Mohammad Shehzad

Dr John Ashton, an environmentalist of international standing, was Head of Environment Policy Department at the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office prior to joining Leadership for Environment and Development (LEAD) International as Director Strategic Partnerships.

In this exclusive interview, Ashton shares his views on some hot issues of sustainable development.

John Ashton

Question: Why the US is refusing to ratify the Kyoto Protocol?

That’s a shame! It weakens the global effort on climate change very substantially to have the US not taking part in it. I am happy to see over a dozen states in the US that have their own legislation whose effect would be to limit the emission of greenhouse gases. That shows that the US is not just the administration. It is more complex nation.

It is an important priority in the long term effort to deal with climate change by finding a way to re-engage the US. The stage that has to come after the Kyoto, we need to have a framework where everybody including the US is going to be taking part.

Question: Why Britain is not using its clout to influence the US to ratify this treaty?

The US is a very self-confident nation in terms of its influence in the world. So, I won’t call it “clout”. We do have a very deep relationship with the US. We are listened to in the US more than many other countries. During my previous incarnation as a climate negotiator, I spent a lot of time and efforts trying to find ways to engage the US. I would encourage people on this issue to take a long term perspective – the effort to deal with climate change. Kyoto is only the first step, not the end of the story.

Question: Pakistan is facing a controversy over “landfill” and “incineration” on solid waste management. How Britain copes with it and what method should Pakistan adopt?

Predominantly, we use land-fill disposal. We also do some incineration. A lot of people don’t want to incinerate because of dioxin, although we ensure it is done without causing dangerous levels of dioxin or any other pollutant. One of the approaches to the sustainable development is what are our responsibilities to the others. It is about the consequences of our decisions on the lives of others and finding ways of taking decisions that take account of these consequences.

If you employ a method, you should be able to understand its consequences—if it is landfill, what it is doing to ground water in that area? If it is incineration, what it is doing to air quality? If it is affecting the welfare of the people, then it needs to be understood. It needs to be debated publicly. I think Pakistan is already very focused on this issue.

Question: Is the world satisfied with Pakistan’s commitment to sustainable development like it is as regards to terrorism?

Sustainable development is not just about environment or economic development. It is also about peace, stability and security. We won’t be able to build a stable and secure future for ourselves and our families unless we achieve the transition to sustainable development. Pakistan is, where it is because of the circumstances it has!

Talks are taking place in Pakistan with the Indian government over water resources including over a particular hydro power project. In this single example, you have many of the key dilemmas in a very emotionally charged settings! The world is watching, the world is desperately hoping and willing to help in any way to find ways of handling issues that will work both for India and Pakistan.

Question: Could the objectives of sustainable development be achieved in the absence of global peace?

I don’t think it is helpful to talk about peace in terms of “presence” or “absence”. Peace is a journey. We have never lived in a world which was totally at peace. The cost of conflict is higher than it has ever been before. Because the world is now so populous; because we are so interdependent; because of process of globalization, the consequences of not achieving peace are more expensive, dangerous, and destabilizing than they were before.

Sustainable development is at the heart of how you build peace. If you can build it effectively then you will be dealing at the same time with the issues of security, environmental stress, and social tensions. They are all parts of the same picture. They are not separate pictures. They are not priorities between which you can make choices.

Question: As an environmentalist, do you support the US’ impending attack on Iraq?

I would like to make a general comment. Conflict of any kind has environmental and social consequences. Large concentrations of refugees cause enormous environmental stress. There is a growing degree of attention on the environmental dimensions of conflict in the way in which they might even sow the seeds of future conflicts.

Question: What could be an ideal Environmental Policy for a country like Pakistan?

There is no such place as “abroad” anymore. We all share the same environment in this planet, one way or another. We can’t take decisions of our own national policies without thinking about the international consequences. We should be able to address them internationally as well. The current notion of “sovereignty” is no more adequate in dealing with these problems. When a low-lying island is inundated because of rising see-level as a result of climate change, that is an encroachment on sovereignty. So we need to look at “sovereignty” from a new angle. If I do something in my country that is going to harm my neighbor, then I will take responsibility for that and ensure my neighbor has a stake in that just as much as I do.

Copyright ©2002 Mohammad Shehzad and South Asia Tribune. About the author