Quiz 8 Flashcards
(21 cards)
Drawing from Michael Carolan’s Political Economy chapter, how does natural capital differ from reproducible capital assets?
A) natural capital is limitless
B) depreciated natural capital is often either slow to recover or irreparable
C) it is often difficult to substitute one depleted or exhausted ecosystem service for another
D) ecosystems can collapse abruptly, with little prior warning
E) “a” and “b”
F) “b”, “c” and “d”
F) “b”, “c” and “d
According to Carolan, what do “treadmill of production” scholars say about capitalist societies?
A) they say that in modern capitalist societies, capitalists try to balance economic growth with ecological costs
B) they say capitalist societies are driven by a never-ending pursuit of economic growth
C) they say governments generally support industries in their quest for economic growth
D) they say the public usually tries to stop the industry’s pursuit of economic growth
E) “b” and “c”
F) “b”, “c” and “d”
E) “b” and “c”
Drawing from the Carolan chapter, what does the “metabolic rift” refer to?
A) the geological rift that was created by volcanic activity in Ethiopia
B) a sinkhole that has been discovered in the Gulf of Mexico
C) a rupture in the normal metabolism of ecological systems
D) a giant ocean astronomers have discovered on Mars
E) the larger trenches found at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean
F) the rift that led New Zealand to separate from Australia and Antarctica 85 million years ago
C) a rupture in the normal metabolism of ecological systems
What contributes to the metabolic rift?
A) pursuing farming practices that don’t respect ecological limits
B) the use of organic pesticides instead of artificial chemical pesticides
C) increases in industrial waste production
D) increases in the use of artificial fertilizers, which kills the soil
E) all of the above
F) only “a”, “c” and “d”
F) only “a”, “c” and “d”
Drawing from Carolan’s discussion of capitalism’s contradictions, what is “the crisis of overproduction”?
A) when one country becomes far more efficient at production, which creates tensions with other countries, and possibly war
B) when countries become consumerist in orientation and stop caring about the environment
C) when industry produces too much stuff and there aren’t enough people to buy it all
D) when countries become consumerist in orientation and stop caring about the community
E) when countries become consumerist in orientation and stop caring about politics and governance issues
F) none of the above
C) when industry produces too much stuff and there aren’t enough people to buy it all
What are benefits of levying Pigovian taxes?
A) they generate revenues with which to pay for the cost of industry impacts that were initially paid by taxpayers
B) they encourage people to drive cars
C) they generate revenue with which to monitor industry
D) they serve to dis-incentivise companies from pursuing polluting behaviors
E) all of the above
F) only “a”, “c” and “d”
F) only “a”, “c” and “d”
What type of regulations does the Porter Hypothesis call for and why?
A) reduced labour regulations, because it will increase profitability
B) reduced labour regulations because it will reduce government expenditures
C) stricter environmental regulations, because it will increase taxation revenues
D) stricter environmental regulations because it will incentivize businesses to adjust to environmental realities, like diminishing natural resources
E) none of the above
D) stricter environmental regulations because it will incentivize businesses to adjust to environmental realities, like diminishing natural resources
According to Michael Carolan’s chapter on governance and blind spots, what are some of the flaws associated with welfare economics?
A) it naively encourages the belief that all well-being can be reduced to economic well-being
B) it leads people to advocate for more environmental regulations
C) welfare economists are unable to see the limitations of their approach
D) the welfare-economic approach justifies certain types of environmental racism
E) all of the above
F) only “a”, “c”, and “d”
F) only “a”, “c”, and “d”
What are the steps by which welfare economics justifies certain types of environmental racism?
A) It reduces human life to statistical terms
B) it encourages the precautionary principle
C) It assigns lower economic value to people of lower socioeconomic status
D) It assigns lower economic value to racial minorities, who are overrepresented among thelower classes
E) all of the above
F) only “a”, “c” and “d”
F) only “a”, “c” and “d”
Michael Carolan discusses the welfare economic practice of “discounting.” Based on Carolan’s text, what are consequences of implementing this practice?
A) economic formulas whereby a death next year counts for more than a billion deaths in four hundred years
B) foot-dragging on climate change policy
C) policies that justify producing cancers and other physical ailments on future populations
D) when high discount rates are used, it removes incentives to replant trees quickly, thereby reducing the likelihood of sustainability.
E) all of the above
F) only “b”, “c” and “d”
E) all of the above
According to Michael Carolan, the students of which majors are most likely to “free ride” and least likely to work cooperatively with others? A) sociology B) anthropology C) performing arts D) engineering E) economics F) architecture
E) economics
What are characteristics of “common-property regimes” that Carolan discusses?
A) private property frameworks
B) everyone can use the land resources without limits
C) property regimes where rulers can exclude whomever they want
D) regimes with clearly demarcated groups that have a legal right to exclude non-members of that group from using a resource.
E) all of the above
F) “a” and “b”
D) regimes with clearly demarcated groups that have a legal right to exclude non-members of that group from using a resource.
Based on Michael Carolan’s chapter, which of the following help to establish sustainable self-governance?
A) rules and institutions that define the physical boundaries of the land held in common
B) rules and institutions that define who has access to the resources
C) rules and institutions that define a sustainable rate of extraction and use
D) light sanctions for transgressions
E) all of the above
F) only “a”, “b” and “c”
F) only “a”, “b” and “c”
According to Carolan, at what point should democratic regulatory politics kick in?
A) they should never kick in as he argues that politics interferes with the regulatory process
B) only when decisions are being made about the toxicant amounts we should be exposed to
C) only at the point where decisions are made about how to dispose of chemicals
D) only at the “front” end of the production process, when decisions are being made about which technologies to develop and mass produce.
E) democratic regulatory politics should be active throughout the entire production process, from conceptual cradle to material grave.
E) democratic regulatory politics should be active throughout the entire production process, from conceptual cradle to material grave.
Based on Robinson’s chapter, which of the following are NOT aspects of the global water crisis?
A) the capacity to meet the needs of the global population is at risk
B) close to 1 billion people currently lack access to fresh water
C) over 2.5 billion people lack sanitation services
D) water-borne diseases kill over 2 million people every year, mostly children
E) municipal water systems are straining to provide safe drinking water
F) they are all aspects of the global water crisis
F) they are all aspects of the global water crisis
According to Joanna Robinson, what are limitations with water policies based on market-based models?
A) they are limited in ensuring water conservation
B) they are limited in ensuring a fair distribution of water to the current population
C) they are limited in ensuring a fair distribution of water to future generations
D) they don’t give industries a chance to communicate their needs in the political process
E) “a”, “b” and “c”
F) “b”, “c” and “d”
E) “a”, “b” and “c”
According to Robinson, to what can be traced the deficiencies of market-based water policies?
A) they place too much concern on inequities in the system
B) they haven’t been properly implemented yet
C) they assume that water is a substitutable commodity (i.e. a commodity that can be easily exchanged for other commodities)
D) the people implementing them don’t have enough policy expertise.
D) vulnerabilities remain embedded in marginalized populations, making them susceptible to future ecological and economic shocks.
E) “b” and “c”
F) “c” and “d”
F) “c” and “d”
According to Robinson, what factors have compelled governments to use the private sector to help deliver water services?
A) the increased use of the precautionary principle
B) the rise of multinational water firms
C) having global financial institutions like the World Bank push for private sector involvement
D) the rise of participatory democracy
E) “b” and “c”
F) “c” and “d”
E) “b” and “c”
Drawing on Robinson’s chapter, what does the “theory of ecological modernization” refer to?
A) it is the theory that industry’s constant pursuit of economic growth will undermine our potential to live sustainably.
B) it is the theory that highlights how industry activities are expanding the metabolic rift
C) it is the theory that environmental problems will be overcome by technological innovation
D) it is the theory that industrial and technological development is a threat to environmental well-being
C) it is the theory that environmental problems will be overcome by technological innovation
Why does Robinson advocate for water governance policies based on ecological and distributive justice?
A) they cost less to implement
B) they enable us to more easily discount the needs that future generations will have
C) they reduce regulations
D) they are more effective for ensuring the fair distribution of water to current & future generations
E) they are more effective for building community resilience
F) “d” and “e”
F) “d” and “e”
Drawing on Robinson’s chapter, what was the impact of participatory democracy in British Columbia?
A) it led to the development of a giant water desalinisation plant
B) it led to a historic agreement to protect the largest coastal temperate rainforest in the world
C) it led to significant upgrades in water treatment treatment facilities
D) it dramatically increased the efficiency of water distribution systems
E) none of the above
B) it led to a historic agreement to protect the largest coastal temperate rainforest in the world
