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The Norwegian Society for the Conservation of Nature
Friends of the Earth - Norges Naturvernforbund (NNV)
Everyday Environmental Protection Thinking Globaly Acting Localy
Helene Bank The Norwegian Society for Conservation of Nature / Friends of The Earth Norway (NNV) is the oldest and largest environmental organization in Norway. Founded in 1914, today it has a membership of about 36,000 people. Our youth organization, Nature and Youth, has about 10,000 members and is represented on our board. We also have an environmental organization for children - Inky Arms' Eco-Detectives - with 20,000 members. NNV is a democratic environmental organization. We have offices in each of Norway's 455 municipalities and about 160 local clubs all over the country. The General Assembly, which meets every other year, is the supreme organ of the organization. A National Board and a central Executive Committee head NNV between general assemblies. The Oslo secretariat employs about 30 people under the leadership of Secretary General Dag Hareide. The secretariat is in charge of the day-to-day running of the organization. NNV has been engaged in what we call "everyday environmental protection" since 1988, and today it is one of our four main priority areas. Environmental protection can also be practiced at the workplace through work routines aimed at reducing consumption, sound purchasing policies and planning. But everyday environmental protection also means working for a society organized in such a way that its human population places minimal strain on the natural resource base. This means working for a change in political priorities and economic structures.
A Changing Environmental Struggle
The classic image of the 1980s' war on pollution shows environmentalists in combat-boots raiding industrial sites and battling waste spewed out of factory stacks and drain pipes. In many places, this kind of action is still needed, but in Norway it represents yesterday's tactics. Firstly, because we have in fact succeeded in blocking some of the major sources of emission. Those of our fjords with heavy industry have become cleaner, though they are still not clean enough. Secondly, toxic waste is no longer released mainly through smokestacks and drain pipes. Now, the toxins enter the system through the factory gates. They accompany the products themselves into shops, offices and households, where they form part of our daily environment until they end up as waste. This new awareness forms the background for NNV's present emphasis on everyday environmental protection.The same shift can be observed with regard to all forms of pollution. The State Pollution Control Authority (SFT) has estimated the emission of heavy metals from industry compared to what is released via products. Combined in an unweighted statistic, the heavy metals which pass into waterways by way of products have increased from 32 to 68 percent from 1985 to 1990. Three percent of the hydrocarbons emitted in Western Europe come from refineries, while 97 percent can be traced to products such as paints, detergents, glue, etc.
The case of tensidized NFE is illustrative of the new trend. For instance, a Swedish factory which at great cost reduced its emissions to 0.5 tons per year now releases 10,000 tons - or 99,995 percent - through its factory gates, later to end up in drain pipes and rivers. It has been estimated that at least 95 percent of all toxic wastes in Western countries are released by way of products.
Norwegian law has progressively been adapted to EC (EU) regulations. Increasingly, the EU shifts the responsibility for the spread of pollutants and the production of waste onto consumers. The trend is towards fewer bans, laxer legal requirements (directives which set ceilings on product requirements, overruling of strict national chemical requirements, etc.), and the promotion of both "green" labels and "environmental-hazard" labelling.
In view of present political trends in Norway and the EC (EU), NNV needs the consumers as allies in the battle against pollutants, irresponsible genetic engineering, disposable products and overconsumption, among other things. At the same time, we need the consumers in the fight to reduce waste generation in all sectors and to ensure the sustainable use of natural resources.
Though we are actively opposed to letting consumption have such a major impact on global development, we must face the fact that it is the chief buyers who represent the main agents of pollution in the 1990s - ranging from the women who do 70 percent of household shopping to the purchasing officers of local authorities, state agencies and private businesses. But we must not forget our top priorities: first to reduce the level of consumption, secondly to change the patterns of consumption.
NNV is involved in a number of activities within this field. The advice we give is rooted in ecological thinking. But what typically catches the eye of the media and the public are our recommendations of products known as "bestsellers". Many people are engaged in everyday environmental protection without being active in local clubs or in organizational work. Our low-key focus on product recommendations has thus given us considerable leverage behind the scenes, both politically and in relation to industry. This "invisible" work is also a part of everyday environmental protection.
We are proud to be able to say that over the past five years, NNV has become one of the leading environmental organizations in Europe in this field. But it hasn't been easy. The work is demanding both professionally and politically. We must learn to use the market in a way which we as environmentalists are not accustomed to.
Objectives
The main objective of NNV's work to promote everyday environmental protection is to motivate as many people as possible to make choices which benefit the environment, as well as to mobilize consumers and to put pressure on manufacturers so that product-related environmental damage, consumption and pollution per capita is reduced.NNV works to change the structure of society and political priorities in order to make it possible and desirable for ordinary people to choose a life-style which minimizes the drain on natural resources. In other words, a shift towards sustainable consumption. NNV provides advice to two main target groups within the field of everyday environmental protection: business managers and ordinary people. To facilitate this task, we employ several different means within an overall strategy of the carrot and the stick.
Environmental Management
To mobilize business managers implies using product criteria, environmental revision, assessment of environmental risk, and environmental law. The "carrot" we hold out is the prospect of gaining market advantages. The "stick" we wield is the threat of receiving bad press and the resulting loss of market shares.NNV has developed for this area a limited form of environmental revision which we call green concepts. The best example is Green Office, a project which has been implemented in 120 Norwegian counties and in a number of private settings. Several thousand copies of our product booklet have already been sold. As a rough estimate, we figure we can eliminate 30 percent of the pollution by profitable means, i.e. by economizing, cutting consumption and exploiting the market.
Consumer-Oriented Environmental Guidance
Our first priority in this area is to mobilize those who shape public opinion and ordinary people who wish to do something for the environment. The "carrot" is the promise of a better life for one's children and grandchildren as well as an improved conscience. The "stick" is the prospect of being condemned as ignorant and selfish by the young generation.The "green concepts" employed here represent a compromise between these two tactics; combining NNV's holistic approach with a search for practical solutions. They are intended for individuals, children, schools, etc., as well as for industry which has to satisfy public demands in order to avoid consumer sanctions.
The most important green concepts here are:
- Advice on how to reduce consumption
- Advice on reuse, recycling and the sorting of waste
- Advice on product choice based on contents, production process, quality, resource efficiency and waste generation
- Advice on how to exert pressure on other key agencies (NNV also organizes special campaigns to this end)
Political Work
NNV represents the environmental movement on The Norwegian Biotechnology Advisory Board, The Cooperative Council for Packaging and Environment, The Norwegian Food Control Authority, the project for "Greener Workplaces" (Grønt arbeidsliv), The Norwegian Foundation for Environmental Labelling, etc. We also work politically in fields where there are no appointed bodies."Project for a Sustainable Economy" is a collaboration between NNV and The Project for an Alternative Future. The project receives financial backing from the Research Council of Norway (via the Programme Board for Research Funding through The Agricultural Agreement), The Ministry of the Environment and The Ministry of Finance, in addition to means provided by NNV and the Project for an Alternative Future (PAF).
The objective is to give substance to the concept of "sustainable development pathways". In other words, economic development which respects the ecological parameters that our national resources, the earth, the oceans and the atmosphere place on production processes and consumption patterns. To realize this objective, the project will employ conventional economic macromodels that are well-known in Norwegian national planning. However, the project will take as its starting point ecological premises put forth by environmentalists. The Central Bureau of Statistics will be in charge of the trial runs.
We know that 100,000 chemical compounds have been released into the European environment. We know that if the rate of emissions remains at the present level, within a decade another 100,000 compounds will have been released. We know that we have little idea of how these compounds work. It took us fifty years to discover that CFC destroys the ozone layer or that PCB weakens the sexual instinct of polar bears. We know that similar unpleasant discoveries await us in the future. We are already well on our way off the cliff - when will we learn to look before we leap?
We must arrive at rules which establish a right of ecological veto against the production and use of new chemical compounds. Therefore, we must not simply reduce, but phase out substances such as non-degradable halogenous compounds which accumulate in the ecological cycle. This is why we believe that the part NNV played in securing the strictest law on genetic engineeering in Europe (The Gene Technology Act) may well represent our greatest achievement in this period. The new law may help to prevent that the spread of genetically modified organisms becomes as great a problem in the next century as chemical compounds are in this one.
Another ongoing project is supported financially by the Section for Culture and Society within the Research Council of Norway. It concerns the mechanisms that govern the market and the possibilities and limitations of the market in moving towards sustainable development.
Product- and market-oriented environmental conservation may be defined as conservation which is achieved through market distortions. The lack of relevant/credible information and environmentally sound pricing policies is one of the greatest obstacles which prevent consumers from making sustainable choices. Many market mechanisms can be exploited to bring about a change in consumption patterns which benefits the environment. But there are some basic preconditions which governments must take the responsibility for ensuring.
International Action
We wish to expand our efforts in everyday environmental protection to the international arena, particularly in collaboration with our sister organizations in the rich nations, who of course are the major product-polluters. We already belong to several networks, such as Eco-Counseling Europe and Friends of the Earth. In particular, we have found the Swedes, the Dutch and the Germans to be useful partners. We must provide the groundwork for effective product boycotts enforced by consumers and environmentalists. We also follow closely the decisions made by the EC and the OECD on environmental standards, etc.
A Green Consumer Movement
NNV works to shape public opinion in order to win as many as possible to our cause.The organization has been midwife to the Environmental Home Guard (EHG, which is presented separately in the present booklet), which aims to empower consumers. So far, 12,000 households have committed themselves to changing ten harmful habits every year. The Home Guard represents a joint effort undertaken by the voluntary organizations. In this, we have been particularly successful, having gained the support of the 14 largest of these. People's concern with health issues is a great help to us, since these often tie in with environmental concerns.
NNV provides technical and professional advice to the EHG on environmental matters. Within the turn of the century, we hope to see the organization transformed into a powerful consumer union which can stop products simply by threatening to blacklist them.
Nor should we forget our secret weapon: Inky Arms' Eco-Detectives. Anyone who has tried to argue with a twelve-year old about using bleached paper will see that if the children of corporate directors were eco-detectives, half the battle would already be won.
Inky Arms and his eco-detectives make up our children's organization. The members, children aged 4 to 14 years, receive a members' magazine called "Flaskeposten" eight times a year. In view of all the letters we receive at headquarters, it is clear that children all over Norway are eager to do something to help Inky and his friends:
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"Dear Inky Arms,
I have heard that when the ozone layer gets thinner, the oceans begin to rise. Can't you make the ozone layer thicker again, because I live near the sea and I can't swim?"
Appeals of this kind are daily fare in the offices of the Inky Arms Club for young eco-detectives. The club boasts no less than 15,000 members, all of whom are encouraged to be environmentally aware and to play an active part in protecting the world they live in.
Inky Arms, the hero of the books, magazines and cassettes issued by the club, is a friendly octopus with a host of equally likeable animal friends of the aquatic variety, such as Imp the Shrimp and Venus the Starfish. Their experiences and exploits have one common purpose: to inspire children to protect their environment. Inky Eco-detective groups operate in their local communities, directing attention to all forms of pollution, calling those responsible to account, and appealing for action. Ways in which children can help are by asking their parents not to leave the car engine running, going shopping with them and making sure that they buy "green" products, and persuading bookshops to stock recycled paper. They often succeed. It's hard to say no to a child.
Such is Inky's success that the initiators of the club would like to spread the idea abroad. Ragnar Thorseth, who sailed his Viking ship replica "Gaia" across the Atlantic, distributed books about the activities of Inky Arms among American children. As "Gaia" sailed onward on its voyage, it promoted the interests of children around the world - with Inky Arms on board. Children in Turkey have made his acquaintance under his Turkish name of Alipot. Books will be tailored to the environment of the country in which they are issued. Denmark, Sweden, Australia and Russia have shown interest in the idea, and in Poland, animated films on Inky Arms' adventures are already taking shape on the drawing board.
However, due to lack of funding we have not been able to work on this international aspect as much as we would have liked. We hope that we will be able to give this area priority in 1995.
The unique club is the brain-child of 33-year old Bente Roestad, a former teacher and later script and production leader in the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation. Working with children opened her eyes to their keen interest in protecting the environment, an interest she later incorporated in the children's books she wrote. More books followed, then came films for television and a dial-in radio programme. The switchboard at the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation was jammed by 41,300 calls as eager children clamoured to help Inky Arms clean up the environment.
Since then, interest has sky-rocketed. Activity packages containing picture books and workbooks have been compiled for nursery and primary schools with financial backing from the government. Eco-detective groups have sprung up throughout the country. Bente Roestad now has three co-workers who devote full time attention to Inky Arms.
This novel approach to pollution puts fun into serious issues by concentrating on what can be done rather than on the threatening and - to children - frightening aspects of pollution. The well-known Norwegian child psychologist Magne Raundalen has said that to overwhelm children with facts on ozone depletion, forest death, etc. without suggesting remedies is like bombarding them with stones. Inky Arms Club offers children a way to protect themselves against this bombardment.
However, it would be a mistake to think that this initiative can do without the help of adult environmentalists. Friends of the Earth must still provide the technical and political backbone of the mobilization effort. We have to be the activists. This is why it is important to develop our annual "Green Action Campaign". Already, we have made contact with many local clubs. What we need here is a new kind of activism, not reserved for the elite but suited to the needs and capacities of local groups. Most waste emissions are diffuse and scattered. We must develop the capacity to strike in many places simultaneously, be it against breweries, cleaners, or shops. Though our role is not to become professional activists, we wish to demonstrate that we can act when we have to
HI!
I¹m an octopus named Inky, and I sure am happy that I got the chance to meet you. Down here on the bottom of the ocean I have many good friends. Among them are Ducklas, Chris Crab, Armianne, Rock Ray, Tiny Wizz, Rick Shark, John Herri and Umbrella Medusa. Umbrella Medusa is a jellyfish with long delicate tentacles which sting when you touch them. I¹m sure you¹ll find her nasty, but we need her to clean up the sea.
My friends and I love to play in the waves and to go exploring. Our parents tell us that things were better when they were young. Now we find lots of junk on the seabed instead of coral and shiny stones. That¹s no fun at all! I remember how Rick Shark got stuck in an old fishing net which someone had dumped in the sea. We had a terrible job getting him loose again!
I can also tell you that Chris Crab had to move because he lived near a sewage pipe where the algae grew and multiplied until there was no more oxygen left for him to breathe. Soon after that, Tiny Wizz got something in her eyes which hurt terribly. That¹s when we got together to try to do something about our problems. We decided to become eco-detectives and find out what causes all the pollution - and then do something to stop it!
We soon discovered that all the pollution comes from those who live on land. That¹s why we need the help of you and your friends who live up there to put things back in order. There are already thousands of eco-detectives in Norway. It¹s absolutely superfabulistic that by working together, on land and in the sea, we can help each other to make a better future for all of us!
An eight-armed hug from your friend, Inky.
Inky Arms
"Green Action"
Everyday environmental protection can be a part of daily life; it does not require participation in activist organizations. Still, it is crucial that NNV's local clubs and county branches exert pressure in various sectors. In the past four years, NNV has organized campaigns centered on everyday environmental protection. These campaigns have since become known collectively as "Green Action". The campaign themes reflect NNV's priority areas.The 1992 Green Action Campaign activated 60 local clubs and resulted in more than 100 press clippings from all over the country after just one week of campaigning. In 1993, 77 local clubs particitated along with groups from Nature and Youth, eight schools and one school class.
All Norwegian counties now employ environmental conservation officers. Through the project "Green Offices in The Counties", NNV has made contact with a number of these officers. The link is maintained through the electronic contact network "PortaCom". The strategy of many environmental conservation officers is to focus on a few selected problem areas in their county, usually related to transport, the natural heritage, industry, etc. But they also work on more visible projects which activate the local population and force them to take responsibility, such as the Green Office project and the promotion of composting. Environmental conservation officers can become important allies in our work to further everyday environmental protection.
Environmental Product Assessment
In order to give practical advice, we have to establish criteria for what we wish to achieve. This applies both to how people should act and to what they should buy.In Norway, consumers who seek practical advice on what to buy and what not to buy encounter a vacuum. Neither the State Pollution Control Authority (SFT), The Consumer Council or The Ministry of the Environment are willing to enter this field. Either they lack the will or the expertise or they are too wary of law suits. This explains why NNV has taken on the role of "environmental concultant" in 120 counties through the Green Office project. Our advice on sound ecological choices can be found on the shelves of local grocery shops. To facilitate the task we have developed a product data base. Our involvement in everyday environmental protection depends on a firm technical and professional backbone.
Advice to Consumers
In the past four or five years NNV has reached more and more target groups, due to our increasing involvement in the everyday life of ordinary people and our effort to provide advice.Progress on the Nordic environmental label "The Swan", which we helped to conceive, has been extremely slow, and the label still faces certain fundamental problems. In order to speed up the process and to overcome the obvious shortcomings of the label, we have started a project which involves labelling the shelves of grocery shops affiliated with the Co-operative Union in Hedmark county. This has evoked a strong response from manufacturers. The project's somewhat feeble beginnings on the shores of Lake Mjøsa have given direction to and helped to speed up the product development process in the laboratories of multinational giants in the U.S.A. and Great Britain.
Sound Environmental Choice
This concept has been developed by our sister organization, The Swedish Society for Conservation of Nature, with which we now collaborate closely. In 1994, we intend to launch our shelf-label in all shops belonging to the Norwegian Co-operative Union and Wholesale Society (NKL). In addition, we wish to introduce the system to the rest of the retail trade. The main purpose of the label is to provide information to consumers about which products cause least damage to the environment when their total effect is considered. We base our judgements on the most up-to-date documentation available to us.Our ecological criteria are based on NNV's priorities, government policy, and scientific data. Products are assessed on the basis of these criteria. We employ two alternative labels: "Sound Environmental Choice" and "Not eco-labelled". In this way, all products within a particular group of products are assessed.
The shops which participate commit themselves to a development effort which will ultimately turn them into "green shops". This entails that when new products are developed, the shops can demand of manufacturers and wholesalers that all innovations must be environmentally sound. The packaging materials must be recyclable and all unnecessary wrapping should be eliminated. Customers should have the option to get rid of packaging on the premises. Where there are no municipal arrangements for sorting waste, if possible shops should provide a service whereby customers can dispose of glass, fluorescent tubes, batteries, etc. Preferably, special collection points for return paper from shops should be established. Besides the positive environmental impact, this would also help to cut the cost of waste disposal.
In practice, shelf-labelling represents an expansion of the "eco-test" carried out by our magazine Nature and Environment. We see it as a way of bring printed information to bear on the consumer at the critical moment of purchase. So far, the label is only being used in "green grocery shops".
As another form of consumer information, we also wish to develop a "green line". Already, the Oslo secretariat handles hundreds of phonecalls every month. But this service needs to be systematized and developed further, as our sister organization Milieudefenzie (FoE) in the Netherlands has done with its "green line".
We believe that our strength as an organization lies in our ability to tie all these different strategies together: providing expert advice to consumers, coordinating consumer pressure on manufacturers, taking action against and cooperating with industry, collaborating with voluntary organizations, activating children, exerting pressure on politicians, and international networking. The progress we have made so far is a result of our long-standing efforts in this field. Now we see the possibilities which our continued involvement opens up in the years ahead.
Appeal to the Governments of All Nations
An activity is only sustainable if, for all practical purposes, it can go on in the same way forever. In normal usage "sustainable development" entails more than strictly ecological requirements; it includes considerations such as the quality of life, social justice and the material standard of living. Therefore, the term "sustainable consumption" must incorporate all these aspects. Consumption must be redefined and given a new content, and this change must be reflected in government statistics and policies and in society as a whole. For instance, the time we have available to care for our fellow human beings and to travel more slowly may be an important aspect of our quality of life.To put it very simply, the strain on the Earth's ecosystems depends on the total consumption of raw materials and energy. The volume of consumption in turn depends on the volume and composition of average consumption, population size and the technologies employed to produce goods and services. To reduce the drain on ecosystems we must aim at reducing the flow of energy and raw materials through the economy. Even if growth is redirected to new sectors, it is probably not possible to achieve this goal within the framework of an expanding economy, as many politicians believe.
Therefore, NNV works on two fronts: one, to influence the public to cut consumption; two, to change the content of consumption towards sustainable choices. The governments participating at this conference should direct their attention to the relationship between reduced consumption and altered consumption. Both are necessary in order to lessen the strain on the environment.
Our knowledge about the effects of human activity on the environment contains a large element of uncertainty. In a sustainable economic system, therefore, one essential condition must be that the precautionary principle is consistently adhered to.
Below is a list of objectives which governments are encouraged to adopt and develop further:
- Long-term strategic planning must aim at making society less dependent upon environmentally damaging activities (such as the use of non-renewable resources).
- Eco-political strategies to reduce the strain on ecosystems must be particularly aware of potentially harmful substances and activities. Such strategies must be long-term and should include the phasing out of "persistent anti-natural substances". Many reports are now being presented "in an environmental guise" in order to divert attention from an exposed trade or corporation. Strict requirements must therefore be placed on all innovations with a view to ensuring the sustainable production of goods and services. Governments should also make their future priorities clear to industry so that companies are given a chance to make long-term plans. Much regulation can be avoided if early warning is given about future adjustments.
- Introduction of indicator sets for a sustainable development of the Norwegian economy. In the long term, trade-specific economic statistics should be worked out which include costs and savings entailed by innovations that favour the environment and the development of cleaner technologies. Such statistics may be used as a basis for tax policies.
- Environmentally sound pricing of goods which ensures that the most ecologically sound products are cheaper in relation to competing products which place a greater strain on the environment. The Norwegian tax on CO2 emissions and the basic tax on disposable packaging are examples of good economic instruments aimed at an environmentally sound pricing of goods, and should be followed up in other areas. Today, positive environmental labelling has the opposite effect - the people who are most environmentally conscious end up paying more.
- The precautionary principle must be built into the information which consumers receive in the form of positive green labelling, environmental hazard labelling, etc. Information on how to cut consumption should be given by agencies which have no economic self-interest in the effect of such information. In this, governments have a central part to play.
- Environmental product labelling can provide guidance to the environmentally conscious consumer, but governments must ensure that access to the most environmentally damaging products is restricted through directives and laws. (In Norway's case, an example of how this can be done is by following up the provisions of the Directive on The Labelling of Products Containing Environmentally Hazardous Chemical Compounds).
- Assessment of goods and services through "standardized" life course analyses or LCAs. The government can use LCAs as a basis for product controls, political strategies and information to the public. However, strong popular concern with these issues demands that such assessments are carried out openly. Such evaluations will always contain a certain degree of subjectivity which may be eco-politically biased or have environmental consequences if the analyses are used.
- When environmental reports are demanded or received from industry, it is of crucial importance that these include a "control process" so that economic interests do not affect the subjective judgments implicit in the analyses.
- Decisions as to what can be standardized should be based on measures such as LCAs. Can eco-political assessments be standardized, or must we be content with standardizing the decision-making processes underlying the assessments?
- LCAs must cover the field of application of each product or service, including a "zero alternative" which considers the possibility of doing without a particular product or service.
- If LCAs are used for official regulative purposes, the objective of reduced consumption may be achieved by placing environmental taxes or bans on certain goods and processes which make inefficient use of resources compared to the best available technology, and where the advantages of a "zero alternative" are great compared to the production and use of a product. Luxury commodities should not be included in official programmes for labelling "green" products. Experience with positive environmental labelling in Germany has shown that this provides such products with a "green alibi" which results in increased consumption.
- Currently, regulations on "environmental hazard" and "green" labelling deal only with substances that are harmful to human health or to the environment. In the context of reduced consumption, their range could be expanded to include excessive luxury products.
- Government agencies should set a good example by practicing environmental revision, changing their attitude on the use of disposables, adopting sound purchasing policies, etc.
- A change in transportation policy toward a greater emphasis on collective transportation of people and the use of rail/waterways for transporting goods. Instead of letting runaway development dictate their choices, governments must direct the course of development.
- To provide the foundations for a reduction of leisure travel through sound planning of leisure activities in the local community. In general, to plan for greater use of the local community.
- To encourage increased efforts to save energy, both in the private, the public and the commercial sector. If incentives are too weak due to the availability of cheap energy, this can adjusted through general energy taxes.