Wetland tourism in Costa Verde

Read the extracts and answer the questions that follow.

Text A — Tourism and development

1. Costa Verde is a middle-income economy whose coastal wetlands support fishing, flood protection and wildlife. The government wants to promote sustainable development by expanding nature-based tourism while conserving these ecosystems.

2. A new boardwalk and visitor centre have increased tourist demand. Hotels and restaurants have created employment, but untreated wastewater and disturbance from boat tours impose costs on fishing communities. The government is considering a pollution tax and limits on visitor numbers.

Text B — Financing conservation

1. The visitor centre was partly financed by foreign borrowing. Supporters argue that tourism revenue can fund education, sanitation and wetland restoration, contributing to several Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

2. Critics argue that the project has an opportunity cost and that many tourism jobs are seasonal. They also fear that current residents will receive the income while future generations inherit damaged wetlands.

Table 1 — Visitors to the wetland reserve

Visitors to the wetland reserve

Table 2 — Government environmental budget

Costa Verde government environmental budget, 2024.

Solar mini-grids in Aridia

Read the extracts and answer the questions that follow.

Text A — Energy access

1. Many rural communities in Aridia have no reliable electricity. The government subsidizes solar mini-grids to improve refrigeration, evening study and access to digital markets. It describes electricity access as an important part of economic well-being.

2. Solar installation creates skilled employment and reduces the use of diesel generators. However, imported batteries are expensive and their disposal may contaminate soil and water.

Text B — A connected policy

1. The programme may support SDGs concerning clean energy, education, health and decent work. These complementarities illustrate interdependence, since progress in one area can affect several other economic, social and environmental outcomes.

2. The subsidy has a fiscal opportunity cost. Some urban taxpayers question why rural users receive support, while rural households argue that high connection charges would exclude low-income families.

Table 1 — Electricity access

Rural household electricity access in Aridia before and after the solar mini-grid programme.

Table 2 — Mini-grid finance

Mini-grid installation finance per household connection.

Coastal restoration in Pelagos

Read the extracts and answer the questions that follow.

Text A — Restoring natural protection

1. Pelagos has experienced more frequent coastal flooding. The government plans to restore dunes and seagrass beds that protect homes, provide fish habitats and absorb carbon. These benefits contribute to environmental protection and social progress.

2. Restoration will temporarily restrict access to part of the beach. Tourism businesses expect lower revenue during construction, while fishers expect larger catches once habitats recover.

Text B — Present and future choices

1. The project is financed by a coastal levy and international grants. Supporters argue that intergenerational equity requires current users to help preserve ecosystem services for future residents.

2. Opponents prefer a concrete sea wall, which would be completed faster. Scientists warn that it could transfer erosion to neighbouring beaches and provide fewer benefits for biodiversity.

Table 1 — Expected flood losses

Expected annual flood losses in Pelagos under two coastal-protection scenarios.

Table 2 — Project finance

Project finance for coastal restoration in Pelagos.

Energy-efficient housing in Norvia

Read the extracts and answer the questions that follow.

Text A — A building standard

1. Norvia will require new homes to meet strict energy-efficiency standards. Better insulation lowers household energy consumption and urban emissions. The regulation is intended to promote sustainability, a condition in which economic, social and environmental systems can support well-being over time.

2. Construction firms expect higher initial costs. The government will subsidize training for builders and offer targeted grants to low-income homebuyers.

Text B — Affordability and employment

1. Energy-efficient homes have lower running costs and may improve health by reducing dampness. However, higher construction prices could reduce housing affordability and employment during the transition.

2. The government faces scarcity because funds used for housing grants cannot also finance every proposed school and hospital project. Officials argue that future energy savings justify the present cost.

Table 1 — Household energy use

Annual household energy use by type of new home.

Table 2 — Training programme

Training programme for builders in Norvia.

Water security in Sanjara

Read the extracts and answer the questions that follow.

Text A — Irrigation and conservation

1. Rainfall in Sanjara has become less predictable. The government proposes reservoirs and drip-irrigation networks to stabilize food production, conserve water and increase rural incomes. This illustrates the three connected dimensions of economic development, social progress and environmental protection.

2. Reservoir construction will create jobs and electricity but flood some habitats and require 900 households to relocate. Farmers receiving irrigation will pay a usage charge.

Text B — Choosing a strategy

1. Environmental groups prefer smaller rainwater-harvesting systems. They argue that large reservoirs encourage water-intensive crops and may not be suitable in every region.

2. Officials state that the programme supports several SDGs, but accept that its opportunity cost includes other health and education projects. Compensation and community participation may reduce social costs.

Table 1 — Irrigation efficiency

Water used to produce one tonne of agricultural output in Sanjara.

Table 2 — Reservoir finance

Reservoir finance in Sanjara

Grazing land in Karumo

Read the extracts and answer the questions that follow.

Text A — Pressure on shared pasture

1. Nomadic households in Karumo share grazing land. Falling income and livestock disease have encouraged families to keep larger herds as insurance against future losses. The pasture is being used faster than it can regenerate.

2. Overgrazing reduces vegetation, increases erosion and lowers future livestock productivity. This threatens sustainability and may intensify rural poverty.

Text B — Managing access

1. The government proposes community grazing permits, veterinary services and payments to households that restore vegetation. Secure community rights may improve incentives, but powerful herd owners could capture the permits.

2. Officials emphasize equity, arguing that households with few animals should not bear the same adjustment cost as wealthy commercial producers.

Table 1 — Pasture condition

Pasture condition in Karumo

Table 2 — Restoration payment

Annual costs of the pasture restoration payment programme in Karumo.

Shrimp farming and mangroves in Talora

Read the extracts and answer the questions that follow.

Text A — Export growth

1. Shrimp exports have raised incomes in Talora’s coastal region. Low-income households clear mangroves to construct ponds because formal jobs and affordable credit are limited.

2. Mangrove loss reduces fish nurseries, carbon storage and storm protection. Development based on continued clearance may violate intergenerational equity.

Text B — Conservation with livelihoods

1. The government proposes a per-unit tax on shrimp produced using newly cleared mangrove land, payments for ecosystem protection and loans for intensive shrimp ponds on already-cleared land. Its aim is to break the poverty-environment cycle rather than criminalize poor households.

2. The programme depends on international finance, illustrating interdependence because seafood consumption, climate effects and financial resources cross national borders.

Table 1 — Mangrove cover

Mangrove cover in Talora’s coastal region over five years.

Table 2 — Ecosystem payments

Ecosystem-protection payment programme in Talora

Forest use and rural poverty in Navora

Most low-income households in Navora depend on farming and collecting fuelwood from a publicly accessible forest. Farmers report that they understand the benefits of conservation but cannot afford irrigation, improved seeds or cleaner energy. The government is considering payments to households that protect forested land.

Table 1 presents data on changes in forest area and the proposed forest-protection programme.

Forest-area change and proposed forest-protection programme in Navora

Agricultural expansion also causes soil erosion and downstream water pollution. Table 2 gives information used to estimate the welfare loss from environmentally damaging agricultural production.

Marginal external cost over agricultural output; values vary linearly between listed outputs.

Sustainable public transport in Belluno

Belluno experiences severe traffic congestion and air pollution. Its government plans to replace diesel buses with electric buses. Electric buses have higher operating costs, but they produce lower life-cycle emissions and reduce health costs associated with urban air pollution.

Table 1 presents annual data for the proposed replacement programme.

Annual data for the proposed replacement of 500 diesel buses in Belluno.

The government is also considering a targeted fare subsidy because an increase in fares could reduce access to employment and education for low-income passengers.

Proposed targeted fare subsidy for low-income passengers in Belluno.

Coastal fishing and poverty in Maliba

Fishing is the main source of income and protein for many low-income households in Maliba. Entry to the coastal fishery is difficult to control, and each fisher has an incentive to catch fish before others do. Scientists warn that the current catch exceeds the annual natural increase in the fish stock.

Table 1 presents data for the fishery.

Fish stock and catch data for Maliba's coastal fishery.

The government is considering a landing charge on fish caught commercially. Revenue could finance monitoring, alternative employment and support for small-scale fishing households.

Commercial fishing landings, proposed charge and enforcement costs in Maliba.

Clean water and sanitation in Ruvuma

Many households in Ruvuma lack reliable access to clean water and sanitation. Waterborne illnesses reduce school attendance and labour productivity. The government plans to expand household connections, but it is also considering a higher water tariff to finance operating costs.

Table 1 presents information about the connection programme.

Household connection programme information for Ruvuma.

Table 2 presents expected annual health benefits and tariff information.

Expected annual health benefits and household tariff information in Ruvuma.

Charcoal production and poverty in Endala

Read the extracts and answer the questions that follow.

Text A — Household energy and forests

1. Many low-income households in Endala earn income by producing charcoal from an open-access woodland. The woodland is a common-pool resource because excluding users is difficult and one person’s use leaves less timber for others.

2. Households know that deforestation lowers rainfall retention and soil quality, but they lack affordable electricity, credit and alternative employment. Immediate food needs therefore encourage continued tree cutting.

Text B — A policy package

1. The government proposes clean-cooking subsidies, microcredit for rural enterprises and community forestry rights. These policies aim to weaken the relationship between poverty and environmental degradation.

2. Commercial charcoal traders oppose tighter quotas. Conservation groups support them but warn that restrictions without alternative incomes could deepen poverty and encourage illegal production.

Table 1 — Woodland area

Woodland area in Endala during the year

Table 2 — Clean-cooking programme

Clean-cooking programme data for eligible households in Endala.

Artisanal cobalt mining in Belesia

Read the extracts and answer the questions that follow.

Text A — Mining and livelihoods

1. Rising demand for rechargeable batteries has expanded artisanal cobalt mining in Belesia. Mining provides income in a poor region, but tunnel collapses, child labour and polluted streams reduce economic well-being.

2. Miners often lack credit and safer equipment. Because immediate income is needed for food, they continue mining despite declining land and water quality. Pollution is a negative externality of production.

Text B — Responsible minerals

1. The government proposes safety training, school-income grants, pollution charges and certification of responsibly produced cobalt. Foreign battery firms may pay a higher price for certified output.

2. Supporters link the proposal to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for poverty, education, decent work and responsible production. Critics fear that costly certification will exclude the poorest miners.

Table 1 — Certified cobalt

Cobalt prices and annual certified sales for a cooperative.

Table 2 — School-income grant

School-income grant data for Belesia.

Hillside farming in Oranta

Read the extracts and answer the questions that follow.

Text A — Soil erosion

1. Poor tenant farmers in Oranta cultivate steep hillsides because fertile valley land is concentrated among a few owners. Short leases provide little incentive to construct terraces or plant trees.

2. Erosion lowers future yields and deposits sediment in a hydroelectric reservoir. These effects reduce economic well-being and impose costs on electricity users.

Text B — Land and finance reform

1. The government proposes longer, legally protected leases, subsidized conservation loans and agricultural training. It argues that secure rights could encourage investment while loans improve access to technology.

2. Critics argue that indebted farmers remain vulnerable to crop failure. They call for grants and land redistribution to improve equity, although these policies face political opposition.

Table 1 — Crop yields

Hillside crop yields before and after terracing.

Table 2 — Conservation loans

Conservation loan scheme in Oranta.

Electronic waste and informal workers in Varelia

Read the extracts and answer the questions that follow.

Text A — Informal recycling

1. Thousands of low-income workers in Varelia recover valuable metals from discarded electronic goods. Burning cables provides immediate income but releases toxic smoke and contaminates soil.

2. Workers lack protective equipment, credit and access to safer machinery. Poor health lowers productivity and reinforces poverty. The unregulated allocation therefore creates market failure.

Text B — An inclusive recycling system

1. The government proposes producer responsibility charges, licensed recycling centres, free safety training and guaranteed purchasing of materials collected by registered informal workers.

2. Officials describe this as sustainable development because it seeks to improve employment, health and environmental protection without transferring toxic damage to future generations. Some firms warn that the charge will raise electronics prices.

Table 1 — Electronic waste

Annual electronic waste generated and safely recycled in Varelia.

Table 2 — Worker transition programme

Worker transition programme in Varelia

Renewable electricity and mineral extraction in Torland

Torland intends to replace part of its coal-generated electricity with solar electricity. The transition is expected to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions but will increase demand for minerals extracted in a low-income region of the country. Mining provides employment and government revenue, but it also pollutes water used by nearby communities.

Table 1 presents electricity-generation data.

Electricity-generation data for Torland's planned replacement of coal generation with solar generation.

Table 2 presents information about the environmental costs of mineral extraction.

Mineral extraction and water-remediation information for the solar programme in Torland.

Sustainable agriculture in Kambara

Small-scale farmers in Kambara cultivate land affected by erosion and declining soil fertility. Many farmers lack secure land rights and cannot obtain affordable credit for soil-conservation equipment. The government is considering credit guarantees and payments for ecosystem protection.

Table 1 presents information about the proposed credit programme.

Proposed credit-guarantee programme in Kambara.

Table 2 compares crop yields and gives data for the proposed ecosystem-protection payments.

Crop-yield trends and proposed ecosystem-protection payment data in Kambara.