Analyze

9. What does this organization seem to find methodologically challenging in dealing with environmental governance?

annlejan7
Annotation of
In response to

While the organization was founded by Taiwan's citizens to uphold environmental justice movements centered on Taiwanese citizens, its involvement in Vietnam's Formosa case signals that the organization itself may be broadening their scope in future endeavors. In leveraging its resources to seek redress for victims outside of Taiwan, ERF may need to extend their networks to international agencies as well as engage with communities not directly reachable to its workers. As Vietnam's Formosa case also concerns dealings with an authoritarian government, restrictions on speech, police brutality, and censureship on the part of Vietnam's government may render it difficult for ERF and affiliated agencies to obtain all relevant information pertaining to the case.

7. What events or data seem to have motivated their ways of thinking about environmental governance?

annlejan7
Annotation of
In response to

Environmental Rights Foundation (ERF)  was founded due to the result of the court settlement regarding the lawsuit on the 3rd phase expansion of Central Taiwan Science Park (CTSP) between farmers and the government. As such, the organization’s focus remains centered on ensuring community members' environmental rights across different government development plans.

6. What data or reports has this organization produced or or used to support their approach to community engagement?

annlejan7
Annotation of
In response to

https://erf.org.tw/news/ 


ERF has published over 150 press releases documenting their engagement communities in seeking government actions to address environmental disasters. These press releases include up-to-date news on each relevant environmental justice case the agency is currently working on. One example of a recent press release includes information issued by the Formosa Plastics Vietnam Steel Alliance, which consists of six non-governmental organizations supervising the case. Statements issued within this press release comes from members of Amnesty International Taiwan, Reporters  without Borderes, Environmental Lawyer's Association, and the Environmental Rights Protection Foundation. 

4. What other organizations does this organization interact and collaborate with?

annlejan7
Annotation of
In response to

In regards to the Formosa case, ERF has collaborated with the Justice for Formosa Victims (JFFV)- a Vietnamese-American based organization- to coordinate efforts in seeking redress to affected communities.

3. What has this organization done through research or legislation?

annlejan7
Annotation of
In response to

  • Drawn from website,community engagement  activities undertaken by ERF in Taiwan includes:

    • At Reservoir Planning Areas: ERF has organized the International Day of Action for Rivers events on March 14 for two consecutive years in 2018 and 2019. The events aim at drawing the society’s attention on reservoir issues through local concerts or speed-walking events.

    • At Solar Power Planning Areas: ERF has organized with local indigenous people the Tribe Land and Sunshine Workshop so that the local communities know more about solar energy and the practicing of indigenous peoples’ right of consultation and consent and the right of benefit sharing.

    • At So-to-Be-Eliminated Fishing Villages Whose Land is Acquired by the Tourism Industry and Hotels: ERF organizes courses on urban planning procedures and more.

    • Near Factories of the High Technology Industry: ERF organizes courses on communities’ right to know, health risk reports, and more.

  • The organization has also established the following:

  • Citizen Monitoring the Sixth Naphtha Cracker Environmental Rights Promotion Action Platform (Citizen Monitoring the Sixth Naphtha Cracker Platform): The Sixth Naphtha Cracker of Formosa Plastics is the largest petrochemical industrial park in central Taiwan, impacting the local environment and the health of residents greatly. Research has shown that the incidence of cancer is significantly higher in residents living near the petrochemical industrial park. Taixi Village of Changhua even has the name “cancer village”. The platform was co-established by civic organizations and local residents, aiming at urging the government to enhance its capability of environmental governance and conduct adequate environmental monitoring to realize the public’s right to know.

  • Legalization of Unregistered Factories on Agricultural Land: At present, there are over 134,500 unregistered factories on agricultural land in Taiwan, occupying an area of 13,859 hectares. ERF has been working with civic organizations since 2017, organizing legal policy lobbying, urging the government to amend laws and regulations, and publicizing data and information for better policy tracking and judgement. 

  • Judicial Remedies for Transnational Corporation Pollution (Ocean Pollution of Formosa Ha-Tinh Steel Corporation): ERF organized a lawyer group to assist the 7,875 Vietnamese victims. We filed for a civil lawsuit for compensation against the shareholders and board of directors of Formosa Ha-Tinh Steel Corporation, hoping that transnational corporations bear responsibilities of pollution.

2. Who is their membership comprised of?

annlejan7
Annotation of
In response to

ERF members include lawyers and environmental experts.  The board of directors of the ERF are nominated by governmental authorities, local farmers, lawyers, and environmental experts. Of special note to this case is Hsin-Hsuan Sun, a researcher at ERF. She maintains  an active online presence to educate others on the progress of the Formosa case in Vietnam and raise awareness on international policy developments with direct relevance to environmental justice cases. For example, her recent tweets call for greater involvement of underprivileged and indigenous communities in renewables development.

1. What is the aim of this organization?

annlejan7
Annotation of
In response to

 The Environmental Rights Foundation (ERF) is a non-profit  based in Taiwan, Asia, that aims to support environmental grassroots movements, strengthen civic participation, promote information disclosure, and defend the communities for the right to live with a better environment.

5. What funding enables their work and possibly shapes their way of thinking about disaster and health?

annlejan7
Annotation of
In response to

  • The organization relies in part on private donations from concerned citizens. However, the founding of the organization relied on donors organized by Taiwan’s Ministry of Science and Technology. 

  • Born out of reconciliation between citizen movements and governmental actors, the organization’s mission continues to focus on holding the government accountable in implementing and promoting the protection of environmental protection and environmental rights stipulated in the Constitution, as well as Basic Environmental Law and other environmental regulations in accordance with the articles of association.

Kim Fortun: worst case scenario potential in New Orleans

Kim Fortun
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In response to

Because of my work on the Bhopal disaster, I follow worst case scenario potential in many places -- and the corridor between New Orleans and Baton Rouge has long been on my radar.  Worst case scenarios involve the catastrophic release of dangerous chemicals into the atmosphere and create "vulnerability zones" -- what many people call kill zones -- around an industrial facility.  A 2014 report  from  the Environmental Justice and Health Alliance documents how these zones are hotspots of environmental injustice in the United States. 

See this 2001 Greenpeace map. When Greenpeace made this map, there was a push (by organizations like the Competitive Enterprise Institute) to pull worst case scenario information off the Internet because of its potential use by terrorists.  Greenpeace pushed back in campaigns for "chemical security," arguing that the best way to reduce risk is to reduce the production, handling and use of dangerous chemicals -- laying ground for today's movement for a "just transition."  See just transition work in Lousiana by the another gulf is possible campaign . 

Worst case scenarios came back into US national attention after the fertilizer plant explosion in West, Texas in 2014, prompting the Center for Effective Government's report, Kids in Danger Zones (showing that Houston and Port Arthus in Texas and Baton Rouge in Louisiana are the most high-risk metro areas in the United States).  See the Louisana Fact Sheet from the report (listing the highest risk facility in New Orleans as a wastewater treatment plant.). Note that the maps in the Center for Effective Government's report are no longer interactive -- pointing to a challenge the QA project is addressing: what we've termed "archiving for the anthropocene."  We need to figure out what archiving for the anthropocene should look like, how to build and sustain it, and how to put it to good use. 

Worst case scenarios have come back into controversy recently with Trump's EPA's saying that focus on worst case climate scenarios are unrealistic. Louisiana looks pretty bad....  see Propublica’s “Losing Ground.” 

The extreme weather that comes with climate change of course exacerbates worst case scenario risks.  See this on floods and chemical plant safety across the United States.  See this on the 2016 "thousand year" flood in Louisiana.  See this moderate recognition of the problem.