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LY SOPHANNA M.Sc. Environmental Management BA / Foundation Year Course

Academic Year 2012/2013 – Term 1

Chapter_2: Lecture 3 – Environmental Ethics

Curricular Unit – Introduction to Environmental Science

Faculty of Mathematics, Sciences, and Engineering Pannasastra University of Cambodia

Environmental Ethics

v  Outline ü  View of Nature ü  Environmental Ethics ü  Environmental Attitudes ü  Societal Environmental Ethics ü  Environmental Justice ü  Individual Environmental Ethics ü  Do we consume too Much? ü  Global Environmental Ethics

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Views of Nature

v  There are political, geographical, and national differences among humans. v  In reality, we all share the same home. However, humans have different perspectives with respect to resource uses. v  Many people argued that to not use resources

would be wasteful. v  Others feel that those resources have value we do

not yet appreciate. i.e. Removing trees

The Earth as Seen from Space

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Environmental Ethics

ü  To meet this challenge, a new environmental ethics must evolve.

v  Ethics, one branch of philosophy, seeks to define what is right and what is wrong, regardless of cultural differences.

v  Morals differ somewhat from ethics because morals reflect the strong feelings of a culture.

Ex: Killing people during war; Food sharing; Energy consumptions; Population and pollution. o  Environmental issues require a consideration of

ethics and moral. Ex: Business leader view preservationist as immoral

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Environmental Ethics Cont’d

ü  Environmental ethics is the discipline that studies the moral basis of human responsibility to the environment and how far this responsibility extends.

v  What is the value of environment? v  What moral responsibility do we have? v  Which needs should be given the highest priority in

our decision making? o  Different types of ethics have emerged in human

culture in modern history.

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Environmental Ethics Cont’d

There are 3 primary theories of moral responsibility regarding the environment.

1.  Anthropocentric or Human-centered

v This set of ethics protects and promotes of human interests or well-being at the expense of all other factors.

i.e. environment is favor for human life

v  Often places an emphasis on short-term benefits while disregarding long-term consequences.

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Environmental Ethics Cont’d 2.  Biocentric v  All forms of life have an inherent rights to exist. i.e. Biocentric thinkers give species a hierarchy of

values; o  Some rate species more important than plants; o  Others determine the rights of various species

depending on the harm they do to human. v  All organism are center of life, each having basic

right to survive; v  Human are not inherently superior to other living

things. Ethic dilemma: Humans vs Protected species

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Environmental Ethics Cont’d

3.  Ecocentrism v  Environment deserves direct moral consideration

and respect; v  The whole is more important than individual parts v  Environment has direct rights that it qualifies for

moral personhood; v  It is considered to be on an equal level moral with

humans; v  Humans should strive to preserve ecological

balance and stability.

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Environmental Ethics Cont’d

Aldo Leopold’s Land Ethic (1949) "All ethics rest upon a single premise: that the individual is a member of a community of interdependent parts.”

–  Leopold argued that Healthy ecological

systems depend on protecting all parts.

–  A thing is right when it tends to preserve its original beauty, integrity and biotic community; it is wrong when it tends to do otherwise.

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Environmental Ethics Cont’d

Three Ethical worldviews

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Environmental Attitudes v  Human relationship with the environment also fall

under 3 distinct groups. 1.  Development; 2.  Preservation; 3.  Conservation. 1. Development o  An anthropocentric approach (inclined toward

benefits of humans) o  Promote human control over the world’s resources

at the expense of future generation; o  Often associated with the capitalist work ethics. Eg: Commuting (unsustainable use of cars)

Logging beyond quota numbers

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Environmental Attitudes Cont’d 2. Preservation o  An ecocentric approach (nature-based); o  Call for the preservation of the world’s resources

rather than complete human consumption. Eg: Establishing national park and reserves (Phnom Bokor National Park) v  Some preservationists’ interest in nature is primarily aesthetic or recreational. v  They believe that human species depend on and has much to learn from nature.

3. Conservation o  Moderate the balance between the two

aforementioned attitudes(development and preservation);

o  Place great important in human survival whilst take into account the need to manage the environment wisely.

Ex: The idea of sustainable development (development which does not hinder prospect for future generation);

q  Implementation of quotas (fishing, logging, consumption of particular materials).

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Environmental Attitudes Cont’d

Questions:

1.  Is the life an endangered species, such as the Mekong Catfish, more important than the life of a common animal such as cow? Justify your answer.

2.  Describe the main differences between a biocentirc ethic and an ecocentric ethic. Can you think of any examples where these ethics are used in every day life? Do you agree with either of these ethics? Why?

3.  It can be said that generally people do not hold a biocentric or ecocentric viewpoint. What could be done to encourage this viewpoint?

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Environmental Ethics

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Societal Environmental Ethics

v  Society is composed of a great variety of people with diverse viewpoints.

v  The collective attitudes can be analyzed from an ethical viewpoint.

q  Western view Earth as unlimited resources; q  There is continual growth unfortunately it leads to

growth mania (excessive desire). v  “ The Earth provides enough to satisfy every

person’s need, but not every person’s greed” Mahatma Ghandi.

v  Poor people and minorities suffer more than their share of environmental problems, EJ advocates say.

v  The EJ movement began with a protest against a

toxic waste dump in an African-American community in North Carolina.

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Environmental Justice (EJ)

v  What Is Environmental Justice? •  The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)’s Office

of Environmental Justice defines Environmental Justice as:

•  The fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income with respect to the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies. Fair treatment means that no group of people, including racial, ethnic, or socioeconomic group should bear a disproportionate share of the negative environmental consequences resulting from industrial, municipal, and commercial operations or the execution of federal, state, local, and tribal programs and policies.

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Environmental Justice Cont’d

ü  Difficulties v  Define what to measure and what should be the

standard of comparison. o  Rich vs. Poor on waste disposal

v  Determine whether and how particular groups will be disadvantaged from landfills, chemical plants, and other industrial works o  Job creation vs. Potential health risks

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Environmental Justice Cont’d

Individual Environmental Ethics

v  Individual is responsible for the quality of environment we live in, which can be better or worse.

v  Recognition of individual responsibility leads to changes in individual behavior.

v  However, Americans think environmental problems can be fixed with quick technology.

Ex: Cars, not drivers, pollute, thereby inventing pollution free autos. ü  One wants the environment cleaned up, but do not

want to make major lifestyle changes. 19

v  Over consumption in Northern Hemisphere; Eg: North American only 5% of world population consume ¼ of the world’s oil. ü  Will something vital – water, oil, food simply run out? v  Argument between ecologist Ehrlich and economist

Simon on world consumption views. Nevertheless, Ehrlich-Simon argument is old and remains unsettled. v  With question of consumption in mind, a future view

focuses on: Food, Nature, Oil, and Water.

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Do we consume too Much?

ü  Food v  There is prediction that famine was evitable during

twentieth century; however, it didn’t happen. v  Human ingenuity has outpaced population growth; i.e. fertilizers, pesticides, and high-yield crops v  Technologies has led food production ahead of

population increases, but the problem is that whether people can afford to buy food.

v  New technologies are not free from controversy i.e. genetically modified organisms used in corns.

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Do we consume too Much? Cont’d

ü  Nature v  As more people around the world achieve American

dream, they will consume more resources and generate more pollution.

v  Tropical forest will be cut; v  Wilderness placed under pavement; v  Fewer and fewer people will live on the land; v  People will live in the world of their own making.

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Do we consume too Much? Cont’d

ü  Oil v  Oil reserves would not last through the current

century; v  New technologies will prevent this global energy

crisis: o  develop cheaper way to find and extract oil; o  replace fossil fuels by Solar, nuclear, wind power…

q  The most likely candidate is the fuel cell which produce no pollution.

q  Fuel cell is essentially a hydrogen-powered battery whose by-product is water.

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Do we consume too Much? Cont’d

ü  Water v  Right now, humans use about half the planet’s

accessible supply renewable, fresh water. v  It will push to 85% due to doubling in agricultural

production. v  Unlike fossil fuels, there is no substitute for water. v  World Bank Vice President Ismail Serageldin

predicted “ Wars will be fought over water in the next century”.

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Do we consume too Much? Cont’d

v  The world community is now agreeing that the environment has become a matter of global priority and action, by Noel Brown in 1990.

v  Despite their political differences: Arab, Israeli, Russian, and American environmental professionals have been working together.

ü  In 1972 the United Nations Conference on Human Environment held in Stockholm, Sweden;

ü  In 1992 the Earth summit world environmental conference held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil;

ü  In 1997 the world conference on climate change held in Kyoto, Japan.

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Global Environmental Ethics

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