Indium - Intrinsic and Extrinsic Values

Indium is a "soft, ductile, manleable, lustrous metallic metal" (1). It's extrinsic value, instilled by the global market and consumer trends, lies within its application in popular technology, such as cellular phones, in many nations as it is used to "form corrosion-resistant mirror surface...as good a quality as that of silver" (1).

However, the intrinsic value of indium is highly limited.  In and of itself, indium "has no biological role" (1). Additionally, indium is not highly pervasive in the environment, thus it is known that indium is a limited resource within the Earth.

In sum, the value of indium is derived solely from the extrinsic value is placed upon it by humanity. As it is used mainly in manufacturing popular technology, consumers have increased demand for this metal, especially as the cellular phone market is exponentially growing in industrialized nations, as well as developing nations around the globe.  In this way, the demand to extricate all possible indium from the environment is in full-swing, with this trend only estimated to grow.



Source:
1: http://www.lenntech.com/periodic/elements/in.htm

"Squeaky Wheel" Syndrome

I wanted to transform this blog just a bit, yet it is still focused on the same theme of the "Squeaky Wheel" Syndrome.

I wanted to move away from the framework of an environmental crises leading to policy, instead I wanted to briefly share his instance of the syndrome that falls within the scale level of the individual and the community and region.  However, that is not to say that this story is innately intertwined with an on-going environmental crises of enormous proportions in the Amazon.

Earlier this year in May in the Brazilian state of Para, Jose Claudio Ribeiro da Silva, and leading environmental activist in the region, and his wife, Maria, were robbed of their lives by gunmen outside of their home near a sustainable reserve on government-ceded land where they served as the leaders for 300 other families working the rain forest as rubber-tappers.

Authorities have stated that they were targeted for their repeated reporting of illegal loggers to the police and federal prosecutors. The couple had previously received numerous death threats.

Police examining the body of Jose Claudio Ribeiro da Silva

Nothing was stolen from their bodies or their property, further indicating that Jose and Maria were killed for their continued activism against the illegal loggers and farmers who would see large swaths of the forest cut down to raise cattle or soybeans.  The only thing that was taken off the bodies was an ear of Jose Silva's, cut off likely to be shown as proof that he was dead.

Over 1,150 rural activists have been murdered over the past 20 years in Brazil due to land conflicts, with most of these murders being carried out by gunmen hired by loggers, ranchers, or farmers to quash individuals who rally against those illegally cutting in the Amazon. Most notable was the 2005 murder of 73 year-old Dorothy Stang, an American nun living in Brazil, who was shot six times and left to die on a muddy road in the Amazon for her continued protest against illegal logging and land-grabbing by loggers.  Unfortunately, the Silvas are now added to this list.

This example sharply illustrates the power and danger that comes with being the "squeaky wheel".  When one believes something is wrong and will not stop sounding the alarm against this wrong, his or her opponents, out of their fear, lash out in violence and destruction.  Lacking protection from police and the government, these activists are being systematically murdered by highly entrenched interests in an effort to silence their voices.





Sources:

1.http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/05/29/adelino-ramos-killed-murdered_n_868606.html
2. http://news.mongabay.com/2011/0528-amazon_murders.html
3. http://www.permacultureusa.org/2009/03/20/in-memory-of-dorothy-stang/

Dr. Stan Meiburg Presentation

In listening to Dr. Stan Meiburg from the EPA a few weeks ago, it was interesting to learn about the separate paths that the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act to become legislation.

In addition, it was great to have such a significant player in the realm of U.S. environmental policy to outline the importance and effectiveness of these aforementioned bodies of legislation. It was striking to see the rate in which pollution levels have steadily decreased around the nation.  Yet, I am glad he brought up the very substantial point that there is MUCH work still needed to be done on the issue of air and water pollution.

Smog in Los Angeles

Overall, Dr. Meiburg presented a very concise, informative lecture on the topic of air and water quality in the U.S.  However,  my only qualm would be that he perhaps did not connect with the audience as effectively as he could have in that a substantial portion of his lecture was somewhat technical (which may be above the level of conservancy of some of the students in the audience).

Lastly, perhaps the ENP lecture series could be enhanced by bringing in speakers from national environmental NGOs such as the Sierra Club, and international NGOs such as Greenpeace.

National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES)

Under the Clean Water Act, the NPDES permit program controls water pollution by "regulating point sources that discharge pollutants into waters of the United States" (1).  Introduced in 1972, the NPDES permit program has contributed significantly to improving the water quality in the U.S. (1).

While the NPDES permit program has been successful in its own right, there has been an increasing transition to a form of Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) to assure water quality through the NPDES permit program.  A TMDL is a "calculation of the maximum amount of a pollutant that a waterbody can receive and still meet water quality standards, and an allocation of that amount to the pollutant's sources" (2)


It is important to note that "while TMDLs have been required by the Clean Water Act since 1972, until recently states, territories, authorized tribes, and EPA have not developed many. Several years ago citizen organizations began bringing legal actions against EPA seeking the listing of waters and development of TMDLs. To date, there have been about 40 legal actions in 38 states. EPA is under court order or consent decrees in many states to ensure that TMDLs are established, either by the state or by EPA" (2).

Thus, one is able to see that the NPDES permit program under the authorization of the Clean Water Act, is an evolving piece of policy (much like any other piece of public policy).


Sources:

1: http://cfpub.epa.gov/npdes/index.cfm

2. http://www.ririvers.org/wsp/CLASS_2/TMDL.htm

The International Union for Conservation of Nature

Following a similar line of thought by others in the class, I thought I would branch out a bit from the assigned topic for this blog.  As opposed to looking into the oldest concept or legislation that could be classified as environmental policy, I was interested in researching the oldest global organization that was formed solely on the premise of environmental protection and conservation.  


Subsequently, I discovered that the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) was the first such organization. Founded in 1948, the IUCN was a direct result from the actions of Sir Julian Huxley, the first Director General of the United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), as he desired to give UNESCO a greater scientific base. 

At the first congress, held in Fontainebleau, France, in October of 1948, 18 governments, 7 international organizations, and 107 national nature conservation organizations all agreed to form the institution and signed a constitutive act creating the International Union for the Protection of Nature (IUPN), which was later changed to IUCN.


Not only is this the oldest professional global environmental organization, it is also the largest.  It is a "democratic membership union consisting of more than 1,000 government and NGO member organizations, and almost 11,000 volunteer scientists in almost 160 countries" (1).  It provides a neutral forum for governments, NGOs, scientists, business and local communities to find pragmatic solutions to conservation and development challenges" around the world (1).

The organization's mission statement is as follows:

"Our mission is to influence, encourage and assist societies throughout the world to conserve the integrity and diversity of nature and to ensure that any use of natural resources is equitable and ecologically sustainable" (1).

Although the organization carries out thousands of field projects and activities each year, it is perhaps best known for its creation of The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.  The Red List is unique in that it provides a comprehensive, accessible index of the world's threatened species.




In sum, I believe that learning about environmental policy specific to one's nation is completely beneficial, yet it is also important to think globally, especially in an era of rapid globalization.  In this capacity, the IUCN is an extremely important organizational body on the global environmental stage in that it retains much clout in international environmental conventions, as well as in contributing to the development of environmental policies and laws of various nations.







Source:

1: http://www.iucn.org/