Towards the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development 2012

Transcription

1 Towards the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development 2012 Multi-Stakeholder Dialogues in Scotland responding to the Secretary-General s questionnaire on The Green Economy within the Context of Sustainable Development and Poverty Reduction October

2 Overview The Green Economy within the Context of Sustainable Development and Poverty Reduction will be one of the two major themes addressed at the Rio+20' UN Conference on Sustainable Development, also referred to as Earth Summit As part of the preparations for the conference, the UN Secretary General is engaging with Member States and stakeholders to inform his report for the Summit and shape the Summit agenda in the preparatory process. On 21 st September 2010, the Scottish Sustainable Development Forum Autumn Conference: Challenges for the Green Economy - From local experience to the Earth Summit was held in Edinburgh, Scotland. Over 70 representatives from local government and civil society organisations attended this conference. Co-hosted by the Scottish Sustainable Development Forum (SSDF), a division of the Sustainable Development Commission (SDC) Scotland, and Stakeholder Forum for a Sustainable Future, the conference aimed to address the question How can Scotland's experience of local green economies inform global policy discussions on sustainable development?. To this end, participants were invited to respond collectively to the Secretary-General s Questionnaire, specifically on the green economy. The conference included an introductory session, followed by roundtable discussions on the Green Economy and presentations of key findings. In line with the Secretary-General s Questionnaire, outcomes from debates and discussions from the multi-stakeholder dialogues will be presented under the categories Experiences, Success Factors, Challenges and Risks. The report seeks to give an overview of the issues raised and does not imply consensus among all of those who attended the conference. This report will be shared directly with the Secretary-General, the Scottish Government and the UK Government. As the UK government has had to provide its own submission to the EU co-ordination by 5th October 2010, there has unfortunately been limited opportunity for UK stakeholders to influence the actual government submission to the UN. This is due to the tight turnaround between the release of the Questionnaire and the deadline for the UK government to submit their answers to the EU. Nonetheless, the report will be submitted to the UK Government (Defra), who has in turn offered to submit this report to the Secretary-General on behalf of the stakeholders in Scotland who contributed to the responses. 2

3 The Green Economy within the Context of Sustainable Development and Poverty Reduction Experience What are the main examples of green economy policies that are currently in place in your country/region? And what economic sectors do you consider the most important to building a green economy? Governmental legislation, financial incentives and other policy levers are having a positive impact in reducing carbon emissions and encouraging sustainable behaviour in Scotland. In terms of Green economy policies currently in place, four categories of policy initiatives underlined are: taxation, financial incentives, regulation and communication. Taxation Effective financial mechanisms used by the Government include tax breaks on electric vehicles, renewable heat incentives and VAT relief on the development of derelict land. Other useful measures in recent years include the landfills and aggregation taxation through which revenue made has been redistributed into conservation projects in Scotland. Financial Incentives Feed-in Tariffs are effective financial incentives being used by the Government to promote widespread uptake of a range of small-scale renewable and low carbon electricity generation technologies. Known as the clean energy cash back, a feed-in tariff is a rate of money paid by the Government to homeowners, business and organizations, such as schools and community groups, to produce their own electricity through small-scale green energy installations. 1 The Climate Challenge Fund (CCF), a grant scheme through which the Scottish Government supports community initiatives, is effectively allowing community groups to implement projects to reduce their carbon emissions. A community group must lead the project which works to achieve measurable and significant reductions in carbon emissions. The Scottish Rural Development Programme (SRDP) is similarly having a positive impact in promoting a sustainable green economy. The SRDP is a comprehensive programme of economic, environmental and social measures designed to develop rural Scotland. It supports a wide range of areas including farming, forestry and primary processing sectors, rural enterprise and business development, diversification and rural tourism. 2 1 Feed-in Tariffs. The Office of Gas and Electricity Markets, September (accessed September 29th 2010). 2 Scotland Rural Development Programme , September 28 th (accessed September 29th 2010). 3

4 The Government Subsidised Loft Insulation Grants allows every household in the UK to access a grant for loft and cavity insulation. This scheme holds the potential to have an increased impact, however, in its implementation the programme has been held back by some utility companies that do not adequately advertise the availability of such incentives. The Carbon Trust, a not-for-profit organisation supported by the Government, is working to promote the adoption of renewable energy through providing specialist support to businesses and the public sector to help cut carbon emissions, save energy and commercialise low carbon technologies. The Carbon Trust also finances a number of loan funds for energy-efficient equipment. 3 The Saltire Prize, a 10 million challenge prize for technological advances in wave and tidal energy created by the Scottish Government, works to promote innovation in transformational technologies that will help unlock the marine renewable energy potential in Scotland. 4 Feed-in Tariffs Feed-in tariffs are a rate of money paid by the government to homeowners, business and organisations to generate their own electricity through small-scale green energy installations such as solar panels. One can receive feed-in tariffs for both the generation of electricity (a generation tariff) and for giving unused generated electricity back to the National Grid (an export tariff). 5 Government Subsidised Loft Insulation Grants As part of a UK Government promise to reduce carbon emissions, every home in the UK is entitled to insulation grants for cavity wall or loft insulation. Insulation grants cover between 40% and 100% of the cost depending on an applicant s financial status. 6 The Climate Challenge Fund (CCF) The CCF is a grant scheme administered within the Sustainable Action Fund, through which the Scottish Government supports projects. The CCF gives communities, through individual community groups and community planning partners, the ability to implement actions to reduce their carbon emissions. A community group must be the lead player in a project, and projects must include a measurable and significant reduction in carbon emissions. The CCF has a total available resource of 27.4 million over the three years Scottish Rural Development Programme The SRDP is a programme of economic, environmental and social measures, worth 1.6 billion, designed to develop rural Scotland from 2007 to The five key targets of the SRDP include: Water Quality, Adaptation and Mitigation of Climate Change, and Biodiversity and Landscapes. The SRDP is intended to help make Scotland 'greener', 'wealthier and fairer'. Funds will be targeted to where they will provide the greatest public benefits through adopting local solutions, with each region setting its own priorities, to delivering national outcomes. 8 3 European Commission, Energy, (accessed September 29th 2010). 4 Saltire Prize. The Scottish Government, (accessed September 29th 2010). 5 Feed-in Tariffs. The Office of Gas and Electricity Markets, September (accessed September 29th 2010). 6 Insulation Grants for all Households. Energy Saving Trust, (accessed September 29th 2010). 7 Climate Challenge Fund in Scotland. The Scottish Government, July 6 th (accessed September 29th 2010). 8 Scotland Rural Development Programme , September 28 th (accessed September 29th 2010). 4

5 The Carbon Trust The Carbon Trust is a not-for-profit organisation supported by the UK government to provide specialist assistance to business and the public sector to help cut carbon emissions, save energy and commercialise low carbon technologies. The Carbon Trust also funds the development and deployment of low carbon technologies and is actively engaged in the fuel cell, wave energy, wind energy, solar energy, biomass and biofuels sectors. It also finances a number of loan funds - including an interest-free loan for small and medium sized enterprises for energy-efficient equipment, and a similar scheme for the public sector. The Carbon Trust also runs the Carbon Label system which indicates the CO2 cost of products and serves as a commitment for that company to reduce it within two years. 9 Regulation Renewable Obligation Certificates (ROCs) are placing obligations on UK suppliers of electricity to source an increasing proportion of their electricity from renewable sources. With regards to building standards and sustainability, this is embedded into Scotland s building regulations with The Building (Scotland) Act Furthermore, the new 2010 building regulations are set to include a wider sustainability standard and a system to recognize the achievement of meeting these standards. 10 The Scottish Government s Zero Waste Plan is set to have a positive impact since being introduced in mid New measures to achieve recycling and landfill targets will include landfill bans for specific waste types and restrictions on the input to all energy from waste facilities. 11 The Zero Waste Scotland Plan will help to achieve the targets set in the Climate Change (Scotland) Act 2009; to reduce Scotland's greenhouse gas emissions by 42% by 2020 and 80% by Scotland s targets are acting as an effective motivational tool across communities. 12 Zero Waste Scotland Plan This policy works towards a future where resource use is minimised, valuable resources are not disposed of in landfills, and most waste is sorted into separate streams for reprocessing, leaving only limited amounts of waste to go to residual waste Building Standards The Building (Scotland) Act 2003 allows for regulation of all new buildings in order to achieve sustainable development. The new 2010 Building regulations include a sustainability standard, being developed with an industry working group, to offer labels that reward the achievements of meeting 2010 standards and, 9 About the Carbon Trust. The Carbon Trust, (accessed September 29th 2010). 10 Building Standards Sustainability. The Scottish Government, June 30 th Environment/Building/Building-standards/about/bsdsustain (accessed September 29th 2010) 11 The Scottish Government. Scotland s Zero Waste Plan, June (accessed September 29th 2010) 12 Climate Change Delivery Plan: Meeting Scotland's Statutory Climate Change Targets, The Scottish Government, (accessed September 29th 2010) 5

6 treatment, including energy from waste facilities. This policy aims to achieve a target of 70% recycling and a maximum of 5% to landfill by 2025 for all Scotland s waste. 13 opting to meet higher levels that include energy and carbon emissions targets, but also broader issues such as water efficiency and flexibility in design. 14 Renewables Obligation Certificate (ROC) A ROC is a green certificate issued to an accredited generator for eligible renewable electricity generated and supplied to customers within the United Kingdom. One ROC is issued for each megawatt hour (MWh) of eligible renewable output generated. The Renewables Obligation Order (Scotland) previously the Scottish Renewables Obligation came into effect in April 2002 and places an obligation on licensed electricity suppliers in Scotland to source an increasing proportion of electricity from renewable sources. Suppliers meet their obligations by presenting sufficient Renewables Obligation Certificates (ROCs). In cases where suppliers do not have sufficient ROCs to meet their obligations, they have to pay an equivalent amount into a fund. The proceeds are then paid back to those suppliers that have presented ROCs. The Government intends that suppliers will be subject to a Renewables Obligation until 31 March Communications Scotland s Sustainable Development Strategy puts forward broad national priorities and an overall case for the implementation of sustainable policies and thereby methods of transition into a green economy. Within this policy there are elements of regulation and incentive. A weakness of this strategy lies in a lack of clarity in terms of clear objectives towards achieving sustainable development. The Climate Change Delivery Plan more effectively communicates necessary action and the high level measures required in different sectors to meet Scotland's climate change targets, by 2020 and in the longer term. 16 Additionally, in terms of communicating to different groups within communities, the Eco-School s programme brings issues of sustainable development into education policy and practice, encouraging sustainable practices in everyday school life. Scotland's Sustainable Development Strategy This 2005 document lays out Scotland s commitment to sustainable development and puts forward an overall case for the implementation of sustainable policies and practices as well as mainstreaming sustainable development into governmental thinking. The paper does not put forward any specific proposals but it does outline the broad brushstrokes of policy needed to embed sustainable development into Scotland. The priorities outlined include: Climate change programme National transport strategy 13 The Scottish Government. Scotland s Zero Waste Plan, June (accessed September 29th 2010). 14 Building Standards Sustainability. The Scottish Government, June 30 th Environment/Building/Building-standards/about/bsdsustain (accessed September 29th 2010). 15 Renewables Obligation, The Office of Gas and Electricity Markets, (accessed September 29th 2010). 16 Climate Change Delivery Plan: Meeting Scotland's Statutory Climate Change Targets, The Scottish Government, (accessed September 29th 2010). 6

7 Support for renewable technologies National energy efficiency strategy Green jobs strategy National Waste Plan Marine and coastal strategy Scottish biodiversity strategy 17 It should be noted that this document relates to the previous administration not the current government. 18 Eco-Schools The Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) launched their Sustainable Schools Framework in 2006, setting out long-term aspirations for schools to mainstream learning about sustainable development issues and sustainable practices into everyday school life. Eco-Schools is an international award programme that provides a framework to help embed these principles into school life. Eco-Schools is one of five environmental education programmes run internationally by the Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE), includes more than 40,000 schools, and is administered in England by Keep Britain Tidy and in Scotland by Keep Scotland Beautiful. It provides a method for Eco-Schools across the world to get in touch and explore ways of working together on environmental issues. Other legislation The Land Reform (Scotland) Bill: the Community Right to Buy and the Crofting Right to Buy enables community groups to purchase and own land for the local community. Introduced into the Scottish Parliament in November 2001, the bill is allowing community organisations to buy up land for conservation purposes or green energy purposes. 19 Although not currently implemented, the Robin Hood tax is a possible policy lever for the future. It involves placing a tax on banks and other financial institutions in which the revenue created supports social services and environmental projects. If it were to be implemented it should be done without creating a dependency on an existing, unsustainable system. Other technical support The Scottish House Condition Survey (2010) is capturing comprehensive information on the physical state of homes, energy usage, income and poverty levels in Scotland. 20 Such information can help to identify required steps towards sustainability and the areas of greatest need in terms of homes and households. 17 The Scottish Government. Choosing Our Future: Scotland s Sustainable Development Strategy, December 14 th (accessed September 29th 2010). 18 The Sustainable Development Strategy Choosing our Future highlights the current administration s focus on Scotland Performs ( and the Purpose of Scottish Government ( 19 The Scottish Parliament. The Land Reform (Scotland) bill: The Community Right to Buy and the Crofting Right to Buy, Research Paper 01/24, 21 st December (accessed September 29th 2010). 20 Scottish House Condition Survey. The Scottish Government, September 23 rd (accessed September 29th 2010). 7

8 Another effective mechanism to identify where green initiatives would be most beneficial is the process of green mapping, whereby the location of green initiatives are marked on a map in order to show and encourage the spread of other green projects. Success Factors What green economy policies do you consider the most effective? What steps have proven effective in building political and popular ownership for green economy measures? Effective Policies In terms of changing the behaviour of communities and business, the use of incentives are essential to help both groups easily understand the benefits they can gain from a particular policy. The importance of good leadership in both the local community and government is also a critical success factor. Legislative tools to regulate industry and enforce better environmental behaviors in communities are also effective levers for driving change. Likewise, policies and financial mechanisms that support community-owned and community-led initiatives have encouraged action and sustainable change, such as community ownership of green economy projects. The most effective green economy policy levers and initiatives include; Feed-in Tariffs; the Climate Challenge Fund (CCF); Renewable Obligation Certificates (ROCs); the Scottish Rural Development Programme (SRDP); sustainable development education programmes, such as the Eco-Schools initiative; the Land Reform (Scotland) Bill: the Community Right to Buy and the Crofting Right to Buy; and building regulation. Community Ownership The Land Reform (Scotland) Bill; the Community Right to Buy and the Crofting Right to Buy have spawned various community-led green initiatives. Giving people the right to own the land has provided an incentive to use that land in a sustainable way. Thus, land ownership has encouraged popular ownership of green economy projects. Similarly, the Climate Challenge Fund (CCF) has encouraged community-owned and community-led projects working to reduce carbon emissions for the long term. On the whole, grant schemes providing the appropriate level of finance to support community-led initiatives have been successful in engaging groups, with high value placed on projects such as community-owned wind farms and cooperatives. Despite an apparent lack of policy frameworks, grassroots initiatives have been strong across Scotland. Partnerships Education and skills partnerships within and between communities in Scotland have led to the generation of ideas and proposals that in turn have influenced and resulted in positive changes to public bodies, such as the Forestry Commission. Partnerships between the public and private sectors have also been beneficial, as has support for social enterprises. 8

9 Education Education for environmental awareness has improved radically for people of all ages. The Eco-Schools programme is a leading example of how sustainable development can be brought into the pedagogy used by teachers to encourage behavioural change. Success measures It is critical that the right measures and indicators are established in order to assess and evaluate progress towards achieving a transition to a green economy. These indicators must seek to measure progress towards tangible social, economic and environmental outcomes. Challenges What challenges have you experienced in working towards sustainable development? Based on this, what key outcomes do you think should emerge from Earth Summit 2012 with respect to the thematic area green economy in the context of sustainable development and poverty eradication? Corporate Power The power of the private sector and its relationship with communities and the environment in which it works remains a challenge for achieving sustainable development. The current conflicts of interest between the private sector, communities and individual citizens must be addressed. This could be achieved through the creation of a forum for discussion, with representatives from the private sector, communities and government, to discuss areas of potential partnership, as well as appropriate and incentivising legislation and regulation. Although previous endeavours to create an effective forum have not been fruitful, new arrangements should be explored and instigated. Other avenues to achieve good sustainable business practice could include a certification standard, such as a country-wide fair trade mark. The provision of free space for local trade would also encourage local and green economic activities, while curtailing the influence of conglomerates. A product economy A challenge also lies in the need to move towards a service economy versus a product economy, and to this end change consumption patterns. Connected to product consumption is transportation which remains a huge challenge, especially with regards to the movement of goods between cities and rural areas. An integrated Green Economy Promoting cooperation and partnerships between local government, communities and business will be a necessary challenge in transitioning to a green economy. The move towards a green economy should be pervasive, involving all sectors of society to ensure it does not become a separate boutique economy, parallel to 9

10 the main brown economy. Integrating the global Green Economy with the existing economy, and not regarding it as a separate or conflicting entity, will be a further transitional challenge. Providing Government Support for a Green Economy Increasing government support for green economy initiatives will be needed for the transition to a green economy a transition in which inequalities also need to be tackled. Public spending will be an important component of a variety of measures needed to stimulate the green economy. Earth Summit 2012 Outcomes Outcomes at the Earth Summit 2012 should reflect the same principles agreed for a good outcome at COP15 in Copenhagen they should be Fair, Ambitious and legally Binding (FAB). Nonetheless, it is important not to have too high an expectation on what this process can achieve, nor rely on the development of an all-encompassing framework that will capture all policies and commitments. In working towards the Earth Summit, stakeholders need to be realistic about what can be achieved. International regulation & taxation Multinational corporations must be governed by an international framework of policies and laws that aim to change corporate behaviour to achieve more sustainable outcomes and reduce corporate impacts on the environment. Outcomes from Rio+20 should also involve agreements to raise corporation taxes internationally as well as other measures to tax environmentally negative activities at the global level, such as an aviation fuel tax. Address political short-termism Political short-termism is a challenge that should be addressed at the Summit. With many political systems working on 3-5 year time scales, an accountable strategy for the longer term must be established in order to challenge the short-term political cycles that present an obstacle to the achievement of a green economy. A transition to a green economy will need long-term political and financial support from governments. Placing true value on nature Rio+20 should promote a rebalancing of interests; corporates versus institutions versus individuals. The conference should inspire a shift in interest back to people and planet, and away from profit. Essentially this requires a new policy framework and a move away from GDP being the benchmark of a country s success. Favourable policies to encourage the valuing of nature include internalising externalities and ecosystem recapitalization. The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) study, an international initiative to draw attention to the global economic benefits of biodiversity, highlights potential policy changes that could drive progress in this area. Overall, both internationally and nationally the commodification of nature needs to be restricted and avoided. 10

11 Risks What is the relationship of green economy policies to other policy domains? Are there cases for potential conflict? Impacts on developing nations In the move towards a green economy, the impacts of transitional arrangements on other nations, particularly developing countries, need to be considered. For instance, banning the importation of cheap clothing into the UK will affect the economies of developing nations with significant job losses and a decline in industry. Protectionism In the transition to a green economy it will be important to reassess the appropriateness of subsidies and protectionism for brown industries. Achieving a transition to renewable energy will involve confronting the issue of subsidies provided for the fossil fuel industry. Winners and losers In planning a move towards a green economy, policy-makers and communities need to recognise that not everybody can win and there are going to be losers in this process; industry is going to change, people s jobs are going to change and it is possible that this will result in conflict. Those involved in designing and implementing policies need to be upfront and transparent about these impacts and build such losses into the process. Additionally, the potential for conflicts internationally between states and industries needs to be considered; it will be critical to ensure that nations move together towards a green economy and that policies to achieve this do not incur disproportionate costs across the global economy. Global conflict If the move towards a green economy and sustainable development does not happen at this crucial point in time, the risk of global conflict will increase considerably. If a response to climate change is left unresolved, more and more parts of the world will become uninhabitable, and issues of food and water security will become an increasing challenge. Financial support In the current global economic climate there is a risk that international commitments on the green economy will not be matched with the resources for implementation. Furthermore, the current focus on rebuilding old economies to recover from the financial crisis may distract efforts toward building a new green economy. Competition versus cooperation In response to the Secretary-General s questionnaire, the question emerged as to whether one should be looking at conflicting domains or opportunities for cooperation? By focusing on potential conflicting areas, the discourse 11

12 on the green economy adopts the principles of the current economic model which is preoccupied with the potential loss of competitiveness. Cooperation is needed to save the planet, not competition. For more information on the Scottish Sustainable Development Forum Autumn Conference: Challenges for the Green Economy - From local experience to the Earth Summit please visit or List References About Eco-Schools. Keep Britain Tidy, (accessed September 29th 2010). About the Carbon Trust. The Carbon Trust, (accessed September 29th 2010). Building Standards Sustainability. The Scottish Government, June 30 th (accessed September 29th 2010). Climate Challenge Fund in Scotland. The Scottish Government, July 6 th (accessed September 29th 2010). Climate Change Delivery Plan: Meeting Scotland's Statutory Climate Change Targets. The Scottish Government, (accessed September 29th 2010). Climate Change (Scotland) Act The Scottish Government, August 13 th (accessed September 29th 2010). European Commission, Energy. (accessed September 29th 2010). Feed-in Tariffs. The Office of Gas and Electricity Markets, September (accessed September 29th 2010). Insulation Grants for all Households. Energy Saving Trust, (accessed September 29th 2010). Renewables Obligation. The Office of Gas and Electricity Markets, June (accessed September 29th 2010). Saltire Prize. The Scottish Government, September 22 nd Industry/Energy/Action/leading/saltire-prize (accessed September 29th 2010). 12

13 Scotland Rural Development Programme , September 28 th (accessed September 29th 2010). The Scottish Government. Choosing Our Future: Scotland s Sustainable Development Strategy, December 14 th (accessed September 29th 2010). The Scottish Government. Climate Change Delivery Plan: Meeting Scotland s Statutory Climate Change Targets, June 18 th (accessed September 29th 2010). The Scottish Parliament. The Land Reform (Scotland) bill: The Community Right to Buy and the Crofting Right to Buy, Research Paper 01/24, 21 st December (accessed September 29th 2010). The Scottish Government. Scotland s Zero Waste Plan, June (accessed September 29th 2010). Scottish House Condition Survey. The Scottish Government, September 23 rd (accessed September 29th 2010). 13