Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
contrast, only affected local human and environmental systems through
their global action. The ozone “hole”— discovered as early as 1976 but only
confirmed in the middle of the 1980s— had a vague geographical range
in the Southern Hemisphere, but for the most part ozone depletion led
to increased ultraviolet radiation (specifically, medium-wavelength UV
radiation) reaching the earth's surface worldwide. It was thus a truly global
problem.
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Similarly, though climate change might affect different regions
to varying degrees, depending on factors like latitude and existing mar-
ginal precipitation, CO
2
itself represented a danger only through its ability
to impact the earth's total energy budget.
Second, as
Global 2000
underscored, both ozone depletion and global
warming existed as problems primarily in the future tense. Most new envi-
ronmental issues began with the recognition of obvious impacts, usually
driven by direct observation. As early as 1852, for example, Angus Smith
noticed that the sulfuric acid in the air in Manchester, England, caused the
colors of textiles to fade and metals to corrode.
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True concern over acid
rain began with studies of the measured acidity of Scandinavian rivers and
streams, and further investigation led to more robust scientific theory.
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At least until the discovery of the ozone hole, by contrast, concerns over
both ozone and global warming turned this process on its head. Scientific
theory presaged future impacts, with few measurable data points to drive
the problem home in the present.
There was also a direct political relationship between efforts to pro-
tect the ozone layer and the burgeoning fight against anthropogenic global
warming, and this was probably the most important connection between
the two issues. The international effort to combat global warming was built
on the same institutional framework as the effort to curb ozone depletion.
As Gus Speth argues, the development of the 1987 Montreal Protocol
on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer became the standard model
for international policymaking on global environmental issues in the late
1980s and early 1990s.
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In an ideal world, Speth explains, global environ-
mental governance develops in four stages. First, scientists— in this case
Molina, Rowland, Crutzen, and others— identify a problem and conduct
research in order to produce an agenda for nongovernmental advocacy
based on reliable scientific evidence. Second, after more research and
“fact-finding”— conducted in the case of ozone primarily by UNEP and
the WMO— the international community negotiates broad policy goals
