Transcript Slide 1

Green growth – sustainable resource extraction and
the role of trade unions
NFS Conference
Ilulissat, Greenland
24 April 2013
Béla Galgóczi
[email protected]
Structure
Structure of the presentation:
Background: we have only one planet, not five!
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Resource and material use (the reckless exploitation of
natural resources) cannot go on as in past
Green economy, green growth, green jobs
Green transformation: double challenge for trade unions
Resource extraction, mining: what are the major social and
environmental challenges
The case of Greenland
What trade unions do and could do?
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Background: Revision of growth model
Long term challenge: a fundamental revision of previous growth
model, above all face the challenge of climate change,
The Great Transformation of the next decades will be the
transition to low (zero) carbon economy
Green growth – a strategy to promote ‚eco-industry‘, clean energy and
also give push to green restructuring of traditional sectors
In 2011-2012 we see the danger of a reversal of green policies in
Europe: what we see is ‚black austerity‘ where incentives and
subsidies into the green economy are cut back for sake of fiscal
consolidation and ‚affordable energy‘ gets ‚fake‘ priority (e.g. Italy,
Spain)
This is in sharp contrast with 2009 ‚green stimulus‘ packages
We also see a revival of fossil fuel (shale) gas and coal
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Track record: the challenge is bigger then assumed by
mainstream policy scenario
It is clear that on basis of current policy scenario the world is
heading for a 3.5-4C temperature increase by 2100 (IEA, 2012)
Keeping the 2C target requires four times higher rate of future
decarbonisation (reduction of CO2 emitted per unit GDP).
Global ghg emissions keep on growing
Ghg emission reductions in Europe were more due to crises
then to systematic implementation of climate policy – no signs of
decoupling economic growth from emissions
Huge gap in Europe in term of resource productivity (Bulgaria Luxembourg: 1:30), but diversity also in per capita emissions,
although in a reverse order: Luxemburg has the highest level
No paradigm change visible yet
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CO2 emissions from fossil fuels and cement in MtC/yr
(TgC/yr), 1980-2008
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Source: Eloi Laurent (2012) and Raupach et al (2007)
Looking beyond 2020: the 2050 Low-Carbon Roadmap
(ghg emissions in % of 1990 level)
LONG WAY TO GO
100%
80% domestic reduction
in 2050 is feasible:
• With currently available
technologies,
• With behavioural change
only induced through prices
• If all economic sectors
contribute to a varying
degree & pace.
100%
80% Power Sector
80%
Current policy
60%
Residential & Tertiary
60%
Industry
40%
40%
Transport
20%
Efficient pathway and
milestones:
-25% in 2020
-40% in 2030
-60% in 2040
20%
Non CO2 Agriculture
Non CO2 Other Sectors
0%
1990
2000
2010
2020
2030
2040
0%
2050
Performance in decoupling economic growth from
resource and material use in Europe
No major progress in decoupling, as the next graph for Europe
shows
Only Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Hungary and
Luxembourg achieved absolute decoupling (economy grew
with less resource use)
In decoupling, Nordic countries were not performing well: DK,
SE and FI all performed worse than the EU27 average and
with economic growth they also used higher resources
It is a general problem that no (hard-core) incentives for higher
resource productivity exist; companies are good in increasing
labour productivity, but not resource productivity!
Yearly average change of domestic material consumption and GDP
between 2000 and 2007 by member state
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EE
RO
10
no decoupling
LT
average annual growth of DMC (%)
8
6
SL
LV
IE BG
ES CY
SK
4
SE
AT
PT DK
FI
EL
PL
relative decoupling
2
EU27
CZ
BE
FR
UK
HU
0
DE
IT
NL
LU
absolute decoupling
-2
-4
0
1
Source: Eurostat (2011)
2
3
4
5
6
average annual growth rate of GDP (%)
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8
9
10
The bulk of the adaptation is still to come
Current climate policy tools are clearly not enough to reach target. If
we had those (and they would be also implemented), their effects
would be also harsher than what we see now!
The major challange for the employment effects of the green
transformation is this uncertainty
Some principal questions:
Decarbonisation through desindustrialisation??
- Downscaling energy intensive activities or to improve energy
efficiency and resource productivity efficiency while keeping and
developing them (we need to make sure the second option will
apply)
- Address carbon leakage
Green jobs: the positive agenda
Takes a narrow perspective on employment effects, looks at the labour
market in a singular and segmented way in isolation from the rest of
the economy
Definition problems
Process or product based view? (with view to their positive
climate/environment effects), e.g. are the following “green” jobs`?
- Steel industry (with inputs to eco-industry equipment)
- Construction industry (depending on product and technology: what
and how you build)
- Financial services /?/, IT services
Focusing on green jobs by investments into a green economy (taking
the opportunities arising from a new expanding sector) is indeed a
useful policy, BUT it is only PART of the FULL STORY
- The green transformation should encompass the entirety of the
whole economy
Challenge for trade unions in the broader context of the
green transformation
Tension between their role as broad social actors and as
membership organisations (e.g. Canada oil pipeline)
Path dependency?: In industrial societies trade unions fought
the fair share of labour within the growth based resource
wasting production and consumption model in the past
Are they still locked-in in that role /as some NGO-s state/?
The tension appears between the role of supporting more
determined and ambitious climate policy on the one hand,
but protect jobs that might come under pressure as a
consequence, on the other
In this context we also see divergergent positions at different
levels of TU organisations /international, national, branch
level/
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Trade union role: the positive agenda: active policy role
and social dialogue to meet the challenge
Trade unions (especially at higher organisational levels) are engines of green
policy at national and international level (ETUC, ITUC, national unions as
TUC, DGB, Nordic unions)
Good practices at company level: ‚Green workplace‘ project/initiative by
ETUC, tools, manuals for trade unions
Managing restructuring on enterprise level under pressures of globalisation,
especially in countries with strong workers participation patterns
(successful plant level practices during the crisis in Germany, Austria,
Nordic countries)
The Green Transformation is the most comprehensive restructuring process
ever faced and will go on in the following decades – trade unions should
promote this process actively!
A socially responsible and just transition to a low carbon economy is a vital
interest for trade unions but posing also huge challenges for all actors
managing this process including workers representatives.
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Innovative alliances between NGO-s and trade unions
Trade unions are committed to more ambitious climate policy
at the same time demand a framework that provides a
balanced approach: just transition
This makes a comprehensive policy approach necessary:
climate + employment + social + industrial policy
Just burden sharing during the transition - job quality
Trade unions developed practices of managing change and
managing transitions /they are not anymore clinging to
preserve status quo/
Innovative approaches: TU-NGO alliances /Green-Blue
Alliance in US (also at company and project level), Spring
alliance in Europe (now on EU policy level)
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Sustainable mining and resource extraction
The priority of a greening economy is to produce (more) value out of less
material and resource input through higher resource productivity and
efficiency, through changing behaviour, consumption and mobility patterns…
AND NOT CHASING FOR MORE RESOURCES..TO COVER THIS
What we see nowadays is a new race for resources, a mining and gas boom…
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US and Canada gas fracking boom, new oil pipeline to boost consumption
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Extraction in Africa by Chinese firms is expanding rapidly
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Brazil sees ist future in the new oil and gas field explorations
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Mongolia is said to become the ‚Saudi Arabia‘ of rare earthes
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Greenland and the wider Arctic region is the next target
Not a healthy trend, BUT still (or even more so) we need to address the case of
‚sustainable‘ mining and resource extraction and trade unions need to develop a
strategy for this!
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Sustainable mining and resource extraction
What is at stake, where trade unions must be aware?
- financial transparency (in order the benefit of the extracted natural
values contributes to the wealth of the local population and not (only) to
the profits of multinational companies;
- technological safety (preventing natural catastrophes), limit exposure of
workers to health and safety risks;
- labour standards, working conditions, fair pay, decent work
- environmental standards (least possible intrusion into the ecological
balance of the environment, recultivation of landcape and soil,
preserving biodiversity)
- special attention to pristine natural environment (Alaska, Amazonia,
Greenland) especially if the environmental balance of the region has an
impact on the whole planet
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Greenland: the challenge of mining and resource
extraction
There is a new ‘goldrush’ for mineral resources worldwide (US, Canada,
Brazil, Mongolia and now also Greenland)
A vice President of a global mining company on Greenland:
‘Greenland offers relatively low corporate taxes, and an environment that
requires no royalty payments or the challenge of having to deal with
Aboriginal land claims issues. Permits can also be secured within a sixmonth window.’
Question: is it necessary to enter into this race? Go for more and more
resources just to feed the appetite of a resource wasting production model?
Instead of embarking on a new growth model based on resource
productivity and efficiency?
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Sure, there are economic realities, Greenland wants to create an independent
economic fundament and given its natural resources their exploitation
seems to be unavoidable for the well-being of ist 58 thousand population
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Greenland: mining and resource extraction projects
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Although not one mining or oil project started yet, more than
100 exploration licenses were awarded.
The big hope for the mining companies now is that Greenland
will permit to extract uranium as a by-product from rare earth
deposits (largest in the world outside of China that now has
90% of global production.
Alcoa plans to bring 3000 workers from China.
Greenland Minerals and Energy Ltd. - plans to extract
40,000 tons of rare earth metals per year, with some uranium
as a by-product.
Hudson Resources, (White Mountain) - access to 27.4
million tonnes of rare earth minerals.
London Mining Plc. - $2 billion Isua iron-ore project: 700
permanent jobs, 2,000 Chinese workers for its construction.
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Sustainable mining and resource extraction: Canada - a
conflict case for trade unions
Conflict case, Keystone XL Oil pipeline, Canada:
The development of tar sands oil supply (twice the amount of
carbon dioxide as other oil reserves) is a huge risk for the
climate...
Unions should not only bear the interests of their own members
in mind, but also wider risks. To offer support for the Keystone
XL pipeline, the AFL-CIO won a few construction jobs and a
little money at huge external costs
The Murray River coal project (Canada): create up to 600
permanent jobs, and in 30 years three billion tonnes of coal.
‘Chinese investment and the project was welcome, only the
workers not’, (Trade unions filed a court case against the use of
foreign workers but support the project).
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LESSONS
for TRADE UNIONS for the proper BALANCE
Sustainable mining and resource extraction: tools for trade
unions
Sustainable mining principles, guidelines:
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Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) – 32 countries
produced EITI reports, from Europe only Norway (Greenland should join!)
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The EITI Criteria:
-Regular publication of reports on all material oil, gas and mining payments
by companies to governments (“payments”)
-Civil society is actively engaged (design, monitoring and evaluation)
-A public, financially sustainable work plan developed by the host
government
OECD, International Investment Agreements: Survey of
Environmental, Labour and Anti-corruption issues, 27 February 2007
ITUC Briefing note on Bilateral Investment Treaties (BIT):
New BITs must contain clauses in respect of OECD Guidelines for
Multinational Enterprises and the ILO Tripartite Declaration of Principles
concerning Multinational Enterprises
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Sustainable mining and resource extraction – summary of
challenges for trade unions
Addressed (even if not fully): transparency, distribution, direct
environmental effects on population, flora, fauna;
For direct safety risks and related direct environmental effects also have
attention (like oil spills, or water contamination) – push for higher
standards through lessons (Deep Water Horizon)
Less focus however on long term consequences and environmental
impacts – here we only have one-sided declarations and corporate
social responsibility initiatives from companies: this is clearly not
enough, TU-s should push for more
BUT Towards Sustainable Mining (TSM) reporting (Canada) for mining
companies is useful – needs to be binding (trade unions to urge)
For social aspects: we have the ILO norms as basic guidance, European
social standards and national standards (either by Labour Law minimum
criteria or through collective agreements)
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Greenland: the challenge of mining and resource
extraction
Greenland is a special case from an other aspect, also: it is a pristine
landscape and its ecological balance is critical for the whole planet (in this
regard only Amazonia is comparable).
It would be an illusion however that a proposal could be raised, as the aborted
attempt at the Yasuni Natural Reserve (Equador) where a compensation of
cca. 2.7 bn USD was discussed to prevent the project.
We cannot expect this in case of Greenland. BUT at least the limits of
extraction activity should be addressed!
Nordic countries, Denmark and also the EU (although Greenland is not part of
it) should pay more attention!
But the EU is more aiming at special mining rights in Greenland (not granted,
but a Memorandum of Understanding on the EU‘s access had been signed
in 2012)
The EU also rejected a ban on oil drilling in the Arctic region (October 2012)
PRESSURE on the EU from a NORDIC Alliance?
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Greenland’s large scale law – relaxation labour law
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The Law on large-scale projects in Greenland
New legislation to encourage foreign investments in large-scale projects
through reducing labour standards (only to building and construction
activities linked to the exploitation of minerals)
The foreign workers will be entitled to the same labour rights as
Greenlandic workers, (right to strike, to organize and collective
bargaining).
BUT foreign employees, who are subject to a foreign CB agreement will
be allowed to maintain the salary and employment conditions of their CB
agreement if in accordance with Greenlandic legislation.
The foreign workers are also entitled to a certain minimum wage
equivalent to the Greenlandic (with a limitation on possible deductions)
Local trade unions, employer's associations and NGOs are entitled to
have access to the collective agreements.
Greenland’s large scale law – relaxation labour law
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Issues for trade unions:
It is a fundamental question however: do resource extraction investments
need special treatment and preferences? (possibly no)
Incentives by countries to attract manufacturing investment is a
different matter (these can be moved) - not relevant for resource
extraction)
Greenland has unique rare earth deposits, it does not need to give away
concessions cheap! Why preferential treatment? Is the ‚Large scale law‘
necessary? More self-confidence needed!
Mining only starts now, a broader impact on the wider environment is not
yet to be expected, but it is already time to think about the limits
It is necessary to implement the highest environment and safety
standards for the immediate effects (contamination of soil, water/ice
masses, prevent possible spills, leaks, etc)
Recommendations for trade unions
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Clarify responsibility of investors in case of potential accidents
Recultivation obligations after extraction activity ends
For labour effects, Greenland has a different context then countries with a
larger population (and population density)
The conflict situation in countries with larger population appears in the
substitution effect between foreign and local labour
Preserving existing labour standards is an utmost priority, the danger of a
crowding out effect by foreign labour is less the case
Investors should pay attention to include domestic labour and also
provide training for tasks that can be performed
Local labour content maximisation according to potential – should be a
criterion!
USE the power of the Alliance of Nordic Countries to agree on sustainable
mining and social standards also in Greenland
NGO-trade union alliances are ideal to increase influence on resource
extraction, mining issues