Environmental Racialization: Linking Racialization to the Environment in Canada

This paper introduces the concept of environmental racialization to account for how race is socially and spatially organized in large Canadian cities. Drawing on a theoretical analysis of the notion of intentionality as conceived in environmental justice literature, the argument is made that claims of environmental racism must include direct a connection between agent's subjective racist intent and the powerful racist outcomes. In contrast, environmental racialization recognizes that agents' intentional actions can result in unpurposeful racist outcomes, even if these outcomes are systemic. The case study of the community of Mid-Scarborough in Toronto illustrates the relevance of the concept of environment racialization.     

Environmental Justice in Canada

Lake Zapotlán is a small (1100 ha) lake in Jalisco state, western Mexico. Two communities are located within the basin (Ciudad Guzman, population ～93,000 and Gomez Farías, population ～12,000). The lake has a productive fishery (annual harvest between 200 and 570 tonnes) comprising tilapia and carp. Extensive beds of rooted and floating Typha latifolia are found in the lake and are used in local handicraft activities. The lake receives untreated sewage from both communities and, as a result, has elevated levels of nutrients and coliform bacteria. Local human health issues, as a possible consequence of this pollution, have been identified. This paper describes a process of identifying potential indicators of ecosystem health, to be used as a management tool in developing a sustainability plan for the lake and its basin.     

Return to the River: Environmental Flow Policy in the United States and Canada1

Abstract: This paper provides an overview and summary of United States and Canadian federal, state, and provincial laws that offer some form of legal protection for environmental flows. Special attention is given to the new “second generation” law established in Texas and to ways western states are beginning to encourage transactions that help restore dewatered streams. Progress in the eastern states and some Canadian provinces to provide environmental flow protection is addressed. Based on this review, this paper presents recommended elements of a “model” environmental flow policy.     

Linking Local Sustainability Initiatives with Environmental Justice

Beyond adopting sustainability as a feel-good slogan, many communities are trying to translate this general principle into specific and measurable terms. Community indicators are being introduced as a tool for analysis and community development in US cities from Seattle, WA to Jacksonville, FL. Most efforts acknowledge that sustainability ought to serve communities as a whole; rather than privilege certain elites, sustainability should build social equity. Using a web-based methodology, this research reviews sustainability efforts in 33 of the largest US cities to see which have addressed environmental justice as a dimension of sustainability. Five projects are identified and their programmes are summarised in terms of educational, policy and implementation content. KEE WARNER, Enlazando Iniciativas de Sostenibilidad Local con Justicia Ambiental . Más allá de adoptar la sostenibilidad como un lema para estar bien, muchas comunidades estan tratando de trasladar este principio general en términos específicos y medibles. Indicadores comunitarios esta´n siendo introducidos como una herramienta para el análisis y el desarrollo comunitario en ciudades americanas como Seattle, Washington a Jacksonville, Florida. La mayoría de los esfuerzos reconocen que la sostenibilidad tiene que servir a las comunidades como un todo; más que privilegiar ciertas élites, la sostenibilidad debe construir equidad social. Usando una metodolgía basada en la red, esta investigación estudia los esfuerzos para promover la sostenibilidad en treinta y tres de las mas grandes ciudades de los Estados Unidos para ver cual a dirijido justicia ambiental como una dimensión de sostenibilidad. Cinco proyectos son indentificados y sus programas son resumidos en términos de contenido educacional, político y de implementacio´n.     

Arctic Climate Impacts: Environmental Injustice in Canada and the United States

The current and projected future physical impacts of climate change are most extreme in the northern latitudes. The indigenous peoples in the North American arctic and sub-arctic rely on the availability of natural resources in mixed subsistence economies for nutritional and cultural survival and thus experience disproportionate burdens with respect to our changing climate. Arctic climate impacts exemplify how global phenomena and activities can significantly affect people locally in remote regions. These impacts are largely consistent throughout the region, irrespective of national boarders; however, indigenous peoples in Canada are better positioned than those in the United States to shape policy in a way that would ensure their adaptation to climate change. Political and industrial activity on national and global scales can have significant environmental, social and cultural repercussions on the local scale in remote areas. Remedies for environmental injustice will thus require strong cross-scale political and institutional linkages.     

Environmental hazards and psychopathology: Linking natural disasters with mental health

For some years, social scientists have been unable to agree on the extent to which experiencing a natural disaster is related to the presence of psychopathological symptoms Indeed, social scientists appear to be well-polarized, some arguing that disasters cause severe negative psychological reactions in victims, with others claiming that any psychological effects, if they exist at all, are minor and transient This paper reviews the controversy and identifies numerous conceptual and methodological difficulties associated with the competing positions. It is argued that the preoccupation of researchers with documenting positive or negative instances of psychological effects has lead them to ignore the issue of identifying processes through which disasters might impinge upon an individual's emotional stability. As a first step toward sketching out these processes, an extensive review of the literature on human response to natural disasters is undertaken. Eleven variables—level of community preparedness, scope of impact, duration of impact, destruction of kin and friendship networks, property damage, pre-impact psychological stability, social support, grief reactions, availability of institutional help, and successful coping skills—are identified as important in determining the psychological impact of disasters. These variables are operationalized and arranged into an interpretative framework that postulates the nature and magnitude of the interrelationships among them based upon the existing research literature     

Environment and development in the Republic of the Marshall Islands: Linking climate change with sustainable fisheries development

The Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) is a major custodian of one of the ocean's major natural resources: tuna. The commercial tuna fisheries sector is the most important economic sector in the RMI and is thus a substantial contributor to this tiny island nation's GDP. Tuna catch and its associated revenues has fluctuated in line with climatic events such as the El Niño/La Niña Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and, in the last decade, national fisheries development policies have begun to capitalize on the positive effects that ENSO warm events have had on the tuna populations. However, global warming is expected to have a significant impact on ENSO, and not necessarily in positive ways. This paper will focus on the relationship between environment and economic development in the RMI fisheries sector. In particular, the linkages between global warming and its effects on the tuna fisheries sector must be better understood and uncertainties accounted for so that impacts are appropriately addressed and integrated into sustainable fisheries development policies. Conclusions reached are that new fisheries development strategies that emphasize environmental‐based planning are required. The emerging ecosystem‐based approach to fisheries management is a start, as are the various international initiatives in furthering our understanding of the linkages between climate and ocean systems currently underway.     

Where the Waters Divide: First Nations,Tainted Water and Environmental Justice in Canada

Abstract

We have survived Canada's assault on our identity and our rights … Our survival is a testament to our determination and will to survive as a people. We are prepared to participate in Canada's future—but only on the terms that we believe to be our rightful heritage.

Wallace Labillois, Council of Elders, Kingsclear, New Brunswick

This paper argues for a strengthening of the theoretical relationship between neo-liberalism and environmental justice. Empirical research involving First Nations communities in southwestern Ontario suggests that neo-liberal reforms introduced in the mid-1990s were particularly discriminatory against Canada's indigenous peoples, serving to exacerbate historical disparities in health, environment pollution, and well-being. In particular, under neo-liberal reform in Ontario, recognition of environmental injustices has become much more difficult for First Nations communities. Furthermore, this ‘new’ form of environmental governance has broadly reduced legitimate opportunities for First Nations to participate in environmental governance that affects their health and welfare. In short, this research supports a widening of the definition of environmental justice advocated by David Schlosberg and others (Environmental Politics, 13(3) (2004), pp. 517–540; Agyeman, Bullard and Evans 2003 Agyeman, J., Bullard, R. D. and Evans, B. 2003a. “Joined-up thinking: bringing together sustainability, environmental justice and equity”. In Just Sustainabilities: Development in an Unequal World, Edited by: Agyeman, J., Bullard, R. D. and Evans, B. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.  [Google Scholar]; Akwesasne Task Force on the Environment, Research Advisory committee 1997; Di Chiro 1998 Di Chiro, Giovanna. 1998. “Environmental Justice from the Grassroots: Reflections on History, Gender and Expertise”. In The Struggle for Ecological Democracy: Environmental Justice Movements in the United States, Edited by: Faber, D. NY: Guilford.  [Google Scholar]) if we are to understand the subtle, complex and multiple ways that this new form of environmental governance is particularly harmful to marginalized groups, such as First Nations in Canada.     

浅谈对资源、环境与环境经济学的认识

环境与资源是人类生存与发展的基本条件,社会经济的发展依赖于环境与资源。对资源、环境与经济发展关系的深入研究,推动了环境经济学的发展。本文通过介绍环境经济学的理论,提出正确运用环境经济的理论与方法,研究协调经济发展与环境保护的关系以及经济活动的环境效益,实现环境资源的最佳配置与利用。     

Fostering Volunteerism in an Environmental Stewardship Group: A Report on the Task Force to Bring Back the Don,Toronto, Canada

This study explores the factors that predict initial and on-going involvement of volunteers in an environmental stewardship group whose members play a crucial role in the restoration of the Don River Watershed in Toronto, Ontario. Survey results from 108 completed surveys were statistically analysed to explore the characteristics of members at different levels of involvement.The data support the hypothesis that the active members of the group were not substantially different from the inactive group upon first joining, but rather differences between the groups developedafter joining. This suggests that organizational factors may play a role in determining how active a member becomes. Understanding the determinants that affect volunteer participation is relevant for environmental practitioners who increasingly rely on volunteer support for environmental restoration and management. For scholars of planning, this research raises questions about the methodology used for measuring participation and the conceptual limitations of existing studies.     

Quantitative Assessment of the Intertidal Environment of Kuwait I: Integrated Environmental Classification

Quantitative analysis of physical, chemical and biological data of the intertidal zone in Kuwait was undertaken to develop an integrated basis for assessing and protecting this sensitive coastal ecosystem. Cluster analyses were performed to determine the resemblance between the sampling stations based on the sediment composition, the benthic macrofauna and the physico-chemical characteristics of the intertidal sediment/water. Five distinct sub-environments were delineated within the intertidal zone of Kuwait. Each sub-environment was described in terms of number of taxa, mean density of organisms, sediment type, tidal level and dominant organisms. The physico-chemical parameters investigated were found to be unimportant in the distribution of the intertidal benthic macrofauna. On the other hand, sediment type was found to be a major factor in the overall composition of the benthic community. The benthic fauna and related characteristics of the sub-environments could be used as indicators to monitor changes in the intertidal ecosystem and as guides to protection and management of the different coasts. The approach described in this paper could also be adopted elsewhere to provide a sound basis for evaluating environmental impacts and for developing sustainable coastal management.     

环评：经济与生态环境和谐发展的关键

环评,通俗地说就是分析项目建成投产后可能对环境产生的影响,并提出污染防治对策和措施。它与经济和生态环境的和谐发展息息相关。自《中华人民共和国环境影响评价法》（以下简称《环评法》）实施以来,我国在环评方面取得哪些进步？在实际的环评工作中存在哪些问题？在新的历史时期,尤其在当前经济危机的阴霾下,如何开展环评工作？如何借鉴国外的环评经验来改进我们的工作？这些都是值得探讨的话题。为此,我们邀请安徽省环保局的有关人员,对上述问题给予解读。     

城市环境综合整治定量考核中区域环境噪声达标值确定的探讨

以每个功能区面积占城市区域总面积的比例作为权系数,然后用加权平均法求出的城市区域环境噪声标准值来衡量整个域区的噪声水平,这样,在城市环境综合整治定量考核工作中对声环境状况评价真正做到定量化、标准化、针对城市的性质,规模,特征不同,也体现可比性。     

Volunteer Environmental Monitoring and the Role of the Universities: The Case of Citizens' Environment Watch

Universities can provide a stable home for launching collaborative community research projects. Citizens' Environment Watch (CEW), an environmental monitoring initiative based at the University of Toronto, has made significant contributions to environmental education and stewardship in Ontario, Canada. Following dramatic cuts in provincial monitoring programs, citizens and youth have used chemical parameters and biological indicators to gauge water and air quality, and to identify areas requiring remediation and pollution prevention efforts. The relationship of Citizens' Environment Watch to government agencies, funders and other grassroots environmental groups has evolved over the past 5 years as CEW attempts to remain effective without taking on the investigative and enforcement roles to support the regulatory enforcement that has been largely abandoned by government. We explore the challenges inherent in developing and maintaining a volunteer organization that carries out rigorous and useful scientific work and we outline the ability of a university to help overcome these critical challenges. Finally, we present lessons learned for the benefit of other citizen and youth monitoring projects.     

Environmental Mediation in Planning Appeals: Lessons from the Land and Environment Court of New South Wales

In both England and Wales (UK) and New South Wales (Australia) the respective planning systems permit the applicant a right of appeal to challenge the merits of a town planning decision. These systems have experienced a growing appeal workload over the last 10 years whilst their administrators have sought to increase the speed of decision making. To deal with such pressures, as well as to provide an alternative method of resolving appeal disputes, the Land and Environment Court of New South Wales has introduced a mediation facility in planning appeals. The Court itself has estimated that some 736 hours have been spent in mediation with an estimated saving of Court time of approximately 405 days. This paper examines how these reforms have sought to reduce the level of dispute in the planning system and consequently the number of appeals with their associated time and expense. Comparison will be made with reforms introduced into the UK system, in particular the Informal Hearing method. The extent to which such mediation could operate in the UK is considered.