Davos: Switzerland Leads Global Environmental Performance Rankings
Nestled within the heart of the Swiss Alps, the ski slopes of Davos are unusually quiet this week as the mountain resort plays host to over 6,000 CEOs, presidents, prime ministers, media representatives and rock stars attending the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum.
As forum participants breath the fresh mountain air and marvel at today’s particularly sunny blue skies, the Yale Center for Environmental Law and Policy together with the Earth Institute at Columbia University have released their 2008 Environmental Performance Index. The report fittingly awards their Swiss hosts top place amongst 149 other countries based on 25 indicators of pollution control and natural resource management.
Switzerland takes the number one spot ahead of Sweden, Norway and Finland having performed particularly strongly in the areas of environmental conservation and renewable energy. The report shows a general correlation between national wealth, sound environmental management and positive human health scores. European nations perform particularly well amongst the developed world.
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Equally notable is the poor performance of the United States, being ranked 39th and below many third world countries due to poor performance in eco system management, particularly due to air emissions and climate change.
The publishers of the report hope that providing an objective set of indicators to judge environmental performance will provide policy makers with a vital tool to guide decision making. However, in this context it is important that we consider the fact that the report represents the current status-quo only, and does not factor in future trends which have the potential to significantly alter today’s picture.
Until now, wealthy nations have generally been successful in managing their environmental impact, but will face future challenges as demand begins to outpace nature’s ability to supply. Switzerland is a case in point, already having intensive internal debate over future energy supply with the possibility that additional fossil fuel based electricity production may be required to plug the gap, potentially undermining their excellent record on renewable energy. Notable within the details of the report are the significantly higher Co2 emissions of developed nations compared with the rest of the world.
So, despite some very encouraging performances, we hope that the surroundings at Davos will encourage leaders to fully consider the benefits of making sustainable policy decisions with long term environmental performance in mind.
Environmental Performance Index Top 10
- Switzerland
- Sweden
- Norway
- Finland
- Costa Rica
- Austria
- New Zealand
- Latvia
- Colombia
- France
Source: Yale University. Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.
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Difficult to comment without actualy seeing the original source material. I always like going back to the original source.
The UK Gov also uses a set of indicators for its sustainable development index.
I note the top countries are all European, high per capita earnings, technologically advanced. All have relatively low density of population and large natural resources.
Though not really needing resources for economy. Eg Switzerland -finance and banking. Finland- communications. All have hydro electric potential etc
Easy to finish (and not No 4)near the top if you hve a good hand to begin with. Though no excuse for US being so low down.
Mark, this is a great post. Perhaps the US will wake up and smell the coffee? I did not understand why is Switzerland thinking that it may have to fill the gap with fossil fuel based electricity rather than other eco-options such as solar and wind? Anna http://www.green-talk.com
Anna, that’s a good question.
The fossil fuel issue is based on the following:
Currently Switzerland’s electricity production is based on aprox 60% hydro, 3 -4 % fossil, and the rest comes from nuclear. Today they have a surplus and export about 10% of thier electricity.
The problem is that by 2020 economic and population growth will create a shortage in capacity, and some of the nuclear stations are due to be decommissioned. This will create quite a large energy hole to fill. Switzerland is short on remaining natural resources that can be exploited: pretty much every source of water has already been dammed. Switzerland is a densely populated country with limited space for vast solar arrays and wind farms that would be required to create masses of renewable power, and is landlocked so off-shore wind and tidal is out of the question. More nuclear would seem to be the only feasible option, but much of the population is opposed to this.
However, there is a current of opinion that says that if Switzerland stops exporting power (and maybe starts buying it instead) then the neighbors will build nuclear stations to meet their demand. It might therefore be better to build new nuclear stations, meaning that at least Switzerland has control over safety and waste disposal rather than trusting somebody else.
New at this site, please forgive if my comments are out of place here.
Could not believe that Costa Rica placed 5th! These rankings were based on “performance”, were they not? Sorry to say that few places here are not polluted. A filthy creek runs through a ‘posh’ country club & its stench is overpowering & white foam, sometimes a foot high, float on it. Did the Yale researchers actually come here to see this country?
Parts of CR are stupendously beautiful but residents complain constantly of the pollution & garbage & smells.
I commend Costa Rica, being a developing country, for doing what it can, but 5th in the world will give her an exaggerated idea of how well they are doing. They’ve barely begun recycling, the waste is not processed when it is emptied into the sea, etc.
These negative comments are regettable but I was stunned & wondered if CR’s reputation, more than fact, swayed the ‘judges’?
…. nada mas que decir, solo que vivan los ticos!!!
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Hi S Yamanda
You are probably justified in being a bit suspicious. If you examine the methodology of the report it’s not too difficult to find some significant weaknesses, although generally I think it works in terms of giving a general indication.
If I get some free time I might look into the detailed scores for Costa Rica in some more detail because it is interesting to read your comments.
Mark.
Mr Yamanda,
I do believe that Costa Rica deserves the 5th place in
this list. You are just being negative and skeptical, probably you can’t stand that a developing country leads the list among all the other countries of the Americas including the developed ones.Of course, we have problems but they are just too minimal compared with all the efforts and accomplishments of Costa Rica
in different enviromental issues throughout its history. Costa Rica is still a country where you can
birdwatch toucans and hummingbirds in your own yard.
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