The Injustice of Sea Level Rise: Ethics and Evidence, Lies and Liability--Slides and Data Presentation

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Florida A&M University College of Law Scholarly Commons @ FAMU Law Lectures and Presentations Center for International Law and Justice (CILJ) 1-27-2016 The Injustice of Sea Level Rise: Ethics and

1 Florida A&M University College of Law Scholarly FAMU Law Lectures and Presentations Center for International Law and Justice (CILJ) The Injustice of Sea Level Rise: Ethics and Evidence, Lies and Liability--Slides and Data Presentation Professor Keith Rizzardi St. Thomas University Follow this and additional works at: Part of the Administrative Law Commons, Environmental Law Commons, Human Rights Law Commons, Law of the Sea Commons, and the Water Law Commons Recommended Citation Rizzardi, Professor Keith, "The Injustice of Sea Level Rise: Ethics and Evidence, Lies and Liability--Slides and Data Presentation" (2016). Lectures and Presentations. Book 8. This Book is brought to you for free and open access by the Center for International Law and Justice (CILJ) at Scholarly FAMU Law. It has been accepted for inclusion in Lectures and Presentations by an authorized administrator of Scholarly FAMU Law. For more information, please contact linda.barrette@famu.edu.

2 The Injustice of Sea Level Rise: Ethics & Evidence, Lies & Liability Keith W. Rizzardi Associate Professor St. Thomas University School of Law

3 South Florida 1995 CR EMBAYMENT ZONE OF HIGHER TIDES TP CS Sea level rise images courtesy of Dr. Harold Wanless, Chair, Dept. of Geological Sciences, Univ. of Miami

4 +2 foot rise (mhhw = +4.5 above 1929 MSL) CR TP CS Sea level rise images courtesy of Dr. Harold Wanless, Chair, Dept. of Geological Sciences, Univ. of Miami

5 Tamiami Trail +4 foot rise (mhhw = +6.5 above 1929 MSL) Sea level rise images courtesy of Dr. Harold Wanless, Chair, Dept. of Geological Sciences, Univ. of Miami

6 Tamiami Trail +5 foot rise (mhhw = +7.5 above 1929 MSL) Sea level rise images courtesy of Dr. Harold Wanless, Chair, Dept. of Geological Sciences, Univ. of Miami

7 1. ETHICS? Ask hard questions.

8 Miami Skyline, 2014 LINK

9 High tides now regularly flood parts of Miami Beach, Florida

10 High Tide on Main Street, Miami Peak high tide trend from 1998 through 2014 Dr. Zhaohua Wu, FSU

11 Daily decisions Planning & zoning Building & landscape architecture Water management & permitting Investment & financing

12 Architects Engineers Lawyers Planners Realtors

13 State Bar Code of Professional Conduct Lawyers may not (a) make a false statement of material fact or law to a third person; or (b) fail to disclose a [material?] fact to a third person when disclosure is necessary to avoid assisting a criminal or fraudulent act by a client See, e.g. [Florida &] Virginia version of ABA rule 4.1

14 American Institute of Certified Planners Certified planners shall not deliberately or with reckless indifference fail to provide adequate, timely, clear and accurate information on planning issues. Code Of Ethics And Prof l Conduct B.1 (2009),

15 American Institute of Architects Architects shall not counsel or assist a client in conduct that the architect knows, or reasonably should know, is fraudulent or illegal, nor engage in conduct involving the wanton disregard of the rights of others [and] shall not knowingly make false statements of material fact. Code of Ethics & Prof. Conduct, Rules and 2.106, (2012)

16 National Association of Realtors Realtors shall avoid exaggeration, misrepresentation, or concealment of pertinent facts relating to the property or the transaction. CODE OF ETHICS, Art. 2 (2012)

17 American Society of Civil Engineers Engineers shall hold paramount the safety, health and welfare of the public and shall strive to comply with the principles of sustainable development in the performance of their professional duties [with] zero tolerance for bribery, fraud, and corruption. CODE OF ETHICS, Canons 1, 6

18 2. EVIDENCE? Climate Science 101

19 Weather? I m not a scientist?

20 I m not a scientist? Weather? Hurricanes?

Million Metric Tons of Carbon Global Carbon Emissions from Fossil Fuels 9000 6750

22 Million Metric Tons of Carbon Global Carbon Emissions from Fossil Fuels Data: U.S. Department of Energy/CDIAC

4 Data: World Meteorological Organization, The Global

23 Global Temperature ( C) Global Temperature by Decade Average Data: World Meteorological Organization, The Global Climate , A Decade of Climate Extremes Summary Report," Fig. 1, 2013

24 GLACIERS: Before and After

27 Evaporation Precipitation The Hydrological Cycle Sources: Oak Ridge National Laboratory, U.S. Dept. of Energy; Getty Images; Pond5 Water Returns to the Sea

28 Heat Content (10 22 Joules) 20 Global Ocean Heat Content year average, m depth 1 year average through Data: NOAA/NESDIS/NODC Ocean Climate Laboratory, updated from Levitus, S., et al., World ocean heat content and thermosteric sea level change (0-2000), , Geophys. Res. Lett. 39, doi: /2012gl051106, American Geophysical Union. Reproduced/modified by permission of American Geophysical Union.

29 3. LIES? Policy and / or fantasy?

30 [Florida Department of Environmental Protection] officials have been ordered not to use the term climate change or global warming in any official communications, s, or reports Miami Herald (Mar. 8, 2015)

31 Climate change: the thing that shall not be named

32 Climate change: the thing that shall not be named

34 Common Region / Different Approaches Sea Level Rise (inches) Key West Sea Level Broward CCTF Science and Technical Subcommittee Projection (2009) Miami-Dade CCATF Projection (2008) SFWMD Projection for 2060 UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (June 2009) Sea Level Rise (inches) Increasing Uncertainty

37 North Carolina: HB 819 (2011) 113A (a)the General Assembly does not intend to mandate the development of sea-level policy or the definition of rates of sea-level change for regulatory purposes.

38 North Carolina: HB 819 (2011) Sec. 2 The Coastal Resources Commission and the Division of Coastal Management of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources shall not define rates of sealevel change for regulatory purposes prior to July 1, 2016.

40 Scientific disagreement

41 Scientific denial

42 4. LIABILITY: Who can I sue?

43 SLR: the preview New Orleans after Katrina

45 ATLANTIC SURGING, VIRGINIA SINKING

47 American Society of Civil Engineers

49 Food

50 Fisheries

51 Transportation A1A Fort Lauderdale after Sandy

53 (IN)JUSTICE? and legal opportunity

54 SLR: the preview New Orleans after Katrina

55 FRAUD? Knowing Misrepresentation [Material] fact Causing detrimental reliance

57 ISSUE SPOTTING? Claims Plaintiffs FEES, TOO! Defendants Defenses Remedies

58 the deterioration of the environment and of society affects the most vulnerable people on the planet: Both everyday experience and scientific research show that the gravest effects of all attacks on the environment are suffered by the poorest. Encyclical Letter of the Holy Father Francis On Care for our Common Home June 18, 2015

61 High tide, Marshall Islands, Majuro Atoll (2011)

62 Art.3 Art.9 Right to live, liberty, security No arbitrary exile Art.12 No arbitrary interference with home Art. 13 Freedom of residency Art. 17 No arbitrary deprivation of property Art. 25 Right to adequate standard of living Art. 28 Right to realize the rights in the UDHR

63 CLIMATE REFUGEES: International immigration law? U.S. Compacts of Free Association Republic of the Marshall Islands Federated States of Micronesia Republic of Palau Alien Acts of Finland & Sweden Victims of environmental disaster

64 WHAT CAN I DO?

65 Study

66 Inform

67 Adapt

68 Retreat

69 Lead

Rising tide of global warming threatens Pacific island states

STUDENT S NAME: Rising tide of global warming threatens Pacific island states While rich nations try to implement policies that may shave their carbon dioxide emissions, low-lying South Pacific nations