The emergence of environmental ethics in the 1960s

Environmental Ethical Issue.

SOCIOLOGY

Environmental ethics Issues

Sentence Outline

Environmental ethics is a philosophical sub-discipline that was developed in the late 1960s to early '70s.

Issues such as seeing all components of the environment as having an intrinsic value rather than some to be having only the instrumental value also surfaced.

History of environmental ethics

At that time, some of the major publications that helped this processes was the Silent Springs by Rachel Carson (1962).

The Population Bomb by Paul Ehrlich in 1968 added on a voice onto the effects of the planet's resources that the increased population was about to cause.

Currents events of environmental ethics

Some of the major current events concerning the environmental ethics are the issue of global warming.

b. Non-environmentally friendly behaviors such as the increased acts of war have not only affected the environment by impoverishing the natural resources.

Future anticipations of environmental ethics

a. Poverty is also another factor, that is, the vulnerability of the poor is anticipated to heighten as humanity continues to ignore the environmental ethics.

b. There are remarkably few studies available that examine the impacts of the energy use and availability in the developing states in future.

Introduction

Environmental ethics is a philosophical sub-discipline that was developed in the late 1960s to early '70s. This was after scientists such as Dr. Keeling took measurements of the rise in the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. In addition Rachel Carson's Silent Spring sparked talks worldwide of which actions are eco-friendly and which ones are not. Issues such as seeing all components of the environment as having an intrinsic value rather than some to be having only the instrumental value also surfaced. Moreover, environmental ethics concerning feminism- viewing the world as a female that is male dominated- and socio-political connections. Environmental ethics is therefore defined as the branch of philosophical studies that deals with the human and nonhuman moral relationship and also there value status (Varner, 1998).

The history of environmental ethics

The increase in awareness catapulted by the environmental effects of the expansions in the industrial sector, technological sector, economic sector plus the increased rates of the population growths that were recognized at that specific time; led to the emergence of environmental ethics in the 1960s. At that time, some of the major publications that helped this processes was the Silent Springs by Rachel Carson (1962). This book campaigned for the reduced use of pesticides due to its widespread effects on the health of the world population and the general destruction of the wildlife and ecosystems.

Similarly, The Population Bomb by Paul Ehrlich in 1968 added on a voice onto the effects of the planet's resources that the increased population was about to cause. Apart from natural resource depletion and the global effects of pollution, other concerns about the environment have been: ecosystems' degradation; reduction in the biodiversity (both animal and plant); and global warming which is part of the overall climate change. This has led to the implantation of the above issues into the policies of the public as well as in the consciousness of the public of the years that then followed (Van & Peter, 1997).

The 1967 essay by the great historian Lynn White Jr., which is very much cited, brought out another aspect of the reasons for the environmental crises. He argues that overexploitation of the natural resources due to portraying of the nonhuman environment as having only an instrumental value to the humans have led to the environmental crises and questions about environmental ethics of the same. This is the thinking that the Judeo-Christian has promoted (Whitney, 1993). The works by the Bible together with the Church fathers- that is the anthropocentric one- was his base of argument.

Future anticipations of the environmental ethics

Some of the future anticipation is the increased tension due increased growth of the general population compared to the constant amount of natural resources. This will be worsened by the increased pollution rates that reduce the amounts and availability of safe water and clean air in the atmosphere. Poverty is also another factor, that is, the vulnerability of the poor is anticipated to heighten as humanity continues to ignore the environmental ethics. The poverty levels in Africa and some of the South American nations will be devastating as a result of the already poor state and the political and social inequalities experienced currently.

There are remarkably few studies available that examine the impacts of the energy use and availability in the developing states in future. However, few projections have been made as expectations in this sector. Even in the absence of the climate change, the developing states' recent and rapid pseudo-urban growth will lead to increases in the aggregate commercial demand of energy, further increased emission levels (due to the need to attain industrialization) as well as extensive land use and land cover changes (Zimmerman, 1994).

Conclusion

Politics play a significant role in the environmental ethics and thus, good political will as well as adopting of the global protocols such as the Kyoto protocol and the Montreal protocol are environmentally significant. Furthermore, methane is another major world concern with a global warming potential that is eleven times that of carbon dioxide and the numerous anthropogenic sources seems to worsen the situations.