978-1138206991 Chapter 16

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CHAPTER 16

ENERGY AND THE ENVIRONMENT: NAVIGATING CLIMATE CHANGE AND GLOBAL

DISASTER

Overview

This chapter combines and updates some of the themes on energy and the environment from

Chapters 19 and 20 in the sixth edition of the text. We hope that this chapter’s focus on the

growing interconnections between energy and the environment will be intellectually

stimulating for students. We stress the historical transformation that is occurring from fossil

fuels (oil, gas, and coal) to alternative sources of energy such as wind, solar, geothermal, and

hydroelectric.

The first part of the chapter provides a brief overview of some key public and private actors

involved in energy and environmental policies and some key concepts that scholars use to

explain them. Next is a discussion of some interconnections between energy and the

environment, with an emphasis on shifts in energy markets and political-economic conditions

We next discuss some of the political and economic tensions that arose due to the ever-

tightening interdependence amongst oil producing and consuming nations over the next three

decades. As globalization accelerated in the 1980s and 1990s, environmental problems

became even more international and interconnected, generating conflicts with development,

energy, and national security goals. Mounting scientific research pointed to climate change as

a scientific fact and spurred a sense of urgency to develop alternative energy sources. At the

1997 Kyoto meetings, countries agreed on the need to lower carbon emissions and created a

number of market-based mechanisms to help make that possible.

However, with continued high oil prices before the financial crisis in 2007, major oil

producers continued to push for increased production. Natural gas production increased

dramatically along with criticism of the impact of fracking on the environment. Major debates

Surprisingly, in 2015 all but three countries signed the Paris Agreement on Climate Change,

through which they agreed to voluntarily comply with emissions reduction targets. The effects

of climate change were clearer than ever: major ice sheets in the Arctic, Greenland, and

Antarctica were melting quickly; major droughts persisted in many places; and scientists

documented record-high temperatures nearly everywhere. Many large corporations accepted

this evidence and invested more in green energy. There was also strong public support for the

Paris Agreement and efforts to deal with climate change.

From a global perspective today, many claim that the overall supply of energy is no longer the

problem; instead, the problem is that because fossil fuels are still the dominant sources of

energy, and they are severely impacting “spaceship earth.” U.S. president Trump has thrown

“monkey wrench” into global environmental cooperation, adding further evidence to one of

the text’s themes that the postwar era is ending. Under his leadership the United States risks

perpetuating a global tragedy by pursuing energy and environmental goals that are out of sync

with global political, economic, and social conditions.

Key Terms

•

Paris Agreement on Climate Change

•

renewable energy

•

climate change

•

cartel

•

Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)

•

peak oil

•

fracking

Teaching Tips

• When introducing this chapter in class (as when introducing other chapters), outline the

major problems that it addresses and the main arguments in its introduction. Mention that,

like other chapters with some history in them, this one gives attention to the

transformation of structures and issues. It also shows how energy and the environment

impact each other.

• Mention other big environmental problems, such as melting ice, the loss of rainforests, and

rising ocean levels and temperatures, and how they are connected to themes in this

chapter. Use a short video from YouTube to help make these problems come to life and

stimulate student interest.

• Instructors might begin a class session with a discussion of the impact President Trump is

having on energy and environmental issues. Many students are upset that Trump pulled

the United States out of the Paris Agreement. Ask students what they know about this

• Consider showing a full-length documentary film such as An Inconvenient Truth on a

school night. Students who cannot make the screening can watch it on a commercial site

such as Netflix or Amazon. Ask students to write down comments or questions during the

film and then discuss some of them afterwards. Inform them that you will ask several

multiple-choice questions about the film on an exam. The documentary could also be the

basis of a “term paper” or other writing assignment.

• At the end of some class sessions, we occasionally have students draw a picture of a

particular concept on one side of a page of paper. Easy examples are “renewable energy

resources” and “climate change”; harder ones are “the tragedy of the commons” and

• What do students think the energy sector will look like 30 years from now? What will be

the most popular source of energy? Which countries will benefit most from the transition

to green energies?

• Break the class up into four groups. Have each group present either the economic,

security, environmental or political implications of dependence on foreign oil.

• Have students form groups and have each group write a mini proposal for an

environmental non-profit that has been nominated to receive a million-dollar grant. How

would they spend this money? Have students present and vote on the best proposal.

Sample Essay Questions

2. Other possible questions might pertain to: OPEC; resource curses; shifting economic

Sample Multiple-Choice Questions

1) OPEC is an example of a cartel. A cartel is

a) an organization like a Japanese keiretsu made up of companies.

2) The headquarters of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is in which

d) Mexico City, Mexico

3) Which of the following is an international body established in 1988 under the auspices of

the UNEP and the World Meteorological Organization and made up chiefly of climate

scientists from all over the world who assess the scientific, technical, and socio-economic

information about climate change and its future risks?

4) In which year did the first oil shock take place?

5) Iraq accused this country of cheating on its OPEC production quotas and siphoning off

oil from the neutral zone between it and this country, which led to the Persian Gulf War

in 1990.

d) Qatar

6) Who said that dealing with the shortage of oil was “the moral equivalent of war”?

a) Ronald Reagan

7) Which statement about the 1992 “Earth Summit” in Rio is incorrect?

d) It produced another treaty—the Convention on Biological Diversity.

8) Which of the following is not one of the “mechanisms” recommended by the Kyoto

Protocol to help countries reduce their levels of greenhouse gas emissions?

a) cap-and-trade emissions trading

9) Between 2004 and 2007, global investments in renewable energy more than quadrupled,

with solar, wind, and biofuels receiving 82 percent of this money in countries such as

China, India, Pakistan, and the Philippines. In which did form of energy did the United

States make the preponderance of its new investments during this period?

a) wind power

10) Which of the following statements about the Obama administration’s energy policies is

d) Obama believed that economic recovery after the financial crisis limited how

aggressively renewables could be funded.

11) Which of the following is not an accurate statement about deniers of climate change?

a) Some of them question whether rising carbon levels are due to human causes and

whether the rise in temperatures is a permanent long-term trend or just a normal,

relatively short-term fluctuation when seen in historical perspective.

12) Which of the following is not one of the reasons the Trump administration gave for

withdrawing the United States from the Paris Agreement on Climate Change?

a) The United States needs to act tough and “win” negotiations both at home and on the

13) Which of the following statements about energy in China is incorrect?

a) China is the largest producer of hydroelectric power in the world.

14) Which of the following is not a feature of China and Africa’s new energy relationship?

a) China has invested billions of dollars in Africa’s energy sector since 2010.

15) Between 2014 and 2016, which of the following countries or regions made the most new

investments in clean energy?