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UK Transport
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ExecutiveSummary...........................................................2 1. Introduction..................................................................3 2. Progress.......................................................................4 2.1 Introduction.................................................................................................4 2.2 Objectives....................................................................................................4 2.3 Conclusion...................................................................................................6 3. Pearce‘s Transition Model...........................................5 3.1 Policy...........................................................................................................6 3.2 Economy......................................................................................................8 3.3 Society.......................................................................................................10 4.3 Discourse...................................................................................................11 4. Conclusions.................................................................12 5. Bibliography.................................................................13 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY More than 10 years ago Pearce argued that the UK government was failing because sustainable development was not even at the first of the three stages of his transition model (from very weak to strong sustainability). Given that sustainable development is such a wide area, this Report focuses on UK transport. The Report will look at where transport at what stage transport is regarding the transition model. The Background Section provides an overview of Pearce’s key reasons why in 1993 sustainable development was failing in the UK. The Progress to Date Section discusses the UK path to a 60% reduction in its carbon dioxide emissions by 2050#. The Transition Model Section looks at where the Labour Government is positioned today in terms of Transport. The Policy Section details the way in which the Government has steadily moved from Departmental integration into disintegration. The Economic Section asks why transport is expanding at the expense of the environment, when decoupling economic growth from sustainability is at the heart of the Government’s policies. The Society Section uncovers a certain amount of complacency both from the media and the public in relation to transport and asks why. The Discourse Section surprisingly concludes that a lot of activity is happening with large companies and NGOs regarding corporate social responsibility. The Report concludes that regardless of UK Government’s key objective (to put the UK on a path to a 60% reduction in its carbon dioxide emissions by 2050 through policies), at ground level the UK transport system seems to be regressing rather than progressing, and is still very much at the stage 1 of the transition model, regardless of institutional change. 1. INTRODUCTION Pearce believed that sustainable development was an ideology such as justice or freedom - that might never be attainable but would always be worth fighting for (199:183). Pearce believed that UK Government institutions failed to coordinate public policies in ways which were compatible with all but weakest forms of sustainable development. Pearce argued that the UK Government understood many of the principles of sustainable development such as integration, coordination, openness, target setting and strategic reporting, but that in 1993, the Government greening machine was ‘half-hearted’ and was a response to the green enthusiasm trend of the time. Pearce stated that the political challenge was that sustainable development should not be seen to build bridges between environmentalists and developers as it sounded too comforting and lulled a false sense of security. He argued that economic patterns of production in the West (and many other parts of the world) thrived on creating spill-overs such as pollution and as such the economic pattern did nothing but create another false sense of security. Pearce stated that the institutional challenge is that sustainable development must encompass every section of society and every role that we play in society. That sustainable development will not happen on its own, and that it cannot be imposed from the ‘top down’ by an authoritarian Government, but instead the Government must have a vision (even if hazy) to show some direction. Pearce believed that the Government in order to do this, the institution needed to change, and that change meant that sustainable development be de-coupled from the economy and that environmental issues be at the heart of the institution. Given that sustainable development is such a wide area, this Report focuses on UK transport. The Report will look at where transport is in terms of institutional change and at what stage transport is regarding the transition model. 2. PROGRESS TO DATE 2.1 INTRODUCTION The idea of sustainable development was first floated in the 1960s when deforestation, freshwater contamination, overgrazing and over-fishing made scientists realized there was a limit to what the earth could cope with. It was not until the late 1980s when Norway Prime Minister and chairman of the UN World Commission on Environment and Development Gro Harlem Brundtland launched the book Our Common Future, that politicians took the issue seriously. The diagram below shows that sustainable development is now a recurring event and as such strategies have emerged from these events. Year Key Event Outcome 1987 Brundtland Report Our Common Future Strategy 1992 Rio Summit Agenda 21 Strategy 1997 Kyoto Summit Renewable Energy Strategy 2002 WSSD Improvements in Quality of Life Strategy Since 1970, any polluting emissions (such as sulphur dioxide, ozone-depleting gases, NOx and carbon monoxide) have been substantially cut in the UK (although a point to note is that some are creeping up).
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