Transcript Slide 1 - JMSC Courses

Regional Issues
• Southeast Asia among most vulnerable
to climate change.
• Region is a “victim” of developed world
in many ways—breathes dirty air.
• Individual, local, national economic
activity as important as multinational
businesses.
• Forests, coasts, rivers, farmland at risk.
• Question: How to develop economically,
environmentally?
Laos: Current Issues
• Deforestation: forest cover down from
70% to about 40% (U.N.).
• Soil erosion: worst in highlands.
• Lack of clean water: progress being
made.
• Sanitation, liquid and solid waste.
• Overfarming—not letting land rest,
fertilizing to much.
• Government working with U.N., others.
Laos: Looming Issues
• Hydropower: Who builds, who pays, who
is displaced, who covers secondary
costs?
• Mining: Copper, tin, gold, gypsum: Waste
pollutants to land, air, water. Who profits?
Who pays secondary costs?
• Manufacturing, garment-making, cement:
Polluting byproducts to land, water, air.
• Industrial production growing by more
than 10% a year recently.
Vietnam: Current Issues
• Deforestation and soil erosion, but some
progress here.
• Water pollution & overfishing.
• Groundwater pollution/drinking water.
• Urban, industrial pollution.
• Solid, liquid waste treatment, disposal.
• Road-building, other construction.
• Increasing air pollution in urban areas.
Vietnam: Looming Issues
• Extraction pollution: coal, phosphates,
manganese, oil and gas, timber. Will
businesses be responsible?
• Manufacturing pollution: food, clothes
and shoes, glass, cement, fertilizer,
paper—all generate pollution of air, soil,
water. How will costs be covered?
• Air pollution from more vehicles.
• Loss of coastal habitat as oceans rise.
• Government increasingly active.
Cambodia: Current Issues
• Illegal logging, deforestation.
• Strip mining for precious stones.
• Fishery destruction in west.
• Overfishing.
• Soil erosion, overcultivation.
• Lack of safe water.
• Sanitation, liquid and solid waste.
• River pollution, silting.
Cambodia: Looming Issues
• Mining of iron, manganese, bauxite,
phosphates, oil and gas production,
rubber—pollution, cleanup costs.
• Manufacturing—clothing, shoes—
beginning to generate industrial pollution.
• Vehicles beginning to affect air in some
places.
Common Questions
• Labor force growing quickly in all three
countries. Jobs needed.
• All three need exports to build
economies.
• All three need to preserve forests, other
natural areas to protect tourist revenue.
• How can governments encourage
business growth, sustain environment?
• Much depends on developed world as
market, provider of technology, expertise.
Climate Change
• Deforestation, changing land use
accounts for 75% of region’s greenhouse
gas emissions!
• Power generation GHG emissions are
increasing—can early switch be made to
alternative energy?
• Region has opportunity to be world
leader in adapting to climate change.
• Will require regional cooperation.
Climate Change Has Arrived
• Coastlines vulnerable to rising oceans,
more frequent storms, oil and gas spills.
• Rivers vulnerable to damming, industrial
pollution, urban pollution.
• Loss of forests means loss of jobs,
income, tourism, greenhouse gas
absorbers.
• Heat waves, droughts, floods, storms will
hurt agricultural production.
• GDP will fall unless action is taken.
Business & Climate
• Region needs technology to deal with
problems.
• Business needs to make a profit.
• How to put the two together?
• International aid, domestic incentives
can begin to make it work.
• Poverty reduction must be in the mix.
• Education must be in the mix.
• Sovereignty has to be preserved for
plans to be practical.
Regional Issues Recap: Water
Scale up water conservation and
management; and widen use of integrated
water management, including flood
control and prevention schemes, flood
early warning system, irrigation
improvement, and demand-side
management.
Regional Issues: Agriculture
Strengthen local adaptive capacity
through better climate information,
research and development on heatresistant crop varieties, early warning
systems, and efficient irrigation systems;
and explore innovative risk-sharing
instruments such as index-based
insurance schemes.
Regional Issues: Forestry
Enhance early warning systems and
awareness-raising programs to prepare
for more frequent forest fires; and
implement aggressive public-private
partnerships for reforestation and
afforestation.
Regional Issues: Health
Expand or establish early warning
systems for disease outbreaks, health
surveillance, awareness-raising
campaigns, and infectious disease control
programs.
Regional Issues: Infrastructure
Introduce “climate proofing” in transportrelated investments and infrastructure,
starting with public buildings.
Regional Issues: Marine
Implement integrated coastal zone
management plans, including mangrove
conservation and planting.
Source for recap: The Economics of Climate
Change in Southeast Asia: A Regional Review
April 2009