Politics of Natural Resources in Latin America

Politics of Natural Resources in Latin America Environmental Justice Activity Name: Allison Brown PART I: Environmental Justice in the US The San Joaquin Valley is one of the world’s most productive agricultural regions and home to four million Californians. The EPA is working with other agencies and local communities to address the unique environmental challenges in the valley, including some of the nation’s worst air quality, high rates of childhood asthma, and contaminated drinking water. 1.) Select each variable, one at a time, to see how each environmental variable is impacting low-income and minority communities in the San Joaquin Valley, CA, compared to the national percentiles. Yellow, Orange, and Red groups indicate quite high levels of environmental injustice (at least measured in this particular way). Answer the following questions: a. What Variables (environmental indicators) are affecting the Environmental (In) Justice of the San Joaquin Valley of CA the most? Why might this be the case (based on the reading and your own logic)? ● Ozone Levels: ○ The entire region (and further) is placed within the 95%-100% percentile for Ozone levels in the air compared to national percentiles. ● NATA Cancer Risk: ○ The risk of the development of cancer from the inhalation of toxins in the air, is strong throughout Fresno, Visalia, and Tulare, and a little a third of Bakersfield falling in the 95%-100% percentile, with the rest of Bakersfield falling in a still dangerously high rate between 90%-95%. ● NATA Respiratory HI: ○ Is the air toxins respiratory index, and appears to be the variable with the most areas in the San Joaquin Valley in the 95%-100% percentile. The only break (where the range falls into 90%-95% and 80%-90%) is around Delano, Wasco, and Hanford. 2.) Turn off the EJSCREEN Maps, and go to “Add Maps,” “Additional Layers” and “Sites reporting to the EPA.” Sites that: (a) produce hazardous waste, (b) emit significant point-source pollution into the air and/or water, (c) use toxic chemicals, or (d) were previously contaminated, all report to the EPA. a. Click first on the box next to “Superfund.” Superfund sites are abandoned hazardous waste sites. How many are there in the San Joaquin Valley? ● There appears to be 7 superfund sites in the San Joaquin Valley, four in the Fresno area, and one each in Visalia, Porterville, and Selma. a. Click on each of the other “sites reporting to the EPA” indicators (you can click on the information bubble to learn more about what each means. (Brownfield sites are sites previously used for industrial purposes.) What do you notice about the spatial patterns of these sites? What environmental challenges are faced by residents of the San Joaquin Valley? Why might this be the case (based on the reading and your own logic)? ● Brownfield sites: ○ There seems to be clusters in the Fresno and Visalia regions, and a few scattered around Tulare, not at all as many as other categories though in the region, such as air pollution. As stated above, Brownfield sites are locations where industrial stations used to exist. ● Air Pollution: ○ This measure contains compliance and permit data from stationary sources of air pollution, like electric power plants, steel mills, factories, and universities that are regulated by the EPA and other state/local air pollution agencies. In the San Joaquin Valley, there are many, many sites of this air pollution measure, with groupings around Bakersfield and Fresno. ● Water discharges: ○ Is a measure that regulates/marks where municipal and industrial wastewater treatment facilities discharge pollutants into bodies of water. If the measure of Air Pollution had many sites, water discharges seem to be occurring at rates of at least two times more in the valley. Large amounts are concentrated in Bakersfield, and further south the areas surrounding Santa Ana nearly invisible behind all of the markers for water discharges. ● Toxic Releases: ○ Reports on where toxic chemical releases and waste management activities are reported annually by some certain industries and federal facilities. These releases are less prevalent than other factors mentioned before, there seems to be a smaller grouping of them surrounding Bakersfield and then a higher concentration south east of Santa Clarita. a. Now go to “Add Maps” and “More Demographics.” You can add spatial demographic layers to your map of the “Sites Reporting to the EPA.” Spend a few minutes adding demographic layers to your map and comparing them to some (or all) of the “Sites Reporting to the EPA.” Did your exploration reveal any interesting, intriguing, or disturbing patterns? i. Examining the population density per square mile it is clear to see how the most populated areas, such as Bakersfield, also have the most environmental factors that are reporting to the EPA. Although outside of the direct San Joaquin Valley, the regions around Los Angeles, Santa Ana, and Anaheim are particularly bad, the populations dense and the sites reporting to the EPA very dense around the cities. PART II: Environmental Justice in Latin America 1. Now find both the Esquel and Pascua-Lama EJ conflicts using the EJAtlas (cases from the Urkidi and Walter reading). You can use the map on p.687 of the reading to help orient yourself. a. What is the current situation of each of these cases? (Note the date of last update in top right corner). Pascua-Lama: The conflict began in 2001 and since is estimated to have had 1.5 billion USD invested in the conflict. This page was last updated in May of 2020. The description for this conflict states that the Chilean Supreme Court resolution in January of 2020 ruled in favor of the project and that “the consequences are yet to be seen”. Esquel: The Environmental Justice Atlas considers the Meridian Gold Mine in Esquel to be a “key” EJ issue in Argentina. Their page was last updated in June of 2018. The details of the project are also detailed, with the use of 6 tons of cyanide a day to extract the Argentine gold, additionally aout a million litres of water a day is used in extraction. 1. Launch the Google Earth application. Go to Pascua-Lama, Chile to find the mine site. Zoom out to see the extent of the site, click on some of the photo icons to see images of the landscape and mining features. Try the ‘ground level/street view’ (drag little yellow person icon onto a part of the map you want to see). In general, familiarize yourself with how Google Earth can help you explore this site. Take the following steps: a. Identify the three glaciers that are close to the mine (note the third is hard to find if you are too zoomed in). Use the measuring tool (ruler) to measure approximately how far each glacier is from the center of the mine in Km, and note your answers here: Glacier to North: (from the center of the glacier to the buildings in the middle of the site) 1.04 miles Glacier to Northeast: (from the center of the glacier to the buildings in the middle of the site) 1.07 miles Glacier to South:(from the center of the glacier to the buildings in the middle of the site) 2.52 miles a. Drop a Pin at the mine site. Next, locate Alto del Carmen, Chile (the closest population area to the mine, and the focus of the article). You need to type it in as “Alto del Carmen, Chile” to get the right location. Explore around the town and look at available photos. What is the main land use type in this region? (As you read, this land use type forms the basis for the major economic activity for the area.) Can you tell (look back at the article for a hint) what is being grown as a cash crop? i. The majority of available land is used for agricultural purposes in and around the town. The cash crop that is being grown is grapes. I attached some areas I found where (I assume, I’m not an agriculture major) it was being grown. a. Use ‘street view’ to explore the town and surrounding fields a bit. What are the ecosystem and climate conditions like (generally)? i. The town exists in narrow portions between cliffs, and seems to stretch along these narrow green valleys to neighboring towns like La Vega and El Algodon. From walking around some areas on Google Earth, the valley seems to be pretty lush with the Rio del Carmen running through. As mentioned before though, the sheer cliffs on either side of the town push everything together and the land that is not by the river of fields seems bare. a. Zoom out so you can see your pin at the mine and Alto del Carmen at the same time. Try to understand visually and geographically why mountain snow and glacier thaw runoff are so important to Alto del Carmen. (Can you trace more-or-less how water runoff from the area surrounding the mine might pose a problem for the people of Alto del Carmen?) With the glaciers and the run-offs that are near Pascua Lama it is clear to see that the runoffs lead into Alto de Carmen’s river and only water supply. If this water was to be contaminated, it would negatively affect Alto del Carmen and the surrounding areas’ water supply. a. Based on this exercise, why can we say that the Pascua-Lama Mine posed an Environmental Justice issue? The Pascua-Lama Mine posed an environmental justice issue because the mining could have compromised the access to clean/usable water for Alto de Carmen and other neighboring towns’ water supplies. Which would directly impact their livelihoods.