

Member States agreed to launch a process to establish universal sustainable development goals that will be an integral part of the post-2015 development framework. We believe that it is very positive to see new sectors and areas being acknowledged in the text—including tourism and product design.

The “Call for support” is one of the strongest passages in the text. The text “recognises” the multitude of issues that we face, but it is the measures that are implemented that are of most importance. Indeed climate change was recognised as a global threat in Rio in 1992, but that has not stopped the increase in levels of energy-related CO² emissions ever since. No intention to set targets to reduce CO² emissions came out of Rio+20, despite the “profound alarm” expressed in the document. The document highlights that both the problems and their perceived solutions are widely understood; the absence of sufficient political will is what stands in the way of action.

The UN text recognises the wide scope of the issues facing the world; we now need political momentum to take us forward. The UK Government must go forward with a sense of urgency that the text lacks. The text imagines time that we do not have; global issues are “recognised”, “acknowledged” and “noted”, yet this recognition is not transformed into action. The UK and other developed nations have contributed greatly to our current environmental and financial crises; they must now show leadership in tackling these problems whilst enabling developing nations to follow their own sustainable pathways.

5. The UK Government’s role was to bring to the international table three suggested priorities: the Sustainable Development Goals; GDP Plus; and sustainability reporting for business.

5.1 Sustainable Development Goals

Failure to agree to a group of themes on which to base these successors to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) was a disappointing outcome at Rio+20. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) must build on the MDGs whilst remaining simple and focused in order to guide nation states towards key universally-applicable sustainability goals. Before Rio+20 began, the SDGs had been pegged as a priority for the UK Government which has been keen to focus on the areas of food, energy and water scarcity.1

Developed nations, keen to see the SDGs develop with indicators and targets, have been criticized for focusing on environmental goals, as highlighted by the UK’s three main areas of concern. Developing nations are pushing for a more holistic framework that incorporates both economic and social targets, as well as key environmental goals. The SDGs should feature the three pillars of sustainable development, without focusing on one strand.

THE UK Prime Minister will have a key role in shaping the SDGs as chair of a UN High-level Panel that will formulate a post-2015 framework, when the MDGs are due to expire. A working group, comprising 30 government representatives, is set to propose a framework for the SDGs by September 2013, including specific targets and indicators.

We recommend that this process must be open to the input of different stakeholder groups, as highlighted in the Rio+20 text. The UK should ensure that the process of developing the SDGs is a transparent and open one that does not marginalise developing countries. It will be important to take forward key aspects of the MDGs, whilst looking to merge the Goals with a post-2015 framework.

5.2 GDP Plus

Another key priority of the UK in their approach to Rio+20 was GDP Plus, intending to recognise the limitations of GDP as the sole measure of progress. The danger with this scheme is that in ascribing a monetary value of nature as a commodity, natural resources may be seen as assets capable of leading to financial gain. The natural world is subject to tipping points and critical thresholds that we do not currently fully understand, and monetising natural capital can be misleading and inaccurate.

The risks can be demonstrated by looking at schemes that have tried to commodify natural capital or externalities, such as the EU ETS. The danger is that natural capital could be traded, such as biodiversity loss in the UK could be offset by gains in another part of the world. The hazards can also be highlighted by looking at Brazil’s forestry code—the CRA—whereby organisations, or indeed individuals, can degrade forest as long as they have the financial capital to do so.

Taking environmental indicators into account would likely lead to a better, and more long-term approach in assessing economic development, yet GDP Plus was not warmly received by all governments at Rio+20. It is argued that creating a market for natural resources will help to highlight their value, thus pushing society to conserve them, yet past attempts to commodify natural assets have not resulted in their intended protection; quantifying something that is inherently speculative could serve to exacerbate environmental issues.

If the UK is to pursue the idea of GDP Plus it must ensure that the commoditisation of natural resources is a true reflection of their scarcity, and that the reporting process is a transparent one.

5.3 Sustainability Reporting

The UK Government is right in highlighting the need to bring business into the sustainability debate, and negotiations. A path towards a green economy will involve collaboration and commitment from organisations around the world, through investment, innovation and trade. The UK pushed forward the idea of mandatory reporting on sustainability criteria; making this the norm for business and offering some sort of framework that allows for measurement and comparisons between organisations worldwide.

The UK is already following this pathway, largely due to pressure from consumers and other stakeholder groups. Many nations are resistant to such measures due to the pressures it will place on business to remain competitive and the fact that many organisations in developing countries are much further behind when it comes to social and environmental reporting, due to lack of legislation and stakeholder demand for such information.

The UK should continue to push for mandatory reporting on sustainability issues. The CIEH encourages the move towards mandatory carbon reporting for companies listed on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange from April 2013. Although this will provide an incentive to monitor and reduce carbon emissions, it will not include reporting on water, land and other scarce natural resources. If carbon reporting proves to be a success upon implementation, the CIEH recommends a move towards mandatory reporting of water, land and material consumption.

6. The UK Government Must Remain Active Internationally

6.1 A global green economy

According to the text of “The future we want”, world leaders aspire to a green economy but without mention of what this would look like, who would drive it and how the transition would be financed. A push towards a “green economy” can be a positive contribution from the UK, yet it is vital that this does not result in a narrow focus upon the economy and the environment, whilst disregarding a more holistic approach that includes societal factors.

There must be steps taken towards a sustainable economy, rather than just “greening” the economy.

Major investments into the gas sector, announced at The Global Business Summit August 2012, undermine the UK’s commitment towards achieving sustainable development. Sustainable development needs to be mainstreamed into UK policy making, rather than treated as an add-on to be disregarded in favour of destructive short-term policies. The UK came to Rio+20 with the hope of mainstreaming the idea of the “green economy”; as a developed country, the UK must lead by example if nation states are expected to agree to, and build upon, such ideas.

6.2 Climate Change

Although the Kyoto Protocol was hailed as one of the most positive things to come out of Rio 1992, there was no commitment made towards a second phase of the Protocol. The draft document does acknowledge the gap between what nation states pledged and what they are doing in terms of climate change mitigation and adaptation, yet no agreement was made as to the next stage of the Accord which is due to expire this year.

After failing to agree to a post-Kyoto Accord, the UK must now lead and encourage action on climate change through strong policy implementation that works towards the targets laid out in the Climate Change Act 2008.

6.3 Fossil fuels

One of the major expectations from Rio+20 was an agreement to phase out fossil fuel subsidies, encouraging a move towards renewable forms of energy. Although the UN text does acknowledge that nation states should phase out fossil fuel subsidies, it does not offer a timescale by which to do so. The phasing out of fossil fuel subsidies is a cornerstone of the green economy that the UK was so fiercely endorsing at Rio+20, yet no commitment was made towards their removal.

The UK Government needs to act internationally as well as domestically to have these subsidies removed.

6.4 Sustainable Energy

The Rio document talked of sustainable energy, yet there was no outline as to what can be classed as sustainable forms of energy. Clean and sustainable energy must have a common universal definition so that nations can effectively work towards an economy that promotes truly sustainable energy. The gas industry has aimed to position itself as a “clean” industry and an answer to the coal and oil industries. The UK’s support of gas will endanger its ability to meet targets set out in the Climate Change Act 2008. We advise that sustainable energy can not be defined as an energy form which further locks the UK’s energy system into fossil fuel use.

6.5 UN High Commissioner for Future Generations

Policymaking is inherently restricted by short-term political cycles and the prevalence of the economy within decision-making. It is the dominance of short-term political thinking that has undermined sustainable development in the past. The creation of a UN High Commissioner for Future Generations, as promoted by the Alliance for Future Generations, would be a step forward for policy making that centres around sustainable development. This would lead to greater accountability from nation states, in terms of how our actions today will shape the lives of future generations.

The UK should push for the creation of both a UN and national representative in order to secure a voice for future generations in the policy-making process. Some countries, most notably New Zealand, Israel and Hungary, have already established a representative for future generations. The UK’s national representative would then be able to facilitate the implementation of international policy with the aid of the High Commissioner for Future Generations.

7. The UK Must Earn the Green Credentials Nationally That it Claims

7.1 The UK’s green economy

Focusing on a more equitable economic structure will help move towards a more sustainable future. This will involve wider access to opportunity and an inclusive approach towards contributing to, and gaining from, economic growth. This inclusivity would mean investing in all areas of the UK and contributing to training and retraining for people who face changes as a result of industrial shifts. A nationwide plan will be necessary so that certain areas are not left behind in the face of a changing economy.

The Green Alliance proposes a range of principles that should be considered and adopted in order for the “green economy” to truly contribute towards sustainable development.2 The CIEH agrees that the following aspects of their recommendation should be applied to the a definition of the green economy: building upon clear economic, social and environmental goals that organisations of all sizes, and in all sectors, can aspire to; ensuring that all stakeholders have access to transparent and up-to-date company information; the implementation of clear timelines and a measuring system for business, that documents progress towards achieving sustainability objectives.

The greening of the economy will involve an absolute reduction in natural resource use, away from the idea of continuous and unlimited economic growth. There are a number of ways the UK can achieve this:

Promoting and enabling efficiency gains. Not only does this save resources and energy, but organizations can benefit from significant cost savings.

Efficiency savings can only go so far in creating relative savings, the economy must change from a linear model towards a circular model; a closed loop system that eliminates waste, using byproducts and waste as inputs to make new products.

Mandatory reporting can serve to make organizations more conscious of their consumption and production methods. The transparency of reports and the increasing awareness and power of stakeholder groups should further incentivise companies to become increasingly efficient.

Consumption is often overlooked, yet the Government could do much more to change market demand to help contribute towards a green economy. Green goods are often seen as inferior and/or expensive; more information is needed on environmentally and socially superior products. Policies must be put in place to reduce consumption altogether, although this goes against traditional economic policy and is likely to be viewed negatively in light of the economic downturn.

The UK Government should introduce incentives to make the “green economy” a reality. This could be achieved by reducing barriers to entry for “green” organisations, introducing mandatory reporting, involving business in the dialogue on sustainable development, allowing “green” subsidies, amongst a host of other “soft” and “hard” policy measures that aim to create favourable conditions for a green economy to grow.

Considering the power and scope of businesses, the UK Government should take a more collaborative approach towards achieving sustainable development, involving the private sector and NGOs. Over 2700 business leaders attended Rio+20 to encourage political leaders to take a multi-stakeholder approach; working with these leaders will prove vital for a more integrated approach towards sustainable development.

7.2 Climate change

The UK must implement favourable conditions to allow for the growth of a low-carbon economy. This will including direct support and reduced barriers to support innovation and technologies that support a move to a low-carbon economy.

A move towards mandatory carbon reporting shows a commitment beyond the “soft” and voluntary measures of the past. This move will not allow businesses to recognise areas in which they can improve efficiency measures, but this will also be an opportunity for stakeholders to see which organisations are striving to reduce their carbon emissions.

Although we welcome this transition towards mandatory reporting of carbon emissions, we believe that it is important to recognise and track business’ use of finite resources, such as water and land.

7.3 Fossil Fuels

The IPCC highlights that an 80–95% reduction in GhG emissions is necessary to keep temperature increase within the 2 degrees centigrade limit. Investments in fossil fuel industries will make this an unreachable target. The UK should begin the phasing out of fossil fuels immediately so that they are completely removed by 2050. The UK’s plan to expand the gas sector contradicts the targets set out in the Climate Change Act 2008 as well as the carbon budgets and advice of the Committee on Climate Change.

7.4 One-size-fits-all

It has been recognised that there is no “one-size-fits-all” approach in terms of sustainability; nations should be allowed to travel along their own pathways to sustainability. Just as national differences have been recognised in the UN text of “The future we want”, so, too, local differences should also be acknowledged.

The UK Government must recognise that local regions will need to develop region-specific sustainability strategies. Local policymaking will allow for solutions that take into account the behaviours and patterns of local communities.

8. Public Debate and Wider Engagement is the One Bright Spot Currently

Depressing though it is that world leaders frittered away the opportunity to show genuine leadership at Rio + 20, there were some encouraging signs of other forces for good outside the negotiating room.

As we have come to expect at modern-day gatherings of world leaders, there was a lively, organised and effective lobby in attendance, often led by NGOs. What was perhaps different on this occasion was the greater involvement of business interests. This possibly was the international arena at which the business community “came of age” in its engagement with such processes.

The inability of the politicians to agree the way forward on sustainable development puts a greater onus on those who care about the future of people and our planet. Who does care? Hopefully all of us. Confidence in politicians and, as a result of the financial crashes, in the financial services sector, is dangerously low. It is crucial that mass movements come to the fore in pursuit of policies and practices which support sustainable development. This is so among businesses and NGOs of course, but more importantly it is time for citizens everywhere to realize their power as consumers, as service providers and as voters.

As a result of global economic disasters, times are very harsh for many. We feel sure that minds will be open to radically different terms of trade from now on. A programme of sustainable development, in which all have a stake, is a positive way to inspire people and to instill ambition and innovation.

28 August 2012