Environmental Security in the Anthropocene by Judith Nora Hardt

Author:Judith Nora Hardt [Hardt, Judith Nora]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: History, Military, General, Political Science, Public Policy, Environmental Policy
ISBN: 9781351785167
Google: yuI2DwAAQBAJ
Publisher: Routledge
Published: 2017-09-22T05:01:00+00:00

The European Union

The European Union (EU) has acknowledged the security dimensions of environmental issues in different ways and is of importance for the analysis of the case study as an active donor. The European Union Security Strategy (EUSS), adopted in 2003 (EU 2003), mentions both environmental change and climate change. Both terms are described as contributing to problematic consequences that vary from competition for natural resources (especially water), to migration and conflict. In other words, the EUSS (EU 2003) conceives environment and climate change not in terms of threats but in terms of possible causes of the threats. The main security threats of the EUSS (EU 2003) are of a more traditional character and include terrorism, proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, regional conflicts, state failures, organized crime and the trafficking of migrants, women and drugs. The general response to the security threats of the EU is its multilateral system, capacity-building and better institutional cross-sector cooperation, which can be summed up as measures increasing good governance (EU 2003).

The later published European Union Security Strategy Report (EU 2008b, 2010) presents environment and security in a different manner. Since 2008, climate change stands out very prominently, next to energy security and cyber security (Koutrakos 2013, 83–84). Climate change is categorized as a “threat multiplier” (EU 2008b) leading to conflict exacerbation through natural disasters, resource competition, and environmental degradation. These scenarios are perceived as imminent, particularly in developing countries. As possible consequences of climate change, the EUSS (EU 2008b, 5) lists humanitarian crises, health problems, instability, and migratory movements. Furthermore, the report states that climate change could lead to “disputes over trade routes, maritime zones and resources previously inaccessible” (EU 2008b, 5). Recommended responses to these threats are conflict prevention, crisis management. Others are enhancement of early warning capabilities, cooperation with the UN regional organizations, cooperation with the most affected countries, and internal cooperation (EU 2008b, 6).

The EUSS of 2010 (EU 2010), which has to be understood as complementary to the reports of 2003 and 2008, highlights the concept of internal security, described as “a key factor in ensuring a high quality of life in European society, and in protecting our critical infrastructures through preventing and tackling common threats” (EU 2010, 3). The environmental dimension mentioned in this report evokes major threats that have “a direct impact on the lives, safety, and well-being of citizens, including natural and man-made disasters such as forest fires, earthquakes, floods and storms” (EU 2010, 3). The approach to tackle these kinds of threats is to establish early warning systems. It is therefore highly congruent with the freedom from hazard impact pillar of the concept of human security.

An important dimension to highlight is the focus on energy dependence and energy security that is present throughout the different EU Security Strategies (EU 2003, 2008b, 2010). The concern on energy security in the recent reports has relevance for this research, also because what was formerly called “energy dependency” in 2003 is now framed as “energy security” (EU 2008b, 5). The

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