Too much stuff? Production, reproduction, consumption, waste

Transcription

1 Too much stuff? Production, reproduction, consumption, waste

2 Some definitions Production: Providing the goods & services needed to sustain a society, through agriculture, industry, etc.

3 Reproduction: Ensuring that the social order & practices are continued over time, through culture, language, media, education, religion, etc.

4 Consumption: Use of raw materials, commodities and goods by people & other institutions, for subsistence and other purposes

5 Waste: Pollution, excess materials, unused stuff, discards, trash, etc.

6 What is the problem? We are consuming natural resources at a prodigious rate (who is we? ) The Earth s resources are limited & will be depleted There are also limits to pollution space Substitution could replace some resources, but not ecosystem services If we do not constrain consumption, civilization might well crash Or so we are sometimes told

7 There is considerable inequality in resource consumption

8 The United States is a world leader

9 Comparing consumption levels (1997) Electricity (kwh/cap) Paper used MT/1000 people Hazardous waste ( ) Daily supply of fat/cap (grams) Norway USA Germany Portugal Mexico Philippines Cambodia 23,830 12,977 6,605 3,532 1, , ,620,000 9,100, (Source: UNDP Human Development Report)

10 Remember this?

11 Many predict that we will run out of resources

12 Yet neo-classical economists tell us we never have to worry about running out As demand rises (or supply shrinks), the price goes up Higher prices draw new sources into production If prices get too high, we can develop substitutes Humans are ingenious & have always invented their way out of trouble Substitutes may well be lower cost, as well No need to worry?

13 The larger point is the impact we make on the Earth s ecological systems and the consequences

14 How do we consume? Subsistence: That which is required for survival Food Water Necessary: That required for normal functioning Mobility Fast communication Luxury: That excess related to wealth & status Diamonds & furs Large houses & estates

15 Global economic growth relies on rising production, employment, and consumer spending

16 Creation of desire is critical to maintaining consumption Providing basic needs does not generate much profit It s the things you don t need but want that can be Kept relatively scarce Priced way above cost Become rapidly obsolete But why do you want such things? Desire is not innate or genetic It must be created And constantly renewed Growth continues & consumption increases, across the world

17 Desire is patterned according to age, status, income & other factors

18 This results in what is sometimes called the treadmill of production and consumption

19 Consider water as an item of consumption: We tend to take it for granted We want it at all times Clean, cheap, plentiful No labor involved No idea where used Angry when it goes off Unclear about supply Worried about scarcity Believe it a right but treat it as a commodity

20 All that beautiful agriculture needs lots of water to work often 70 of total water use

21 The dream house also uses lots of water, includes a big, perfect grassy lawn

22 A lot of water use is embedded water required to produce things

23 Something as simple as an apple can be very resource intensive (18 gal water/apple) Tree, soil, water, solar energy, care, pickers, packers, food, clothing, fossil fuels Boxes, filler, transport, vehicles, roads, tires, gasoline, gas stations, emissions, drivers, movers, Delivery, unloading, sorting, washing, display, advertising, fossil fuels, electricity, clerks, customers, shopping cars, bags, waste Unpacking, washing, cooking, cooling, eating, disposal or composting And we expect to have apples year round

24 Yet much of the world has little or no reliable access to water

25 According to UN & other sources One billion people lack access to clean water Two billion lack access to reliable sanitation Women are usually responsible for getting household water Often, people living next to ample water suffer from scarcity Water is sometimes said to be the new oil Absolute scarcity will lead to water wars

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27 Water use varies dramatically United States (California) Agriculture (%) 42 (81) Domestic (%) 13 (16) Industry (%) 45 (3) Malaysia Germany United Kingdom Senegal Congo Daily total use (gal.) 1,

28 In industrialized countries, water is cheap $1/cu.m. = ~0.4 /gallon

29 Water is even less expensive in some developing countries: if you can get it Otherwise, it must be carried or purchased from water vendors whose prices are very high

30 What does water cost in California? Per acre-foot Per gallon (325,000 gal.) Agriculture $ Urban $1, Domestic $3,000 1 Distilled $325,000 $1.00 Designer $3,250,000 $10

31 We consume without much attention to inputs, outputs & social and environmental externalities (impacts)

32 Neo-classical economics suggests that dealing with impacts is straightforward Pollution is dumped into a free resource there is no cost associated with it This amounts to a subsidy to production: positive externality Those who are exposed suffer costs: negative externality What should be done? Ronald Coase proposed that Either party could pay Depends on cost-benefit

33 More generally, a range of unpaid externalities that subsidize production and consumption Resources are free They may provide ecosystem services They may have higher value uses Extraction may injure local communities Improper disposal may threaten health or destroy ecosystems They could be of more value to the future

34 Where might internalization take place? Reduce waste streams & material use in production: ecological modernization Require full recyclability of goods & extended lifetimes Incorporate life cycle costs in the price of goods Impose full disposal costs on producer & consumer Account fully for long-term social & environmental impacts and their costs

35 Our systems of consumption & production are rife with contradictions Why?

36 This brings us back to political economy Oil & mineral companies & utilities want to sell stuff They don t earn income from conservation They employ people They pay taxes, bribes, etc. in specific districts & places They lobby for favorable laws, regulations, policies And they get in trouble if there is a decline in supply