Omar Saeed ESD Dissertation 2011

8/3/2019 Omar Saeed ESD Dissertation 2011

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UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON: DEVELOPMENT PLANNING UNIT 2010/11

Environmental Justice in

the Clean DevelopmentMechanism: A Meta

Ethical Policy AnalysisMSc Dissertation

Omar Saeed

9/5/2011


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Acknowledgements

A special thanks to Alex Apsan Frediani for helping me to create an acceptable piece of

academic writing from a very messy set of ideas. I know it wasnt easy. The next Star is on

me.


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Abstract

It has been considered previously that environmental policy is often weakened because

there are alternative motivations in its construction. Classical policy analysis techniques

consider policy problems to be issues of distribution therefore attempting to solve them in

this way also. Using an adaption of Schlosbergs (2007) environmental justice, a meta

ethical (Frankena, 1988) policy analysis of the discourse and practice of the Clean

Development Mechanism (CDM) is presented here.

Qualitative results are shown for the analysis of CDM discourse through a procedural

document and a draft Convention written for the Copenhagen Summit which took place in

2009. The same analysis was carried out for documents relevant to the CDM in practice in

the case study context of a hydroelectric dam called Campos Novos in a southern region of

Brazil, South America.

These have raised two important issues. Firstly, the CDM facilitates instances of inequitable

distribution, misrecognition and a lack of participation for stakeholders in the policy process.

Secondly, these policy problems are repeated when put into practice in the case of Campos

Novos. .

The meta ethical (Frankena, 1988) approach to environmental policy analysis indicates

that although the CDM may have been created to be a policy that prioritises the

environment, this is not reflected in some instances of practices. Further to that, there are

indications that national governments of developed countries are using the CDM to their own

advantage and plan to continue to do so in the future.


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Table of Contents

Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................................. 1

Abstract ................................................................................................................................................... 2

Table of Contents .................................................................................................................................... 3

List of Abbreviations ............................................................................................................................... 5

1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................................... 6

1.1 Environmental Policy: Major Stages ....................................................................................... 7

1.2 The European Union Emissions Trading System: A Brief History.......................................... 11

2 Theoretical Framework ................................................................................................................. 15

2.1 Environmental Justice ........................................................................................................... 15

2.1.1 Distribution ................................................................................................................... 16

2.1.2 Recognition ................................................................................................................... 17

2.1.3 Participation .................................................................................................................. 18

2.2 Placing the Theory into Context............................................................................................ 19

2.2.1 Added Value of Meta Ethics ....................................................................................... 21

2.3 Brazil: Political Economy ....................................................................................................... 22

2.3.1 Brazil: Hydropower ....................................................................................................... 25

2.3.2 Relevance of Analysis .................................................................................................... 27

2.4 Case Study: Campos Novos .................................................................................................. 28

3 Analysis ......................................................................................................................................... 30


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3.1 Distribution ........................................................................................................................... 30

3.2 Recognition ........................................................................................................................... 32

3.3 Participation .......................................................................................................................... 34

3.4 Evaluation ............................................................................................................................. 36

4 Conclusions ................................................................................................................................... 39

4.1 Recommendations ................................................................................................................ 39

5 Bibliography .................................................................................................................................. 41

6 Appendix ....................................................................................................................................... 45

6.1 Breakdown of Modalities and Procedures for Direct Communications with Stakeholders

(UNFCCC, 2011) ................................................................................................................................. 45

6.2 Breakdown of Project Design Document Form (CDM PDD) Version 03.1. (UNFCCC, 2006)

and Validation Report (SGS, 2006) for Hydropower Project at Campos Novos ............................... 47

6.3 Breakdown of the Danish Text (Draft 271109; Decision 1/CP.15) from the Copenhagen

COP15 (2009) .................................................................................................................................... 49


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List of Abbreviations

CDM Clean Development Mechanism

CER Certified Emissions Reduction

CO2 Carbon Dioxide

ETS Emissions Trading System

EU European Union

ERU Emissions Reduction Unit

FDI Foreign Direct Investment

GHGs Greenhouse Gases

IMF International Monetary Fund

JI Joint Implementation

MAB Movement for Dam Affected Peoples

NGO Non Governmental Organisation

PDD Project Design Document

PT Partido dos Trabachadores

SBA Standby Arrangement

UN United Nations

UNFCCCUnited Nations Framework Convention

on Climate Change


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1 Introduction

The overall aim of this research is to understand better the role that environmental justice

(Schlosberg, 2007) has in the contemporary environmental policy debate. Additionally, the

research will be centred on using meta-ethics (Frankena, 1988) in an approach to policy

analysis. The aim is to use the approach to identify and understand the key questions about

the motivations and discourse that the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) follows and

how this affected practice in one of its installations.

As part of a meta ethical (Frankena, 1988) policy analysis, it is necessary to study the

motivations of the CDM. This is because meta - ethics involves dealing with the

establishment and justification of ethical and value judgements (Ibid, 1988). This means

taking an anthropological approach to the CDM; peeling back the layers to find out what the

real priorities of the policy are. When the original motivations are understood, perhaps it can

be better conceived why practices of the CDM are as they currently stand.

As part of this approach, it is necessary to document how the major stages of environmental

policy have developed to try and clarify the values held in this area. Additionally, an

historical analysis in the context of emissions trading will provide an insight into the

construction of the current European Union Emissions Trading System (ETS) and its

motivations. Although the CDM is a separate, flexible mechanism of the Kyoto Protocol, the

link between the ETS and the CDM has unfolded recently as the latter becomes a way to

meet the emissions reduction demands of the former.

The analysis and evaluation of these values is contrary to classical policy analysis (Patton

and Sawicki, 1993) that tends to deal with policy problems by merely thinking of a speedy

solution as opposed to understanding the social and political contexts that may have

contributed to the particular issue under examination.


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1.1 Environmental Policy: Major Stages

To gain an understanding of where global policy makers perspectives sit in relation to

environmental concerns at present, it is worth identifying the key events that have had an

effect on this area over the last few decades. This will help contextualize the developing and

changing motivations towards environmental policy and provide a first insight into those of

the CDM.

In 1972, the Limits to Growth, produced by the Club of Rome (a Non - Governmental

Organisation (NGO) devoted to addressing world problematique) outlined major trends of

policy that were generating concern on the global level. Considered to be most important

were the issues of rapid industrialization, the ever increasing population growth,

malnutrition as a result of world poverty, environmental damage and the finite nature of non

renewable resources.

In the same year, the United Nations (UN) Conference on the Human Environment (1972)

held in Stockholm, Sweden was the initial stage at which environmental issues entered the

realm of international policy. The uptake of the environment as an issue of political interest

suggests these concerns were being considered. However, it must be noted that this

conference did not produce bindinglegislation but instead pushed governments to consider

the transboundary impacts that pollution can have on neighbouring nations. The motivations

here appear to be based more on preventing poor relations between neighbouring states as

opposed to environmental concerns.

In 1987, the Brundtland Commission on Environment and Development produced the

infamous Brundtland Report or Our Common Future. The report made recommendations

for improved collaboration between what have become known as the developed and the

developing nations, referring to the global north and south respectively. As a result, an

action plan for dealing with environmental problems was created which outlined the


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objectives of the international community in regards to helping reverse trends of exponential

growth (Meadows, 2004).

The report discussed the issue of sustainable development, indicating that to move towards

this concept, governments would need to give ecological concerns similar weighting to

economics, tradeand energy (Brundtland Report, 1987). What can be seen here is that

even when it was suggested that environmental concerns be given more priority, this could

only be perceived if they were on the same level as economic and trade concerns, as though

it was impossible for policy makers to imagine anything more. This has been a problem for

a number of years and the reverberations of this all too common standpoint are still evident

in environmental policy today.

The Brundtland Reports (1987) critical development was the consideration of the processes

behind implementing institutional and legal change (ibid, 1987) with sustainable

development in mind. To echo previous global thinking, the report did not put forward an

option to ratify any environmental agreements or legislation that would force nations to make

changes. Instead, it recommended increased awareness of polluting practices, improving

the mapping of environmental effects on a global scale and using the resources of NGOs

and the scientific community to make informed choices (ibid, 1987) that are more

sustainable. It is evident that although the environment was beginning to force its way into

policy discourse, the policy making itself was not running in conjunction but running as a

parallel, with motivations never quite bridging the gap to produce solid environmental

legislation.

The Rio Earth Summit (1992) took a much more progressive stance on the environment and

sustainable development than previous conferences through its key message: Nothing less

than a transformation of our attitudes and behaviour would bring about the necessary

changes (United Nations, 1992) for a sustainable future.


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To further support its more progressive nature, there was a large amount of resulting

documentation from the event. As legally binding Conventions, the United Nations

Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Convention on Biodiversity

were aimed at the prevention of climate change and halting the eradication of biologically

diverse species. In addition, Agenda 21 outlined a set of proposals that aimed to address

social, economic and ecological problems and strengthen the role of civil society and NGOs

in these proposals. However, it was admitted by Maurice Strong, the Conference Secretary

General that the overall effect of Agenda 21 was weakened by negotiations by governments

(UN, 1992), an indicator that nations wished to carry on in a business as usual format.

Taking a meta-ethical (Frankena, 1988) approach to these values, the motivation of

government is what needs to be questioned in order to identify the policy problems. It

seems the issue is an overemphasis on the economic priorities as opposed to environmental

ones.

Exactly a decade later (2002), the World Summit on Sustainable Development was held in

Johannesburg, South Africa. The outcome from this Summit was a renewed commitment to

Agenda 21 and implementation plan for the policy. This indicates the rather stagnant nature

of environmental concerns in the political arena and identifies a level of avoidance from

government of legally binding commitment to environmental targets.

This papers approach to policy analysis will try and identify reasons why there is an

apparent reluctance to commit to equitable environmental policy and question the

motivations of policy makers to understand what underlying value judgements are

preventing equitable progression. So far, the inability to move forward in this respect has

been accepted by the powers that be, indicating a total lack of meta ethical (Frankena,

1988) thinking from those who have the strength to impact on the environment we live in.

2009s Summit in Copenhagen did not reach the heights that many people pre-empted it

would (Vidal, 2009). Although the USA, China and India all made unconditional pledges to


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cut or slow the growth of their emissions or find measures to achieve this, at no point was a

legally binding agreement created nor was a future date set for doing so. As can be

expected from policy making through a capitalist perspective, details for effects on

businesses were also left as very ambiguous, suggesting nations wished to leave room for

manoeuvre in relation to their prospects of economic growth.

To understand further the motivations behind environmental policy at the time of

Copenhagen, the incident of The Danish Text is of great importance. The Danish Text

refers to a document created by a transnational group of individuals called, The Circle of

Commitment, which is understood to only include members from the developed world. The

document proposed that the UN should no longer have control over climate change finance;

putting forward the World Bank as the superior financier and it suggested abandoning the

Kyoto Protocol entirely. Finally, it looked for political commitment to allow developing

countries to emit less than half the emissions of developed ones. It is very plain to see that

motivations behind environmental policy are partly being driven by economic factors. The

discourse that is developing is one that allows current developed nation behaviours to

continue while those countries whose development has been hindered are forced to make

drastic cuts. They are also held as financial prisoners by international financial institutions

such as the World Bank, having to agree to terms other than their own in order to receive

financial aid for climate change adaption.

In the case of incidents in environmental policy making such as The Danish Text, meta

ethical (Frankena, 1988) questions must be posed to the organisations such as The Circle

of Commitment in order to derive why governments feel that this discourse is the correct

one to follow. Further to that, it must be understood whether any elements of justice are at

play in environmental policy. Why should developing countries cut emissions while

developed ones do not? Why should developing countries be at the mercy of the World

Bank while developed ones are not? Why were developing countries prevented from

participating in the development of The Danish Text? Why were they not recognised as


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important entities in the process? These issues of recognition, participation and distribution

are all elements of environmental justice; a key part of the analytical framework which will be

discussed in chapter 2.

1.2 The European Union Emissions Trading System: A Brief History

Before the Kyoto Protocol was agreed on in 1997, the EU was relatively apprehensive about

constructing an ETS (Skjaerseth and Wettestad, 2009). As might be expected from a

supranational body such as the European Union (EU), its members feared that an EU wide

ETS would be incompatible with the differing levels of energy consumption and varying

economic states that still characterize the EU today.

There are a number of reasons as to why the Member States of the EU changed their

positions on emissions trading, post Kyoto. Primarily, the ETS Green Paper(EU, 2000)

proposed that such a system could increase cost efficiency in the face of implementing the

agreements of Kyoto. Estimates show that Community wide trading by energy producers

and energy intensive industry could reduce the costs of implementing the Communitys

Kyoto commitments by nearly a fiftha potential cost saving of 1.7 billion a year (ibid,

2000). Additionally, the same paper advocated the potential for a Community wide ETS to

address the EUs burden sharing agreement (Article 4, Kyoto Protocol, 1997) through the

same economic - efficiency lens, proposing the system as a cost effective way to achieve

the required 8% reduction in Greenhouse Gases (GHGs). The Green Paper(2000) also

mentions that a high level of autonomy in each States allocation of emissions allowances to

the various installations it contains, is a possibility because of different national priorities

(ibid, 2000). Consequently, a decentralized system was proposed in order to allow Member

States to take charge of the allocation of the allowances to their own installations

respectively. This provided a route around the problems of each Member State having

different energy economic (Skjaerseth and Wettestad, 2009) requirements.


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Although it quite reasonably can be argued that the EUs use of the ETS to meet the GHG

emission reduction targets of Kyoto was valid, the values of the policy seem to be economic,

concerned with the ETS being a cost effective method with which to reduce GHG

emissions (Schreurs and Tiberghien, 2007). Once again, the over emphasis on economic

motivations, as noted at the Rio Summit in 1992, weakened the environmental benefits of

the policy.

What forced the EU through the open door of emissions trading, however, was the

withdrawal from the Kyoto Agreement by the United States of America in 2001 (Skjaerseth

and Wettestad, 2010). This gave the EU a platform on which to present itself as a leader in

global environmental policy, not just in idea formulation but also by putting policy into

practice (Schreurs and Tiberghien, 2007).

Skjaerseth and Wettestad (2010) regard the EU ETS as a mechanism that was put to the top

of the pile in order to save Kyoto from failure post US withdrawal. The nature of this

decision making suggests that the implementation of the system was not something as

meticulously planned as one might think policy would be. It is worth noting that the US

withdrawal from Kyoto provided an opportunity for the economist heavy team of the

Climate Change Unit at Directorate General Environment to lobby for the implementation of

an ETS (ibid, 2009).

In 2003, the first phase of the Emissions Trading Directive was adopted and in the following

year (key to this research), a Linking Directive was established. This Directive gave EU

Member States permission to use the Kyoto Protocols other flexibility mechanisms (the

Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) and Joint Implementation (JI)) in order to meet their

ETS GHG reduction targets. Both are explained briefly below.


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The CDM will be explored in greater detail later in this dissertation as it forms a key element

of the analysis of the discourse that influences it and the practices that result from it when

creating an installation in a developing country. What can be said at this stage of the

research is that the establishment of the Linking Directive among the flexible mechanisms

identifies an opportunity for Member States to produce a false impression. What is meant by

this description is that Member States could deliver fairly modest National Allocation Plans

(NAPs) to their industries but allow them to carry on in much the same way they always did.

This is because the CDM, for example, allows GHG reduction projects to be set up in

developing countries, often rewarding the polluting country with CERs which permit further

pollution. This rather incredible paradox is a reoccurring theme that has been noted while

examining the development of environmental policy. While a policy might be veiled as

environmentally beneficial, beneath is the rather ugly face of the economic motivations that

debilitate the potential of environmental policy.

During 2005 2008, a pilot phase of the EU ETS was carried out with relatively little

success. The perception of the pilot phase is such because the decentralized system that

was spoken about earlier in this section became victim to a problem of surplus. The Member

Allows a country with an emission-reduction or emission-limitation commitment under the Kyoto Protocol to implementan emission-reduction project in developing countries

Such projects can earn saleable certified emission reduction

(CER) credits, each equivalent to one tonne of CO2, which canbe counted towards meting Kyoto targets

CleanDevelopment

Mechanism

Allows a country with an emission-reduction or emission-limitation commitment under the Kyoto Protocol to earnemission reduction units (ERUs) from an emission-reduction oremission removal project in another country, each equivalent toone tonne of CO2, which can be counted towards meeting itsKyoto target

JointImplementation


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State - devised NAPs (of carbon credits) were not stringent or ambitious enough to cut

carbon emissions, flooding the market with carbon credits and dropping the price from a high

of 30 per tonne to a 2007 low of 0.5 per tonne (Zetterberg et al, 2004; and Grub et al,

2005). Once again, it is obvious that motivations to cut carbon emissions were affected by

Member States fear of it affecting business as usual. The ETS was being treated more as a

tool to produce economic benefits rather than environmental ones, suggesting a discrepancy

between the proposed discourse (of environmental and economic benefits) and practice

(simply a redundant market based tool).

However, the EU Commission responded strongly to this problem by introducing and

receiving full ratification for a proposal for 2013 - 2020 which completely denounced the use

of decentralized NAPs and instead will use an EU wide, supra national cap. To further

substantiate its commitment to reducing emissions, the Commission will be reducing

allowances at a rate of 1.75% per year. What this is expected to achieve is for emissions

credits to fetch a higher price because of increased scarcity (Offical Journal of the European

Union, 2009). These changes to the system will come into effect in 2013. While this

appears to be a tough stance on the mismanagement and misuse of the ETS, it should not

be forgotten that the Linking Directive (at which CER limits remain uncapped) still allows the

paradoxical practices mentioned above to take place and this will be analysed in further

detail later in this paper.


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2 Theoretical Framework

2.1 Environmental Justice

In the case of the pending analysis of CDM discourse and practice, the meta ethical

(Frankena, 1988) approach that has been suggested as a tool, holds a problem because it

has not yet been applied to the context of policy. Therefore, to be applied to policy with any

degree of success, there must be criteria to measure much like classical policy analysis

(Patton and Sawicki, 1993). Applied to policy, meta ethics (Frankena, 1988) lacks any

normative criteria that allow for an analysis to be carried out. This research will be using

elements of environmental justice in order to fill the gap that meta ethics (ibid, 1988)

leaves in this particular situation.

Rather than the traditional, ontological (what we already know) perspective of classical policy

analysis (Patton and Sawicki, 1993), applying meta ethics (Frankena, 1988) is concerned

with epistemological questions or in other words, what we do not know; attempting to provide

more clarification and understanding (ibid, 1988) regarding values held (in this case in

policy).

Patton and Sawicki (1993) state that the aim of classical policy analysis is to break up the

policy problems into their component parts, understand and conceptualize them and

hopefully develop new ideas of how to resolve the issues which have been identified,

suggesting alternatives to current policy trends as a true policy analyst should (ibid, 1993).

A classical policy analysis moves through the motions of asking basic questions to solve

policy problems. Here, a problem is identified and evaluated, other policy suggestions are

created and put forward and one is selected to be implemented. However, Patton and

Sawicki (1993) outline the importance of a policy analyst dealing with a policy problem, to

devise their own personal versions (ibid, 1993) of this basic policy analysis process which

this framework aims to do.


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Besides being used for normative criteria, the significance of environmental justice

(Schlosberg, 2007) in this research is the way it perceives environmental problems as not

being simply distributional. Instead, theorists such as Schlosberg (2007) and Young (1990)

advocate the consideration of recognition and participation as elements of distribution. Both

theorists suggest looking at the effect of the social context in which these elements occur to

avoid treating problems as simply distributional.

It should be noted that Schlosbergs (2007) capabilities theory has been omitted from this

research and is therefore not discussed in this section. This is because the analysis itself

will be avoiding looking at the impacts of the CDM on the capability of people to function

(Sen, 1985; Nussbaum, 2000). By no means does this paper doubt the credibility or

question the richness of the capabilities theory but it deems it inappropriate for analysing the

discrepancies between CDM discourse and practice.

2.1.1 Distribution

The word justice throws up many different ideas. John Rawls (1971) defined the concept

as the appropriate division of social advantages. Looking closer at this quote, one can see

that division is a notion of what has been the main body of justice theory (Schlosberg, 2007)

in the past i.e. distribution.

Although a fantastic concept, Rawls (1971) and Barrys (1995) idea of creating rules for

distributive justice while remaining impartial seems a complex notion to achieve. Unable to

put it more excellently, the way to impartial rules of justice is to put oneself in an original

position (Rawls, 1971) where one does not know the strengths or weaknesses of human

society. If reachable, the original position (ibid, 1971) would be the ideal place for the

underlying motivations behind environmental policy to be analysed. However, the

complexity of this is that for an analyst, the path towards this position is slightly unclear

Using this approach to distribution in the theoretical framework will allow more

epistemological questions to be asked in regards to recognition, participation and the social,


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cultural and political factors that influence them. This provides a way for an analyst to

unpack the CDM policy in context, moving back through its construction and asking more

meta ethical (1988) questions that classical policy analysis (Patton and Sawicki, 1993)

does not.

2.1.2 Recognition

According to its proponents (Fraser, 1997; Honneth, 1995; Young, 1990), recognition is a

critical part of the distributive justice mentioned previously. These theorists subscribe to the

idea that one must recognise the social context in which an injustice or uneven distribution

occurs, criticising distributional theorists that ignore the underlying features of injustice

(Schlosberg, 2007).

In particular, this is a poignant criterion for analysing the CDM because as analysis will later

show, recognition of differences in groups is often overlooked when installations are agreed

between parties and when the relevant practices are occurring.

Importantly, Young (1990) notes that recognition does not have material limits, meaning that

it can not be distributed in the same manner in which (for example) national health care can.

This is a critical reason for treating recognition and participation (the next criterion) as being

separate from distribution.

Frasers (1997) theory of justice links well to this papers approach to policy analysis

because it takes a more pluralistic viewpoint of the subject. The approach not only looks at

the uneven distribution that people experience but also delves into a deeper mode of

analysis. It pushes analysts to clarify how the disrespected identities (Schlosberg, 2007)

which lead to misrecognition from the institutional level (which will be a focus of the analysis)

have been constructed.

Fraser (1997) indicates that justice might be better sought not through simply asking if

people are being misrecognised but going that crucial, meta ethical (Frankena, 1988) step


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further of questioning why the misrecognised have an identity valued in a way that (in the

eyes of the misrecogniser) warrants this injustice. Once again, the combination of meta

ethics with an environmental justice criterion may provide the platform to analyse the

motivations, discourse and practices of the CDM in a way that generates more information

about the root causes of injustice in the CDM context.

Fraser (1997) also argues that for the problem of misrecognition to be addressed, a

structural and institutional critique must be carried out. Therefore, official documents from

the political level will be analysed in Chapter 3 in order to try and understand where

misrecognition in CDM and environmental policy stems from.

2.1.3 Participation

The justice of participation is an important criterion for this research because of its links to

recognition and distribution. For example, through policies such as the CDM, political

institutions can create an environment which facilitates inequity and misrecognition (further

explanation will take place in the analysis). In turn, the misrecognised suffer from a lack of

opportunity to participate in processes that affect them. In the present context, an example

might be that a territory is chosen by developers for a CDM installation. This piece of

territory houses indigenous people who need consulting regarding the viability of the

projects instalment. As is often the case and as the analysis will demonstrate, this

consultation process is often non existent or very limited and is carried out across different

scales.

To better analyse participation in the next chapter, meta ethics (Frankena, 1988) may

contribute to unpacking the continuing cycle of misrecognition noted by Schlosberg (2007):

When you are misrecognised, you are unlikely to participate; when you do not participate,

you are not recognised. This approach to policy analysis asks questions which demand

answers that require consideration of social, cultural and political issues such as the

dominant issues of the political economy. One method of attempting to find these answers


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is by using criteria such as participation in order to understand the drivers of institutionalized

domination and oppression (Young, 1990) within these contexts.

Critical to this research will be deducing at what scale any participation has taken place

within the context of the CDM case study. Instead of accepting at face value that there is

relevant civil society participation in the CDM, this approach to policy analysis will instead

defragment this assumption further, asking questions regarding the scale of participation and

the reasons why participation is split across these scales and occurs in all / only some of the

possible scales. As a result, the combination of meta ethics (Frankena, 1988) and

participation might be able to identify issues with participation in CDM policy that classical

policy analysis (Patton and Sawicki, 1993) might not do so well.

2.2 Placing the Theory into Context

Prior to this section, what has been explained is the breakdown of the main components of

environmental justice theory with the omission of capabilities for reasons stated earlier.

This section will identify what the major problem is that needs to be addressed, why it is

relevant and then state why using distribution, recognition and participation in a meta

ethical (Frankena, 1988) policy analysis may produce interesting results.

The problem that must be addressed is as follows. Firstly, while it is assumed that the

discourse the CDM follows prioritises the environment, the practices that are part of CDM

projects (planning processes and installation) hold an over emphasis on economic

motivations as has been documented in environmental policy development (discussed in the

first chapter) which results in inequitable distribution, misrecognition and lack of participation

from those people affected. The assumption made regarding CDM discourse may be

incorrect but this can only be noted once the analysis is completed.

This policy analysis of the CDM project is currently of particular relevance because of the

recent EU legislation development in the ETS. The motion passed will allow 20% of Member


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State emission reduction targets (originally meant to bet met through the ETS) to be met

through CDM offset projects in developing countries courtesy of the Linking Directive

mentioned in Chapter 1.2. Undoubtedly, this will lead to an increase in CDM installations in

different countries around the world. Subsequently, it is necessary to carry out this research

in order to draw notice to the discourse and practice of a policy that will have such a large

impact on so many people in the developing world.

In order to attend to this problem, Frankenas (1988) concept of meta ethics will be used to

facilitate espistemological thinking towards the construction of CDM discourse and how this

is replicated / not replicated in practice. This approach provides the chance to analyse

policy in a different way but in practical application as will be the case in this paper, it seems

to be slightly empty. The reference to emptiness is not a criticism of meta ethics (ibid,

1988) itself because it does not seem that policy was ever a target area for the theory as it

was purely philosophical (ibid, 1988). Through choosing criteria, it is hoped that this issue

can be remedied through this theoretical framework, while providing an in depth

methodology to analyse the discourse and practice of the CDM through measuring if the

policy values any of these criteria.

In classical policy analysis, a set of common measures to evaluate a policy is often used

before identifying alternatives. Patton and Sawicki (1993) note this common group of

measures as cost, net benefit, effectiveness, efficiency, equity, administrative ease, legality,

and political acceptability. The meta ethical (Frankena, 1988) approach to policy analysis

will similarly consider equity but in terms of distribution, recognition and participation in the

hope that this will generate more fruitful analysis. The other criteria of classical policy

analysis (Patton and Sawicki, 1993) have been avoided with the aim of not falling into the

trap of repeating the status quo.

The fact that distribution is a primary and common concern of policy analysts suggests that

there is a disconnect in the classical policy analysis (ibid, 1993) process. Specifically,


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classical policy analysis (ibid, 1993) results in the underlying elements of distribution

(recognition and participation) not being addressed because the former is not considered to

be constructed in the way some justice theorists (Honneth, 1995; Fraser, 1997, Schlosberg,

2007) feel it should be. This suggests that classical policy process only touches the surface

of policy problems through distribution and perhaps creates an environment for any

instances of misrecognition and lack of participation for certain groups and individuals to

continue.

2.2.1 Added Value of Meta Ethics

To end this section, a table has been constructed giving a brief indication of how meta

ethics (Frankena, 1988) might be able to build on typical questions of distribution,

recognition and participation in environmental justice in the pending analysis.

Criterion TheoryEnvironmental Justice Meta ethics

Distribution Are the benefits of the CDMdistributed equitably?

What are the benefitsconsidered to be by thedifferent parties?

Are some benefits notaddressed or given lessimportance?

What reasons are there forsome benefits of the CDMvalued higher than others?

Recognition Are stakeholders beingmisrecognised in the CDMprocess at any point?

In what context doesmisrecognition in the CDMoccur?

How has the context in whichmisrecognition is occurring inthe CDM been constructed?

What are the values held bythose who constructed theCDM?

What drives the values held(if applicable) bymisrecognisers that leadthem to misrecognise otherstakeholders?

Participation Are stakeholders allowed toparticipate in the CDMprocess?

What judgments regardingstakeholders are being madewhich results in a lack of


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Can they participate at alltimes or is this at scale?

participation?

What values regarding thebenefits of the CDM arebeing held that make somepeople believe that it isacceptable to create aninstance of inequitableparticipation?

2.3 Brazil: Political Economy

As part of this meta ethical (Frankena, 1988) policy analysis, it is necessary to assess the

political economic context of Brazil. Within classical policy analysis, Patton and Sawicki

(1993) note that often the geographic and political context of policy problems are

considered too far ranging to allow a standard, efficient way of approaching them in analysis.

This consideration is a value judgement and, contrary to this approach, meta ethics

(Frankena, 1988) should be void of value judgment. This means that as opposed to

classically defining the problem in its current context, the analysis is approached by studying

the dominant issues of the political economy in the hope of further clarifying the influence of

political forces on policies including the CDM. These details are documented here.

After many years of economic mismanagement and feckless governance (Roett, 2010), the

then Brazillian Minister of Finance, Henrique Cardoso, produced a stabilization program

which aimed to take charge of inflation and prep the country for increased economic growth.

The so called Real Plan (1994) was a success not only for Brazil overall but for Cardoso

himself. After reinventing the countrys currency name, Cardoso was elected President of

Brazil in 1994. Cardosos presidency helped to open up (in terms of trade and foreign

direct investment (FDI)) Brazils economy during his two terms, the second of which ended in

2003 when Luiz Incio Lula Da Silva (from here on in - Lula), originally a leftist, trade

unionist representative, was elected.

Before Lula came to power, between 2001 and 2002, Brazil was hit by an energy crisis for

which a number of dry (in terms of climate) years are said to be responsible. In many


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countries, droughts would not necessarily be as large a problem but in the case of Brazil, the

sheer scale of hydroelectric energy generation (80% of electricity supply) was also to blame

for the crisis.

During this period, the level of management necessary to ensure that constant blackouts

were not experienced was high and costly (Roett, 2010). Cardoso established a crisis

management board that he chaired which ensured bonuses (culminating at US$200m) for

those whom resided under the newly legalized limit on consumption during this time. It

seems that the costs of increased management plus incentives and the risk of the popularity

of the government at stake in times of crisis could all be possible catalysts for Brazils

increased hydroelectric interests. After all, no long lasting president would risk the repetition

of an energy crisis.

For the Brazilian people, the election of Lula meant a future which held the promise of 10

million jobs (ibid, 2010) and the redistribution of land. Although there are conflicting views of

the true success of Lula and his Partido dos Trabachadores(PT), some progress was made.

Seizing an opportunity to flex its muscles, Brazil put an end to its stand by arrangement

(SBA) (Roett, 2010) with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). An SBA is an agreed sum

of money which is borrowed from the IMF by a country in economic crisis in order to meet its

balance of repayments (IMF, 2011). However, SBAs are 100% conditional; repayments are

set out on a timescale and interest is accrued accordingly with time taken to repay. When

agreeing to borrow from the IMF, Brazil agreed to adjust its economic policies to overcome

the problems that led it to seek funding in the first place (Ibid, 2011). This is testament to

what Brazils economic strength allowed it to break away from.

It is clearly documented that on a macroeconomic scale, Brazil took a very neoliberal

approach to its policies in order to produce high levels of economic growth (Luna and Klein,

2006; Arestis and Saad Filho, 2007; Roett, 2010,). Even the leftist origins of Lula and the

PT dissipated quickly upon entering government. This was partly to avoid an economic


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collapse that loomed due to speculation regarding exactly how leftist the PTs policies would

be. In fact, Lula was interested in economic growth, centrist policies and pursuing a lively

foreign policy; visiting many countries around the globe in order to develop relationships.

Policies that would produce financial accumulation were prioritised just as they had been in

previous governments. This provides an example of the approach to policy in Brazil. If the

PT had stuck to their leftist roots, it would be feasible to think that the environment would be

prioritised very highly in policy. However, the move back to the centre is telling of a

government that sees economic growth as a central policy motivation.

As a result of increased growth, regional disparities of income and wealth were ignored in

the country (Arestis and Saad Filho, 2007) which suggests inequitable distribution among

the population. This is further highlighted by employment figures in Brazil that show a

growth in those hired under a formal labour contract meaning the loss of many jobs in the

countrys large informal sector (Ibid, 2007) which is evidence to the misrecognition of those

working in the informal labour market.

Brazils self - sufficiency holds relevance for this paper because the countrys search for

growth and its improved control of its own markets have potential to be key reasons why

hydropower is favoured in the country. For example, Brazil vigorously defended the position

of itself and other developing countries in the realm of climate change mitigation at the 2009

Copenhagen summit (Ibid, 2010; Vidal, 2009). The argument from developing nations was

(and still is) that Brazil and other developing nations should not have their path out of poverty

halted or hindered by being forced to fix the climate change problems that have been largely

attributed to developed nations. Brazil argued that its ethanol and hydroelectricity production

are clean (at least from CO2) and therefore it should push forward and help the industries

grow.


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2.3.1 Brazil: Hydropower

The question that needs to be asked is Why is hydroelectricity so integral to Brazil?

Geographically, Brazils natural water resources are plentiful so it would seem totally logical

to use the potential of the worlds largest reservoir of fresh water in order to generate

electricity, for example. For one, it reduces dependency on finite fossil fuels, placing Brazil

in a strong position as energy supplies deplete.

At present, renewable energy supply covers half the countrys energy demands and over

three quarters of this supply is from hydroelectricity. For Brazil this means relatively low

contributions of CO2 on a global scale. However, the potential in the hydropower sector is

also an opportunity for other non Brazilian companies to gain CERs by creating CDM

projects in the country. Hydropower projects are the most cost effective type of CDM project

because ironically they do not cut carbon (the most expensive GHG to mitigate) at least

not directly. Obviously, hydropower projects are less carbon intensive but when considered

carefully, they are not reducing CO2 in the atmosphere; they are just not making any more.

Aware of this opportunity, there is growing interest from private sector investors in CDM

projects in developing economies such as Brazil. This stems from suggestions that Brazil,

8 % of the world'sregistered CDMprojects are inBrazil

54% of these are focusedon renewable energy(hydropower orbioethanol)

195million tonnesof CO2 equivalentreductions in firstperiod of carbontrading (2008 -

2012)


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China and India will have to slow the pace of their development in light of post Kyoto

agreements in 2012. Subsequently, large, transnational organisations that often work with

international banks have financed CDM projects in Brazil in order to receive CERs. The

organisation is then able to either use the CERs to cover its own CO2 emissions or sell them

on using the carbon trading system if the organisation holds a surplus.

The sheer number of hydropower projects in Brazil that are awaiting CDM approval and that

have been accepted is indicative that different entities are aware of and motivated by the

likelihood of profit (in CERs) from their installation.

CDM hydropower projects (especially dams) have caused a reaction from communities and

civil society regarding poor levels of distribution, participation and instances of

misrecognition. Documenting these instances have been The Movement for Dam Affected

Peoples (MAB) along with a NGO called International Rivers, both of which will appear again

later in this paper.

The brief analysis of the political economy suggests two things. Firstly, Brazil is a country

that wants to grow further in order to become more powerful. The steps towards this goal

have been and are policies that increase economic growth and financial accumulation,

creating inequitable distributions in wealth and income, misrecognising groups and

individuals along the way.

Secondly, it seems the Brazilian government might have an understandable fear of being

burdened with another energy crisis like that of 2001-2002. Further to that, there is a level of

attraction for any country to be self sufficient, especially in the area of energy. This could

explain the high number of hydropower projects in the country and particularly the number of

validated or pre-validation CDM projects as it can be assumed Brazil would welcome this

type of FDI to help the sustainability of its energy.


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2.3.2 Relevance of Analysis

Following on from the political economic context, it is important to state the significance of

the documents that will be examined in the analysis within the Brazilian political economy.

The CDM Procedures and Modalities for Direct Communication with Stakeholders,

(UNFCCC, 2011) will be analysed because it may provide an insight into whether the CDM

facilitates an environment in Brazil for hydropower projects to be installed with an over

emphasis on economic benefits. It should contribute to further understanding and

clarification of how far issues of distribution, recognition and participation resonate within a

critical procedural document written by the overarching, influential CDM body. Further to

that, it may provide information as to the influence that the CDM procedures carry in Brazil

when considering the documents representing the CDM in practice which will follow.

The second and third documents to be analysed will be the Project Design Document (PDD)

(2006) and the validation report (carried out by consultancy, SGS in 2006) for the

hydropower project being studied (this will be introduced in the next section) as an example

of the CDM in practice. The former of the two documents holds significance because it will

show crucial evidence as to the relationship between CDM project planning and distribution,

recognition and participation; telling us whether the misrecognition of certain groups and

individuals that has taken place in some Brazilian policies (Arestis and Saad Filho, 2007) is

repeated within the CDM in this context. The latter of the two is crucial because it shows

what standards the relevant Brazilian developers set themselves in the three criteria

mentioned above. Also, it indicates what is considered to be acceptable by the CDM board

in relation to the three criteria.

The fourth and final document is the so called Danish Text mentioned in Chapter 1.1. The

analysis of this document is important because of its significance within the political

economy of Brazil. Avoiding beginning the analysis here, Chapter 1.1 outlined that the

consensus regarding the document upon it being leaked during the Summit was that

developing nations would receive few benefits if the proposal was agreed on. Written by


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developed nations, the document reflects what measures in current and future

environmental policy are considered acceptable by the Global North. Therefore, as Brazil is

considered one of three or four nations that may have to slow growth rates in order to

contribute to mitigate the effects of climate change, the Danish Text is of great significance.

Primarily, it can be considered that the document equates to developed nations planning the

future of developing ones in a non participatory fashion which is an injustice of great

proportion at this scale.

2.4 Case Study: Campos Novos

The chosen case study for this research is a CDM hydropower project in an area called

Campos Novos in Santa Catarina, a southern region of Brazil.

Above: Hydroelectric Dam at Campos Novos, Santa Catarina, Brazil (Venturi, 2011)

This particular project was chosen because of the controversy that it has stirred during its life

as a valid CDM installation. According to International Rivers (2006), the 626 foot tall dam

suffered a huge loss of water due to structural damage in June 2006. The cracks in the dam


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were so large that the entire reservoir depleted over a few days but was luckily prevented

from doing incredible amounts of damage as another dam further downstream was lying

almost empty at the time and held the water.

Particularly controversial for both the MAB and International Rivers was the validation of the

dam as a CDM project after it had been completely constructed. According to Barbara Haya

(2007), a campaigner for International Rivers, the very fact that the project was operational

without CDM credits should disqualify it from any consideration for CDM credits with its

construction beginning in 2001 before the CDM was operational.

The controversy that has surrounded the dam resulted in the projects CDM validation being

terminated in 2009. However, this should not undermine the relevance of the case study to

this research. From previous research by International Rivers (2006, 2007 and 2009) and

significant coverage by global media sources, issues of environmental justice appear central

to the projects termination and indicate the relevance of choosing the case for the subject of

this research.


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3 Analysis

In following Chapter 2.1, this section will take the form of analysing the documents

mentioned in the previous section by way of the three chosen criteria of environmental

justice; distribution, recognition and participation. Throughout the section, references will be

made to selected components of each document. The breakdown of each document is

available in the appendix (Chapter 6) and each selected quote is numbered. For efficiency,

references to quotes in the documents may be done using a bracketed number such as (2)

when making a point. Ideally, Chapter 6 should be used simultaneously in conjunction with

this section for the best understanding of the analysis.

3.1 Distribution

In the procedural document, point (1) notes that only UNFCCC admitted observer

organisations (UNFCCC, 2011) are able to attend meetings held by the UNFCCC and the

CDM Board. There is an application process for an organisation to be admitted, proposing

that anyone can be included. However, the Board has the final say, giving it the opportunity

to make tactical decisions if necessary and questioning the equity of membership. In

conjunction with this, point (2) identifies another possible obstacle in the way time is

distributed to admitted observers (ibid, 2011). There is a specific portion of time distributed

for all stakeholders to voice their opinions and issues regarding the CDM at UNFCCC and

CDM meetings. It is logical to assume that this might result in numerous stakeholders being

unable to voice concerns of their own or on behalf of others (perhaps an organisation that is

not admitted).

With obstacles to being admitted as an observer, stakeholders also face the issue of

inequitable distribution of information from the procedural level. Point (8) suggests that

when critical decisions or overhauls of CDM policy are made, information as to the reasons

for the changes will be made available to stakeholders when appropriate (ibid, 2011).


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Linking in with point (1), point (11) also raises issues of inequitable distribution in terms of

which stakeholders are invited to periodic stakeholder consultation (ibid, 2011) workshops.

These workshops are proposed in order for stakeholders to better understand CDM policy

but point (11) shows that only stakeholders that the CDM Board considers appropriate at

that time will be invited. Understandably, efficiency is an issue but the point does not

suggest a rotational basis of invites to stakeholders to ensure equitable distribution of the

opportunity to participate.

In the Project Design Document (PDD) (UNFCCC, 2006), the equity of the distribution of

benefits of the dam at Campos Novos is questionable. According to the PDD, the dam was

meant primarily to meet the rising demand for energy due to economic growth and improve

electricity (UNFCCC, 2006). Although point (1) refers to aiming to meet economic and

social elements of sustainability, the priorities appear to be the former, suggesting the

possibility that sustainability benefits might be considered less important to the developers of

the dam.

Point (1) of the validation document links with point (1) of the PDD through its explanation

that the dams construction was focused on the identification of significant risks for project

implementation and generation of CERs, (SGS, 2006). Again, the priorities of the dams

construction appear to be ensuring the distribution of benefits for those that develop it i.e.

CERs that can contribute to a companys emission reduction targets as opposed to groups

and individuals from civil society, for example.

Referencing back to point (1) of the PDD, point (2) of the validation document also has a

connection. Considering the aim of (1) to improve social sustainability, the distribution of

employment outlined in (2) states only part of the employment generated will be absorbed

by regional manpower, (SGS, 2006). There is no indication as to exactly how many jobs

can be taken locally, potentially resulting in an inequitable distribution of labour either in

favour or not in favour of those that fall under the category of regional.


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Point (1) of the Danish Text (2009) indicates that the suggested distribution of climate funds

would ideally be conditional, based on appropriate action from developing countries. Also,

there is no definition in the document of what appropriate equates to. This means that

distribution of critical funding to mitigate climate change effects could be denied if developing

nations do not meet [X] standard either directly or indirectly.

Point (4) raises issues that are particularly relevant to the CDM. The distribution details of

the deployed technology (Danish Text, 2009) to aid climate change mitigation and adaption

are not available but it seems as though developing countries (see points (5) and (6) of the

Danish Text) would be the main recipients (as they are, at the moment through the CDM) of

such installations. If this is this case, it could be considered to be inequitable because any

impacts from the technology would mostly (or totally) felt by developing nations such as

Brazil.

Finally, point (9) of the Danish Text should be considered as creating a possible situation of

inequitable distribution of finance for climate change adaption and mitigation. With a

suggestion that the World Bank should become the superior climate change financier

instead of the UN, This could alter the way climate change finance is viewed and distributed.

3.2 Recognition

Point (1) of the procedural document presents the possibility of misrecognising stakeholders

that are not UNFCCC observer organisation (UNFCCC, 2011). An example of this

misrecognition can be taken from the MAB, a stakeholder central to the criticism of the dam

at Campos Novos, not being one of the admitted organisations. Although it is not clear

whether an application has been made for membership, the MAB are a well - known

organisation in documenting the effects of dams on people across the world and the

information they hold might have been, or still might be useful to the UNFCCC and CDM

Board.


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A consistent theme across the procedural document seems to be the misrecognition of the

potential value of stakeholders information, views and opinions on matters of CDM policy in

terms of modalities and in practice. Points (2), (4), (5) and (10) all state in a loose form that

the views of stakeholders are allowed during various meetings, workshops, creation or

overhaul of CDM policy. However, all these positive points are littered with words of

conditionality such as may, appropriate, consideration and time slot, allowing for the

opportunity to disregard the opinions and views of all stakeholders. The overarching feeling

from the procedural document (demonstrated by point (13)) is that the CDM Board will allow

stakeholders to communicate their views but this does not mean that the Board have to

recognise their sense, importance or significance in relation to a CDM project, meaning they

may go largely ignored.

As can be seen from point (2) of the PDD, the request for comments from local

stakeholders in regards to the dam at Campos Novos, (UNFCCC, 2006) did not cover a

great deal of different organisations in its call, meaning that key stakeholders that may have

had important opinions or information regarding the dam and its effects may not have been

recognised. Further to that, point (10) of the validation document shows that the opportunity

to make these comments was only 30 days long. While there must be a time limit for the

purpose of efficiency, this seems too short a time to indicate recognition of the various efforts

from different stakeholders needed to gather information and prepare arguments or

responses in regards to the dam.

Point (4) of the PDD notes that No concerns were raised in the public ca lls regarding the

project (UNFCCC, 2006). On the contrary, International Rivers (2007) have raised

numerous concerns regarding the project. This is suggestive but speculative that perhaps

the correct recognition was not given to the value of the opinion of International Rivers at the

time of the PDD and validation.


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Point (2) of the validation document describes the demand for workers generated by the

dam at Campos Novos. The document indicates a profile for the ideal worker as someone

with a few years education (SGS, 2006), possibly misrecognising and discriminating

against the more skilled workers looking for employment.

Looking at points (1) and (2) of the Danish Text, it seems that possible instances of

misrecognition can be identified in this proposed Convention. Point (1) suggests that climate

change adaption funds for developing countries should be based on appropriate (Danish

Text, 2009) efforts to mitigate GHGs. As has been mentioned, it is difficult to clarify what

mitigations will be accepted as appropriate which means that while a country such as Brazil

might make reductions, it is possible for these reductions to not meet set standards.

However, point (2) notes that periodic reviews on mitigation efforts will be based on GDP,

emission levels and level of development. This proposal misrecognises the fact that GDP

might not be appropriate to measure efforts to mitigate because it is largely an economic

measure and may not recognise social or cultural problems contributing to a sub

appropriate mitigation effort and in consequence a loss of climate change finance.

Point (6) of the Danish Text appears to champion the potential contribution to mitigation

efforts that international offset credits will continue to make. Put into context, this means

that the generation of CERs still holds great importance. Subsequently, this requires more

installations of CDM projects in developing countries in order for this generation to take

place, potentially reinforcing similar instances of inequitable distribution, misrecognition and

issues of participation.

3.3 Participation

Lack of stakeholder participation appears to be a problem within the CDM whether at the

procedural level or in practice. Taking points (1) and (2) of the procedural document, it is

clear that for an organisation, the barrier to participating in CDM processes is having to gain


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accreditation from the UNFCCC. Also, the second point indicates that even when

accreditation is gained by an organisation, it may have difficulty voicing a concern or opinion

due to the allocated time slot for interaction (UNFCCC, 2011) and that discussions at such

meetings should not take on the form of case specific matters (ibid, 2011), making it

seemingly very difficult to make meaningful participation in these situations.

Point (4) of the same document reinforces the lack of participation with CDM procedures. It

says that the Secretariat invites comments from stakeholders (ibid, 2011) but these issues

are not guaranteed to be dealt with; only brought into consideration (ibid, 2011). This

means that a stakeholder could be invited to comment numerous times, raising the same

issue in each instance and never see it dealt with (though this is an extreme example).

In terms of writing new or altering current CDM policy, point (5) shows that the call for input

from stakeholders is not always asked for by the CDM Board. If it is asked for, this request

can be made before or after major changes have been made. This renders stakeholder

participation to be rather meaningless if they are sometimes consulted and sometimes not.

In fact, point (9) suggests that the Board is more concerned with helping stakeholders with

enhancing understanding of CDM rules (ibid, 2011) rather than multi stakeholder decision

making.

Point (12) states that based on the forecasted need to meet with stakeholders, the number

of Board and stakeholder meetings will be decided appropriately. This shows that

stakeholders do not have the power or influence to organise meetings with the Board, rather

it is done at the Boards discretion. Subsequently, it could mean that if a stakeholder has a

problem with CDM implementation in some way, shape or form, it might not be addressed in

time because stakeholders are not in a position to ask the Board to participate.

Point (3) of the PDD notes that no concerns were raised in the public calls (UNFCCC,

2006) regarding the dam at Campos Novos. From previous sections of this chapter it is

clear that concerns did arise but just outside of the 30 day period in which stakeholders had


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the opportunity to participate. Further substantiating the point, International Rivers stated

specifically that there had been a lack of stakeholder consultation (Haya, 2007) i.e. a lack

of participation.

According to point (4) of the validation report, when the PDD was completed, comments

were invited by stakeholders but only through the UNFCCC CDM webpage. For some

stakeholders in the process, this may have caused an obstacle to participation because of

having no access to the Internet, for example.

In points (3), (4), (5), (6), (7), and (8) of the Danish Text, the issue of participation is very

prevalent. It seems in all the above points in the draft Convention that its authors were intent

on gaining political commitment for the bulk of climate change mitigation and adaption efforts

to be carried out by developing countries.

Taking the example of point (5), the document speaks of substantially increased finance for

climate efforts in developing countries. Of particular relevance to this research, point (6) of

the document states that the purchase of international offset credits will play a

supplementary role to domestic action. As previously mentioned, the CDM would have a

large role to play in this, meaning that countries such as Brazil would need to welcome more

CDM installations in order to achieve this goal.

To avoid repetition of the same point, the participatory element of the Danish Text is that

participation in climate change mitigation and adaption will fall largely on the developing

countries of the world. It does appear that developed countries are willing to provide both

finance (see (5)) and technology (see (7)) but the provisions are for aiding the efforts in

developing countries to have a more global impact.

3.4 Evaluation

It seems the issues of distribution, recognition and participation all occur within the

documents that have been analysed in this section.


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Bar the Danish Text, a similarity between all the documents that must be considered to be

positive is that recognition and participation are usually offered in one form or another to

stakeholders in regards to CDM policy. However, it is often done so with many conditions

that subsequently weaken the potential impact or influence that stakeholders outside of the

procedural level can have on policy.

It would seem that although participation, recognition and equitable distribution are mostly

presented as something that all parties are interested in (and CDM policy claims to require

it), those at the procedural level may value it as less important than achieving overall goals

for projects such as Campos Novos. The problem here is that the overall goals do not seem

to directly fall in line with climate change mitigation (an aim of the CDM). Moreover, the

goals are associated with the maximum generation of CERs which could either be used by a

company to emit more carbon or to sell on through the carbon market.

The Danish Text has helped to facilitate the meta ethical (Frankena, 1988) policy analysis

because it allows readers to see that the realm of (future) environmental policy making is

loaded with value judgements (ibid, 1988) regarding distribution, recognition and

participation even at such a high level. Although the way these criteria are valued is not

stated directly by the documents, the analysis is such that it might be inferred that because

they are not prioritised at any of the different procedural scales (Danish Text, CDM

Procedures, PDD and validation), they are not valued as highly as other goals such as

generating CERs. It seems only natural that the values held by some at the level of national

governments of the developed world would be repeated through the policies which they

propose and create (Danish Text and CDM) and through policy implementation (evidenced

by the PDD and validation documents) and this is a major problem.

On the other hand, it is arguable that some level of participation and recognition is much

better than nothing. For instance, it would be far more of a disgrace if stakeholders were

unable to give their opinions at all; that CDM policy was constructed without the aim of


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distributing some benefits to stakeholders other than the developers or financiers; that no

stakeholders were given the opportunity to be recognised as UNFCCC accredited observer

organisations; but this is not the case. CDM policy does give consideration to distribution,

recognition and participation but it is done so at a certain scale that, whether purposeful or

not, always keeps stakeholders at an arms length. Using one example to demonstrate this,

the UNFCCC application process to become an observer organisation is available to any

group or individual. However, the applications must be filled out online and this may not be

possible for certain stakeholders, misrecognising that gaining access to the Internet might

not be viable for all relevant stakeholders in the process.

While 3 of the documents are able to explain the way in which distribution, recognition and

participation are considered by CDM policy, the analysis of the Danish Text has reinforced

thoughts originally made earlier in this paper regarding the approach to policy problems at

present. It demonstrates that instead of, as Young (1990) proposed, trying to understand

the social context in which unjust distributions exist, (Schlosberg, 2007), national

governments of developed countries are concerned with finding a way out that allows

injustices of distribution, recognition and participation to continue.


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4 Conclusions

What this research was originally centred on was the discrepancies between CDM discourse

and practice. The original assumption was that the CDM discourse would be written so that

equitable distribution, participation and recognition were important elements of it. However,

although these elements are considered, this consideration seems to be more part of a

protocol that must be followed in order to prevent outrage from certain stakeholders.

Overall, it seems that the minimum attention that these three elements receive is felt across

all levels from what is seen on the ground in practice, all the way up the scales to the level of

national governments. . It appears this behaviour could be endemic not only in CDM policy

but also in the plans for global environmental policy. Overall, cost efficiency and CER

generation seem to be the twisted priorities of developed governments in relation to the

CDM.

4.1 Recommendations

An idea for future research is to analyse the history of CDM projects. Before the dam at

Campos Novos was put forward in application for CDM validation and CERs, it was still

operational (Haya, 2007). This means that there must be other planning documents that

outline the processes that saw the dam through from paper to the finished article. It would

be interesting to see whether levels of distribution of benefits, stakeholder participation and

recognition were of concern to the parties involved in the building of the dam. Comparing

how far these three criteria resonate in original planning documents with CDM planning

documents might conjure up some fascinating results and perhaps say something about how

different the CDM might really be (or not be) from conventional planning processes of

hydropower installations. From this, inferences could be made on whether the CDM is a

positive or negative addition in this respect.


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In closing, it is a common conception that large, multinational bodies with government

influence such as the UNFCCC are in place to do good things. While this might be the case,

it seems that the policies it creates do not hold all people as equal; a mistake that should be

avoided in such critical global legislation. To counteract this status quo and create a

strategy to improve these policies seems impossible due to the apparent impenetrability of

such bodies. However, it should be remembered that knowledge is power and, using the

evidence that can be generated by a policy analysis such as this, perhaps progress canbe

made. Particularly, advocates of movements such as climate justice that are concerned with

the creation of policies that perpetuate discrimination (Mobilization for Climate Justice,

2011) could consider that it does not take a professional analyst to unpack these policies.

With that in mind, the UNFCCC and CDM may not seem as impenetrable as first thought

and with enough of well evidenced activism, perhaps changes could be made to CDM policy

as a start to making global environmental policy and equity one of the same.


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5 Bibliography

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6 Appendix

6.1 Breakdown of Modalities and Procedures for Direct

Communications with Stakeholders (UNFCCC, 2011)

CDM Discourse Characteristics1. Project participants, NGOs and other

stakeholders may take part in theseinteractions [meetings] of the CDMBoard as long as they are registered asobservers to a Board meeting throughUNFCCC admitted observer

organisations.

Lack of participation and misrecognition. Inrelation to stakeholders with interests in theeffects of CDM hydroelectric projects, thereare key organisations such as theMovement for Dam Affected Peoples(MAB) that are not currently admitted as

observers.2. The Board shall allocate a time slot forinteraction with registered observers.

Before beginning to propose issues with theCDM, registered observers are alreadyrestricted by time. Only registeredobservers are allowed to speak and theseobservers are not treated as the Boardtreats itself; a clear example ofmisrecognition.

Omar Saeed ESD Dissertation 2011

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