C h a p t e r 4 Protecting the Global Commons t the end of the 20th century, environ- ple, is likely to raise sea levels, threat- mental problems are a matter of both na- ening island economies and low-lying tional and global concern. Many of them countries such as the Maldives and Ban- create spillovers that impose heavy costs gladesh. Climate change also jeopardizes not only on those close to the source of agricultural production in developing the problem but on society as a whole countries. The Russian Federation and A and on future generations. Individual parts of Africa could see dramatic reduc- countries have strong economic and so- tions in their crop yields by 2050 (figure cial reasons for aggressively protecting 4.1). The overall impact of a doubling of their environments by creating incentives carbon dioxide in the atmosphere would to reduce and manage such spillovers.1 be to reduce the gross domestic product However, an important subset of envi- (GDP) of developing countries by an es- ronmental problems is global in scope. timated 2–9 percent (compared with Many countries have contributed to 1.0–1.5 percent of GDP in industrial these problems, and no individual coun- economies).2 Within developing coun- try can effectively address them by acting tries, the price of inaction is likely to alone. These are the problems of the fall particularly on the poorest, who have “global commons,” which will place all the fewest resources for responding to countries at risk if no collective action is climate change. And because of the con- taken. There are many such issues, in- centration of biodiverse areas in develop- cluding desertification, persistent organic ing countries, failure to preserve bio- pollutants, the fate of Antarctica, and the diversity would also disproportionately environmental health of the high seas affect poorer nations. and the seabed (box 4.1), but this chap- Despite the urgency and importance ter focuses on three in particular: ozone of environmental issues, building coop- depletion, global climate change, and eration to address global environmental threats to biodiversity. problems is not simple; it involves con- Effective responses to these problems tentious issues such as the division of re- are vital to the struggle for sustainable sponsibilities and differing capabilities to development. Climate change, for exam- respond. Industrial countries have cre- (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank ⁄ Box 4.1 Global environmental issues Beyond the three cases discussed in detail in this chapter— clear devices on the continent or in the surrounding seas. ozone depletion, climate change, and biodiversity protection— Since then, two conventions and one protocol to the treaty a range of other environmental issues calls for action on a have aimed to protect seals, the region’s unique marine living global scale. These issues include desertification and land resources, and the Antarctic environment in general.4 degradation, Antarctica, persistent organic pollutants (POPs), and the high seas and seabed. Persistent organic pollutants Twelve of these pollutants are currently the subject of interna- Desertification and land degradation tional negotiation. POPs are chemical substances used in a va- Today 900 million people in about 100 countries are affected riety of activities (including agricultural and industrial produc- by desertification and drought. By 2025 that number will dou- tion and disease control) that do not break down naturally and ble, and 25 percent of the earth’s land area will be degraded. that accumulate in the fatty tissues of animals at different lev- Land degradation, which is closely linked to issues of popula- els of the food chain. Because POPs are long-lasting and are tion, poverty, water use, and biodiversity, increases as grow- frequently able to travel long distances in the atmosphere, they ing numbers of people overexploit fragile ecosystems. have spread all over the world, even to areas where they have By mid-1998 almost 150 countries had ratified the United never been used. POPs harm both human and animal popula- Nations Convention to Combat Desertification. The convention tions—in humans, for example, they can cause cancer, dis- is a significant first step that will benefit millions of people if it eases of the immune system, and reproductive disorders. The is properly implemented. The convention’s thrust is not to set United Nations Environment Programme is leading the devel- up a separate program to counter desertification but to main- opment of a global, legally binding agreement to minimize the stream efforts toward this objective into a country’s overall de- release of POPs into the environment, with negotiations sched- velopment strategy, with the support of bilateral and multilat- uled to conclude in 2000.5 eral donors.3 The high seas and the seabed Antarctica The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), Since the negotiation of the Antarctic Treaty in 1959, countries which incorporated a number of earlier agreements, was adopted that had laid claim to territory on the continent have “frozen” in 1982 and entered into force in 1994. Beyond creating exclusive their claims. Under Article IV no signatory nation is allowed to economic zones (box 4.2), UNCLOS stipulates that states must assert its claims or make new ones. Furthermore, signatories take action to control marine pollution from both land-based are not allowed to deploy military units (except in support of sources and vessels at sea. It also sets up a global authority re- scientific missions), dump radioactive waste, or explode nu- sponsible for the environmental health of the seabed. ated much of the current stock of many transnational en- Even though industrial countries have played a dis- vironmental problems. In the pursuit of economic ad- proportionately large role in causing global environ- vance, they have destroyed much of their own biodiver- mental problems and should pay the lion’s share of the sity and have overexploited fisheries worldwide. They also costs of addressing them, developing countries are vital have the highest levels of energy use and thus bear the to any long-term solution to these problems and have overwhelming responsibility for the present level of man- accepted that they also have a role, under a system of made greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. At the same common but differentiated responsibilities.7 Develop- time, developing countries are unlikely to become ac- ing countries are already doing damage to the global tively involved in addressing global environmental prob- commons. Rain forests and coral reefs are rapidly being lems if the price is slower economic progress. The United destroyed in many developing countries. Urbanization, Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change industrialization, and growing numbers of automobiles and the Convention on Biological Diversity (both agreed worldwide mean yet more greenhouse gases in the at- at the 1992 Rio Earth Summit) specifically recognized mosphere. And overfishing has spread to seas controlled that economic and social development and poverty erad- by developing nations. Moreover, regardless of who has ication are developing countries’ overriding priorities.6 done the damage to the global commons, developing For this reason the need for flexible mechanisms that countries have a strong interest in ensuring that coop- transfer resources from rich to poor countries are central erative steps are taken to address these issues, which will to any solution of global environmental problems. have the greatest effect on their citizens. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank No data -2% to 0% -4% to -2% Estimated change eater than 0% Less than -4% Gr in crop yields, 2050 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank See inset below See inset below : Parry and Livermore 1997. Crops modeled are wheat, maize, and rice. Note: Source Figure 4.1 Climate change jeopardizes crop yields, especially in developing countries ⁄ Already, developing countries are taking steps to com- proves the economic efficiency and political viability of bat environmental degradation, including some environ- reforms designed to promote sustainable development. mental problems that have global implications. Ka- For example, the domestic environmental benefits of zakhstan and Uzbekistan have been taking measures to maintaining forest resources—including reduction of prevent rapid deforestation, and China has crafted an river sedimentation and soil erosion and preservation ambitious set of environmental plans based on the of water resources and fishing areas—greatly outweigh agenda that emerged from the Rio Earth Summit.8 any economic benefits that might be gained by trans- These efforts have overlapped with a growing movement forming the forest into poor-quality farmland. Simi- to tackle global environmental problems in a multi- larly, governments can justify preserving coral reefs national framework. Since the 1972 Stockholm Con- solely on the basis of their value to national econo- ference on the Human Environment, governments mies.10 Preservation, then, supports both the national have signed more than 130 environmental treaties, with environment and the national economy. But in both increasingly substantive regulatory provisions.9 These cases, efforts to protect national resources also benefit treaties have contributed to many