• The largest category of land within the metropolitan areas in 1970 was forest woodland. (p. 299) • [A]lthough more and more people live in large urban areas. . . lation density within metropolitan areas is declining. (p. 302) • In the Ocean County study area, several major high-density residential developments. . consumed 14 percent of the wetlands area and affected a substantial additional area in the wetlands and shallow coastal waters before State legislation halted them in 1970. (p. 311) • [T]he pressure of increased population on land resources has been a major factor leading to encroachment on floodplains. (p. 313) • Many inhabitants of Ventura County have chosen the status of a hillside home over the greater safety of more suitable land. Substantial residential building has taken place on areas of steeply sloping soils subject to erosion, gullying, and landslides, while areas with soils more suitable for urban development have been left unused. (p. 315) • Although no fully accurate data are available, it appears that total soil erosion losses have been sharply reduced in recent years. (p. 317) • Especially in older cities, such as Baltimore, more flood damage incidents occur from inadequate drainage within the city than from rivers overflowing their banks. (p. 319) Population • After leveling off in the 1968 to 1970 period, [the birth rate in the United States] has continued its sharp decline. (p. 321) • At the current rate of growth, world population will double in less than 40 years. This will mean a staggering 4 billion additional people to feed, clothe, and shelter. (p. 323) 7 International Action to Protect the Environment This chapter reviews international environmental accomplishments of the past year in a historical perspective. The first sections discuss protection of the oceans, control of transboundary pollution, and preservation of the world's wildlife and natural areas. Pollution control in 10 industrial nations and the international trade effects of pollution control are discussed next. The chapter concludes with a survey of international cooperation in solving the common environmental problems. Protecting the Oceans The oceans, in contrast to the land masses of our globe, are truly international. No nation exercises sovereignty over them, and no nation, acting alone, can protect them from pollution and other environmental insults. (p. 330) • Approximately 1.5 million metric tons of oil enters the oceans from bilge pumping, tank cleaning, and ballast discharges each year, compared to 250,000 metric tons from vessel accidents. (p. 331) • As early as 1962 the international community set an ultimate goal of eliminating all intentional discharges of oil into the oceans.... IMCO's Conference on Marine Pollution this October will be devoted to preparing a convention based on that goal. (p. 333) • [A]s nations develop stronger controls on air and water pollution, there is a concern that wastes formerly discharged into the air and water might be dumped into the ocean. (p. 335) The UN. General Assembly in 1970 called for a Law of the Sea Conference to stabilize international rules governing national rights in the ocean and, particularly, to establish a regime for mineral exploration and exploitation of the seabeds. . . . Substantive negotiations will begin in Santiago, Chile, in the spring of 1974. (p. 337) Transboundary Pollution • Europe, which faces some of the most severe [transboundary] pollution problems, may be aptly compared with the industrialized Northeastern United States. (p. 337) Preserving the World's Natural Heritage • From the time of Christ to 1800, roughly one species of mammal was exterminated each 55 years. Now the rate is over one per year. Nearly 60 percent of all recorded exterminations of mammals has occurred in the 20th century. (p. 341) • The primary threat to many species of wild animals and plants is destruction of their natural habitat. The greatest danger to many others, however, is extermination caused by demands of international trade. This trade supplies animals for trophies and for skins those of spotted cats and crocodiles, for example, and live animals for pets, public display, and medical research. (p. 344) • Following the Stockholm Conference, the U.S. delegation to IWC, led by the Chairman of CEQ, urged the adoption of the 10-year moratorium on all whaling. Despite strenuous efforts by the United States, the Commission refused to agree to the moratorium or to open the meeting to the press. (p. 346) National Environmental Protection Programs • A number of the world's industrial nations still lack comprehensive air and water pollution control laws and programs.... [In several nations] laws go beyond current U.S. authority. (p. 349) International Trade and Environmental Quality • Japan, perhaps even more than the United States, will have to make sizable investments to deal with its environmental problems. In several major industrial categories, Japanese industries are already allocating a greater share of total investment to pollution control than are their U.S. industrial counterparts. (p. 358) • [T]o the extent that the “polluter pays" principal is eroded by Government subsidy programs, the balance of trade is likely to be distorted.... Future developments in the international area need to be carefully watched to avoid trade distortions that in the long run will benefit no one. (p. 361) International Cooperation • [T]he leading example of extensive bilateral cooperation . is the Agreement on Cooperation in the Field of Environmental Protection Between the United States and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. Signed in Moscow in May 1972 by Presidents Nixon and Podgorny, implementation is now well along. (p. 365) • [A] new U.N. Environmental Program (UNEP) reports to the U.N. General Assembly through ECOSOC, UNEP will coordinate the activities of the specialized U.N. agencies, initiate action when it is needed, and create and implement a cohesive Action Plan for global environmental protection. (p. 368) 8 The Citizen's Role in Environmental Improvement This chapter describes the environmental movement as it is constituted today the variety of environmental organizations, their interests and activities, their resources, and their problems. • Over the last 5 years, traditional conservation has broadened into the new environmentalism. . . [T]he range of issues of concern to citizens has expanded and new types of citizen organizations have appeared (p. 376) • Many citizen organizations are learning not only to react to unwanted projects but to go a step beyond—to help in planning better alternatives. (p. 381) [I]t was the energy, enthusiasm, and even showmanship of students that gave Earth Day its unique flavor. (p. 381) • [E]nvironmental groups . . . are involved in activities as diverse as taking handicapped children on camping trips, building vest pocket parks, monitoring noise pollution, and lobbying against billboards. (p. 388) • [T]here are now about twice as many environmental organizations as before Earth Day. (p. 396) • Statistics on numbers of members and size of budget do not give an accurate picture of the importance of environmental groups. Environmentalists share values and are willing to work hard to further them. It is this commitment, above all else, that provides the strength of the environmental movement. (p. 402) |