ENVIRONMENTAL ETHICS

Unit 5

Environmental Ethics

• A study of conceptual and moral issues concerning the growth of human population, consumption of resources, animal rights, the moral status of nature and species, etc.

Some Issues in Environmental Ethics

Why should we care about the planet? Or about its nonhuman residents? Do we have any obligations to future generations? Who, or what, are the proper subjects of moral considerations? Do animals have any serious moral standing? Do they have moral rights? Can we use animals and nature in any way that suits us? On what foundations should we rest our concern for rain forest, marine

ecology, or natural landscapes?

TWO KINDS OF ENVIRONMENTAL STRATEGIES

Morally-Indirect Environmental Strategies: We ought to protect the natural environment because,

in the long run, it is good for us.Morally-Direct Environmental Strategies: We ought to protect the natural environment because

it is good for natural environment Or something which is part of natural environment The nature contains something that is intrinsically

good he natural environment itself, or some objects in it, or

some features of these objects, are intrinsically good)

POLLUTION

• Introduction by man, waste matter or surplus energy into the environment, which directly or indirectly causes damage to man and his environment

POLLUTANT

• A substance or effect which adversely alters the environment by changing the growth rate of species, interferes with the food chain, is toxic, or interferes with health, comfort amenities or property values of people

Aral SeaMan made environmentaldisaster

EFFECTS ON BIOSPHERE

1. Damage to human health by specific chemical substances present in the air, food, water and radioactive material

2. Damage to natural environment affecting vegetation, animals, crops, soil and water

3. Damage to visual quality by smoke, fumes, dust, noise and waste

4. Damage by carcinogens, radioactive materials and excessive noise

AIR POLLUTION

AIR POLLUTION Contd ……

Pollution of air

Transportation (Three modes of transport, Air ( airplanes etc.),. Sea (ships, boats etc.), Land (automotive & locomotive),

Products of combustion of fuels are CO, CO2,NOx, hydrocarbons, particulate matter and traces of SO2,

formaldehyde and Pb.. Dust (e.g. cement dust, biogases, foundry dust and wind blown

solid dust) Mist Smoke Carbon black Aerosols

AIR POLLUTANTS

• Nitrogen Dioxide: NO2

– brownish gas irritates the respiratory system originates from combustion (N2 in air is oxidized); NOx sum of NO, NO2, other oxides of N

• Ozone: ground level O3

– primary constituent of urban smog

– reaction of VOC + NOx in presence of heat +sun light

• Carbon monoxide: CO

– reduces bloods ability to carry O2

– product of incomplete combustion

AIR POLLUTANTS Contd….

• Lead: Pb – cause learning disabilities in children , toxic to liver,

kidney, blood forming organs– tetraethyl lead – anti knock agent in gasoline

• leaded gasoline has been phased out• Particulate Matter: PM10 (PM 2.5)

– respiratory disorders• Sulfur Dioxide: SO2

– formed when fuel (coal, oil) containing S is burned and metal smelting

– precursor to acid rain along with NOx

AIR POLLUTANTS Contd….

• Carbon dioxide (CO2) – is the principle greenhouse gas emitted as a result of human activities

such as the burning of coal, oil, and natural gases.• Chlorofluorocarbons (CFC)

– are gases that are released mainly from air-conditioning systems and refrigeration. When released into the air, CFCs rise to the stratosphere, where they come in contact with few other gases, which lead to a reduction of the ozone layer that protects the earth from the harmful ultraviolet rays of the sun.

• Suspended particulate matter (SPM)– consists of solids in the air in the form of smoke, dust, and vapor that

can remain suspended for extended periods and is also the main source of haze which reduces visibility. The finer of these particles, when breathed in can lodge in our lungs and cause lung damage and respiratory problems.

Air Pollutant Impacts

• Greenhouse Effect

• Ozone Depletion

• Acidification

• Smog Formation

• Eutrophication

• Human Health

• Ecosystem Health

AIR POLLUTION

Water Pollution

Distribution of Water ReservoirsOceans

97%

Atmosphere 0.01%

Rivers, Lakes, and Inland Seas

0.141%Soil Moisture 0.0012%

Ground Water 0.4 – 1.7%

Ice Caps and Glaciers 1.725%

Water Cycle

World Water Supply

97.200% salt water in the oceans 02.014% ice caps and glaciers 00.600% groundwater 00.009% surface water 00.005% soil moisture 00.001% atmospheric moisture

Water Pollution

Two major classifications

• Point Source • Non-point Source

Water Pollution

Water Pollutants

• Inorganic materials - alkalis, acids, inorganic salts, ammonia,phosphates, etc.

• Heavy metals - chromium, mercury, nickel, copper, cadmium etc.• Disinfection byproducts - trihalomethanes• Other harmful substances - organochlorides etc.• Physical factors - turbidity, colour, temperature etc.Cause Water-borne disease

• Bacterial infections Typhoid, Cholera, Paratyphoid Fever,BacillaryDysentry

• Viral infections Jaundice, Poliomyelitis

• Protozoal

• Infections Amoebic Dysentry

Water Pollution: Many Forms

Organic Wastes Pathogens Sediments Nutrients Other Chemical Pollutants Inorganic Chemicals Organic Chemicals No biodegradable Waste Thermal Effluents Invasive Species

Land Pollution

Urbanization and Concentration of Population Municipal Solid Waste Industrial Waste and Hazardous Waste Uncontrolled .Land Treatment. Burning open dumps and forest fires Deforestation Mining and Erosion

Noise Pollution

Exposure to prolong noise affects speech,

hearing, general health and behaviour.

Noise Levels . dB

Intensity

frequency

periods of exposure and

duration

Industrial Noise Sources

Metal fabrication (pressing, grinding, chipping etc.)High pressure burners in furnacesTurbinesCompressorsPumpsWelding machinesCranes and other vehiclesPipe lines carrying high velocity fluids and solidsVibrating and grinding equipment

INDICATOR SPECIES• Looking at Lichens

Lichens are the crusty organisms that grow in places such as on rocks and bricks.

• You can also find them on gravestones and the side of trees.

• They range in colour from grey-green to orange and red.

• Sulphur dioxide gas is produced when fuels like coal and oil are burned. • Some lichens are very sensitive to air pollution

• In areas of low air pollution:-a large variety of different lichen species-lichens tend to be big and fluffy

• In areas of high air pollution:-very limited variety of lichen species-lichens tend to be small and crusty

We can use lichens as an indicator species.

Pollution Management

Resource depletion forces two main kinds of questions on us:1. Why ought we to conserve resources for future generations,and2. How much should we conserve?

Conservation

Conservation refers to the saving or rationing of resources for future use. A basic difference between pollution and resource depletion

Pollution Most form of pollution affects present generations (with the notable exception of

nuclear waste) Polluted resources are for the most part renewable

Air and water can be renewed by ceasing to pollute them And allowing them time to recover

Resource Depletion Resource depletion affects future generations Concerned with finite nonrenewable resources

Since they cannot be renewed What will be around for future generations is just what’s left over from the present

Rights of Future Generations

It might appear that we have an obligation to conserve

resources for future generations because they have an equal right to the limited resources of this planet.

Future generations have an equal right to the planet’s limited resources

By depleting these resources we are depriving them of what is rightfully theirs

So we ought to do our utmost to practice conservationTo minimize depletionTo avoid violating the rights of future generations

Rights of Future Generations

John Rawls that while it is unjust to impose disproportionately heavy burdens on present generations for the sake of future

generations, it is also unjust for present generations to leave nothing for future generations.

Two unjust extremes To impose disproportionately heavy conservation burdens on the present generation

(unfair to us) To leave virtually nothing for future generations (unfair to them)

Justice requires that we hand over to the next generation a situation no worse than the one we received from our ancestors.

This point is seconded by considerations of care We have a fairly direct relationship of care and concern towards the immediately

following generation, and, less and less towards more and more distant future generations.

Ethics of acre imply that we should attempt to see matters from the perspective of the immediately succeeding generations which suggests that we should “at least leave the succeeding generation a world that is not worse than the one we received”

THE ETHICS OF POLLUTION CONTROL

Ecological Ethics: ecological ethics or deep ecology, maintains that the environment deserves

to be preserved for its own sake, regardless of whether or not this directly benefits humanity

Consider the present daily changes: Loss of 116 square miles of rainforest; Loss of 72 square miles to encroaching deserts; Loss of perhaps 40-100 species; Increase of human population by a quarter of a million Increase of chlorofluorocarbons in atmosphere by 2700 tons; Addition of carbon to atmosphere by 15 million tons.

THE ETHICS OF POLLUTION CONTROLEcological ethics/“deep ecology” is not based on the idea that the environment should be protected for

the sake of human beings. Several supporters of this approach have formulated their views in a platform consisting of following statements:

1. The well-being and flourishing of human and nonhuman life on Earth have value in themselves. These values arc independent of the usefulness of the non--human world for human purposes.

2. Richness and diversity of life forms contribute to the realization of these values and are also values in themselves.

3. Humans have no right to reduce this richness and diversity except to satisfy vital needs.

4. The flourishing of human life and cultures is compatible with a substantial decrease of the human population.-The flourishing of nonhuman life requires such a decrease.

5. Present human interference with the nonhuman world is excessive and the situation is rapidly worsening.

6. Policies must therefore be changed. The changes in policies affect basic economic, technological and ideological structures. The resulting state of affairs will be deeply different from the present.

7. The ideological change is mainly that of appreciating life quality. . . rather than adhering to an increasingly higher standard of living.

8. Those who subscribe to the foregoing points have an obligation directly or indirectly to participate in the attempt to implement the necessary changes.

TRY TO ANSWER

• Should we absolutely ban pollution?

• What levels of pollution are acceptable?

• Who should pay the costs of preserving the environment?

POLLUTION CONTROL

• Firm might install pollution control devices and stop the harm at its source.

• Compensatory justice, those who are responsible for pollution bear the burden of rectifying it and compensating those who have been harmed.

• Nature must be seen as an “other” that must be cared for, not tamed or dominated