Download - Switzerland: Where's the limit: What level of biodiversity impacts from consumption is admissible?
Federal Department of the Environment,Transport, Energy and Communications DETEC
Federal Office for the Environment FOEN
Where's the limit: What level of biodiversity impacts from consumption is admissible?
COP12 Side event on external responsibility on global
biodiversity loss, 15.10.2014, Pyeongchang (Rep.of Korea)Hall B, Room 1 - NGOs meeting room
Christoph Dürr, Swiss Federal Office for the Environment
Forest Division
2 Which limits to the biodiversity footprint of consumption? | External Responsibility on global biodiversity loss / COP 12 side event , Swiss FOEN, Christoph Dürr & Andreas Hauser 15.10.2014
Introduction: Swiss consumption‘s impacts on the environment abroad
3 Which limits to the biodiversity footprint of consumption? | External Responsibility on global biodiversity loss / COP 12 side event , Swiss FOEN, Christoph Dürr & Andreas Hauser 15.10.2014
1. Step: Tracking Switzerland‘s land use footprint: potential damage to biodiversity
Rising share of impacts abroad due to domestic consumption. A similar picture results for the nitrogen footprint.
4 Which limits to the biodiversity footprint of consumption? | External Responsibility on global biodiversity loss / COP 12 side event , Swiss FOEN, Christoph Dürr & Andreas Hauser 15.10.2014
2. Step: Translating the Limits of Our Planet to a National Footprint Perspective
Goal: Translating the limits of our planet into footprint limit values for Switzerland ( in a consumption perspective)
The study is conducted by UNEP-GRID (expected 2015) and is inspired by Nykvist et al. (2013).
5 Which limits to the biodiversity footprint of consumption? | External Responsibility on global biodiversity loss / COP 12 side event , Swiss FOEN, Christoph Dürr & Andreas Hauser 15.10.2014
The challenging quest for footprint limit values!
What is the maximum admissiblelevel?
Publication of the study is planned for the end of this year.
6 Which limits to the biodiversity footprint of consumption? | External Responsibility on global biodiversity loss / COP 12 side event , Swiss FOEN, Christoph Dürr & Andreas Hauser 15.10.2014
Footprint limits: Which share for Switzerland?•1st step of the study: equal rights for global environmental public goods per capita are assumed (and thus equal "rights to pollute").
•2nd step: the limit values are refined according to other considerations e.g. historic responsibility, basic human needs, how much is left, etc.
7 Which limits to the biodiversity footprint of consumption? | External Responsibility on global biodiversity loss / COP 12 side event , Swiss FOEN, Christoph Dürr & Andreas Hauser 15.10.2014
3. The Context of Green Economy Policy
8 Which limits to the biodiversity footprint of consumption? | External Responsibility on global biodiversity loss / COP 12 side event , Swiss FOEN, Christoph Dürr & Andreas Hauser 15.10.2014
Popular initiative for a Green Economy
"Popular initiative" is a direct-democratic instrument in Switzerland: Anyone can propose a constitutional amendment (needs 100'000 valid signatures), on which the Swiss citizens eventually has to vote on.
9 Which limits to the biodiversity footprint of consumption? | External Responsibility on global biodiversity loss / COP 12 side event , Swiss FOEN, Christoph Dürr & Andreas Hauser 15.10.2014
Revision of the environment protection act(Government proposition)The Swiss government prepared a counter-proposal: the revision of the environment protection act.• A new Article (10h) states the duty of the
Confederation to aim at reducing environmental impacts taking into account impacts caused abroad.
• It also schedules a mechanism for setting targets and reporting on achievement.
• A set of concrete measures is proposed in the domains of consumption and production as well as circular economy
The proposal is currently being debated in parliament.
10 Which limits to the biodiversity footprint of consumption? | External Responsibility on global biodiversity loss / COP 12 side event , Swiss FOEN, Christoph Dürr & Andreas Hauser 15.10.2014
Open questions for discussion
• Is there a responsibility of countries to reduce their land use / biodiversity footprint? (including abroad)
• What is a „fair share“ of resource consumption - in a global context?
• How to achieve consensus on „fair share“?
11 Which limits to the biodiversity footprint of consumption? | External Responsibility on global biodiversity loss / COP 12 side event , Swiss FOEN, Christoph Dürr & Andreas Hauser 15.10.2014
Further information:
http://www.bafu.admin.ch/wirtschaft/00517/11301/index.html?lang=en
Thank you!
12 Which limits to the biodiversity footprint of consumption? | External Responsibility on global biodiversity loss / COP 12 side event , Swiss FOEN, Christoph Dürr & Andreas Hauser 15.10.2014
Appendix
