Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
site direction. Harmonization may occur not at either end of the spectrum, but rather
somewhere in the middle. And in some cases globalization may promote divergence rather
than convergence. To begin mapping out the possibilities, this section considers the four
convergence scenarios in turn.
Ecological modernization
The term 'ecological modernization' was coined in the 1980s by European sociologists to
describe recent changes in production and consumption in industrialized countries. In
many cases these have reduced use of natural resources and emissions of pollutants per
unit of output, and in some cases these reductions have been substantial enough to gen-
erate net environmental improvements alongside economic growth (see, e.g., Weale, 1992,
Spaargaren and Mol, 1992).
Ecological modernization theorists interpret these transformations as a response not
only to market signals, but more importantly to the growth of environmental concerns
among the public and policy-makers.
6
Although originally put forward as an analysis of
trends in industrialized countries, the theory has been extended globally by some of its
proponents. In so doing, most have accepted the conventional premise that the environ-
mental-quality gradient runs from North to South. Thus Mol (2001, p. 157) writes of 'the
need to harmonize environmental capacities and regimes up to at least the level that has
been achieved in the [Europe-North America-Japan] triad countries'. Mechanisms
identi
ed as vehicles for such harmonization upward include income growth, foreign
direct investment, international agreements, and 'governance from below'.
A positive e
fi
ect from income growth is premised on the view that globalization leads
to rising per capita incomes, and that the latter in turn lead to greater e
ff
ff
ective demand
for environmental quality (often referred to as a better ability to 'a
ord' a cleaner envi-
ronment). During the NAFTA debate, for example, Mexican president Carlos Salinas
proclaimed, 'Only through widespread prosperity can we have the resources to channel
toward the protection of land, air and water' (quoted by Hogenboom, 1998, p. 180). Both
links - from globalization to rising incomes, and from rising incomes to a better environ-
ment - are open to question. With respect to the latter link, it is important to recognize
that many aspects of environmental quality are public goods. To be politically e
ff
ective,
demand for environmental quality therefore must be articulated through institutions that
overcome both the free-rider problem and political opposition from the bene
ff
fi
ciaries of
cost externalization. I return to this issue in the next section.
Foreign direct investment is sometimes portrayed as a vehicle for environmental
improvement on the grounds that foreign
rms have superior technological know-how,
derived from production in countries with stricter regulations, and that they
fi
fi
nd it e
cient
to use standardized processes to produce standardized products. In addition, foreign
fi
rms
may be more sensitive to reputational concerns than local
rms, and more subject to media
scrutiny and pressure from public opinion. In keeping with this prediction, some empiri-
cal studies have found evidence of 'pollution halos' - above-average environmental per-
formance - associated with foreign investment. In a review of this literature, Zarsky (1999,
p. 14) concludes that the evidence is mixed, and that 'the most signi
fi
fi
cant determinant of
fi
rm performance is community pressure' rather than the origin of investment
per se
.
7
International agreements can also promote upward harmonization in environmen-
tal practices. Examples of such agreements include the treaties on oceanic pollution,
