Poverty and Pollution and Business - Research Paper Example

? Poverty and Pollution (School) 3 March This paper serves to take a look at the ethical implications of businesses who pollute a third world country as a result of the operations they have setup there, the reasons that a business may conduct operations in a third world country, the reasons a business may disregard standards of pollution control, the connections between pollution and progress and development, and the moral rights of humans to live in a livable environment. It will address the question of whether or not wealthy nations have a moral obligation to provide poorer nations with, or help them develop, greener industries and sources of energy. Lastly, it will attempt to propose a plan for uniform global pollution control standards and the enforcement of those standards itself. Keywords: pollution, poverty, businesses, third world country, operations, control, regulation, morality, environment, standards, global, enforcement Poverty and Pollution There are many different moral and ethical considerations that must be addressed when looking at the issue of the pollution of third world countries by businesses who have setup shop in those countries, including but not limited to the implications of the companies who are participating in these actions, the reasons for doing what they are doing, the moral right of human beings to a livable environment, as well as who should be responsible for these actions, and what must be done to improve the quality of life of those who are affected by these practices. There are many different reasons a business may conduct operations in a third world country, including political instability, a need for investment capital, low wages are acceptable, as are low benefits, education levels are low, and environmental regulations are few and not seriously enforced (Encyclopedia of Business 2nd Ed, 2013). Political instability in a developing country ensures that both the powers running the country and those who are attempting to run for the company are both concerned with public image; they want to ensure that the people see that they are attempting to better the country, even if the decisions made do not actually benefit the country, and one key aspect of this is good PR. If the ruling power or the power attempting to be the ruling power shows any indication that they are driving away big businesses, businesses who will bring new jobs to the country, which will in turn strengthen the economy, even if that businesses practices ultimately hurt the country itself, they will be seen as working against the country itself, and not for the country, even if baring that particular business from the country will ensure a higher quality of drinking water in the country, for example. The key is to show a form of immediate gratification for the people in terms of a better economy, even if the environmental concerns are far more severe. The need of the country for investment capital also factors into the decision of the third world country to open its doors to big business. Many big businesses will, for example, work to better the country that they choose to setup shop in, as a means of being able to more efficiently conduct their business. In Mongolia, for example, as a result of the search for rare earth mineral deposits, many big companies are working to build access roads, supporting local businesses and patronizing shipping systems setup in place in the country; Germany signed an agreement with Kazakhstan to be able to gain access to their rare earth minerals in exchange for technical assistance in modernizing railroads, building chemical plants, and other forms of development (Caramenico, 2012). It is because of the desire for technological advancements that the big businesses are able to provide that countries are more likely to overlook the negative aspects of big business in favor of the investment capital that they will provide. Businesses like the arrangement because they are able to get cheap employment, both in terms of the wages that they pay out and the benefits that they offer, and they can cite the low education levels as a reason for these low rates, thereby decreasing their total overhead while still ensuring that the employees are trained to do the same jobs that others would do in first world countries at a much lower cost. The environmental regulations are few and are not strictly enforced as a result of several factors, including a greater concern for the amount of advancement the corporation will bring, over the possible environmental issues that may arise as a result of the business’s policies and practices that they may implement, either because they are working on other ways to decrease their operating costs, or because they are not made to take those environmental concerns into consideration due to lax regulations, and as such, see it as an issue not worthy of concern. It has been said that pollution is the price of progress, and it is true that the more economic progress and development in a country, the greater level of pollution produced, due to the increased use of technology, and while certain countries have pollution controls and environmental protection practices put into place, there are others with no such defenses in place. In nations such as the United States, the Environmental Protection Agency is in charge of these regulations, on everything from radiation to national ambient air quality standards, with regulations such as the Clean Air Act, last amended in 1990, which requires primary pollutants to be below a certain level in order to be considered safe, and to prevent a fine from being accrued (EPA, 2013). Other countries, such as those considered to be third world, or developing countries do not have such rules and regulations put into place, and issues like the dumping of more than 24 million tons of hazardous waste in Africa in 1988 occur as a result (LaDou, 1991). Due to rapid urbanization and economic development, resulting in poor and haphazard industrial planning Nigeria has become one of the most polluted countries in the world (Naidu-Ghelani, 2011). While there are many ethical implications presented by businesses polluting a third world country, and of the many concerns that surround the maltreatment of the environment, the ethical responsibility of the businesses themselves remains a pertinent issue. Most pollution is inflicted by others usually without recourse or compensation, and due to the difficult nature of determining the specific cause of the air pollution, or water pollution, especially when it becomes the result of several associated factors, assigning blame may become difficult. For years businesses have been ignoring their impact on the natural environment, as air and water are treated as free goods, owned by no one, and due to their large carrying capacity, each business sees their contribution to the pollution of that commodity as negligible (Zeepedia, 2012). In spite of this viewpoint, the businesses themselves are the contributing factor for the pollution, and they have a moral responsibility to those whose lives they are affecting. Each and every human has a moral right to a habitable environment, regardless of the country they live in; they have the right to not become sick as a result of pollutants being introduced into the environment, and they have a right to be able to have their personal health, and the personal health of their families not be affected by large corporations. Studies have shown associations between indoor pollution and tuberculosis (Sumpter & Chandramohan, 2013) in addition to linking air pollution to respiratory illness in Nigeria (Mustapha, Blanglardo, Briggs & Hansell, 2011). The well-being and flourishing of both human and non-human life on earth have value in and of themselves, independent of the usefulness of the humans or non-humans in regards to human purposes (Zeepedia, 2012). The company themselves that is causing the issues does not have the right, or the authority over all those it affects, and as such, does not have the ability to make a legal determination regarding whether or not those others should have to suffer in order for them to gain. While it is not the responsibility of wealthy nations to provide poorer nations with, or help them develop, greener industries and alternate sources of energy, it is their responsibility to ensure that they do not make conditions worse than what they were prior to their entrance into the scene. Simply because a company or person has the means to improve the quality of life of another person, individual, country, or environment does not mean that they have a moral obligation to do so, simply because they had the good fortune and luck to start out in a place that had better conditions than the one that they are going into, however, they do have an obligation to not make it worse; by choosing to migrate their operations, either in whole or in part, to another country, they have made that country a part of their base of operations, and to paraphrase a certain analogy, one does not use one’s home as a depository for bodily waste. In essence, by choosing to setup their corporation in a particular company, they have made that country home to their business, and as such, they should not use that country as a ground for their waste products, whether they be industrial waste or otherwise. While at this time, only developed, first world countries have clear and concise rules and regulations put into place for the reduction of pollution as caused by ever growing and changing technologies, and these rules continue to get more and more stringent, as changes are made every few months, this does not assist those other countries who are affected by the exact same issues, but lack those regulatory agencies and laws that are present elsewhere. Urban air in the U.S. is cleaner than it was even 30 or 40 years ago (Walsh, 2012), and the changes that were implemented in the U.S. can work to be implemented on a global scale in order to ensure that all parties around the world, human and non-human alike, will be able to benefit from a cleaner world. Simple changes that have been made include the implementation of catalytic converters to reduce automobile emissions, and a limit on the amount of pollutants a company may produce, solutions that may easily be put into place in other countries. Other simple solutions that may be implemented include switching from diesel fuel, changing to newer and cleaner cars, and fitting power plants with pollution control equipment all will work to greatly reduce smog and other contaminants (Walsh, 2012). Changes may already be seen in up and coming countries, like Mexico, where, in Mexico City, catalytic converters are required, emission standards are set, vehicles must be inspected twice a year, and leaded fuel is no longer used (Molina, 2008). Such simple local solutions may be applied by any country to see the same noticeable improvements in air quality, as long as the effort is made to enforce those requirements. In China steam plants are being added to the electrical grid as a method of offsetting air pollution (Molina, 2008), something that could easily be applied to other countries as well. The important thing to remember is that there are many energy related solutions to global warming, air pollution, water pollution, and other forms of pollution present, however, each of these solutions must be applied at the local level; correcting pollution problems is not something that can be done on a global scale, all at once, but something that must be worked towards by each individual country, city, neighborhood, and human. The effects of pollution may be seen on each and every individual, and as such, it falls to each and every individual, and every corporation to take the necessary steps to realize that these are not the conditions they want to live in, that these conditions are not conducive to a healthy living environment, or conducive to the healthy living of the individual themselves. No child wants to experience having to grow up in a trash strewn neighborhood, running through the streets playing kick the can without ever knowing that it was once considered to be a game instead of a way of life; no child should ever have to grow up in a city where light pollution is so prevalent that they never see the stars, or the smog so thick that they do not know what the world looks like when lit up only by moonlight. Children should be free to run about barefoot, without having to wear shoes for fear of what they may step on – rusty nails, broken glass, or twisted metal. We do not want our grandchildren to never know the animals that we have gotten to see due to extinction brought about by pollution, and as such, it is the responsibility of all individuals to work towards a global solution for the world’s pollution issues at the local level. Works Cited Caramenico, G. (2012, November 21). China's rare earth metals clampdown drives new trade, mining ties. World Politics Review. Encyclopedia of Business 2nd Ed. (2013). Third world, doing business in the . Retrieved from http://www.referenceforbusiness.com/encyclopedia/Thir-Val/Third-World-Doing-Business-in-the.html EPA. Environmental Protection Agency, (2013). National ambient air quality standards (naaqs). Retrieved from website: http://www.epa.gov/air/criteria.html LaDou, J. "Deadly Migration: Hazardous Industries' Flight to the Third World." Technology Review (July 1991): 47. Molina, M. (2008, October 30). Air pollution is a global problem with local solutions. Retrieved from http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v456/n1s/full/twas08.19a.html Mustapha, B., Blangiardo, M., Briggs, D. J., & Hansell, A. L. (2011). Traffic Air Pollution and Other Risk Factors for Respiratory Illness in Schoolchildren in the Niger-Delta Region of Nigeria. Environmental Health Perspectives, 119(10), 1478-1482. doi:10.1289/ehp.1003099 Naidu-Ghelani, R. (2011, October 5). World's most polluted countries. CNBC. Retrieved from http://www.cnbc.com/id/44781282/page/3 Sumpter, C., & Chandramohan, D. (2013). Systematic review and meta-analysis of the associations between indoor air pollution and tuberculosis. Tropical Medicine & International Health, 18(1), 101-108. doi:10.1111/tmi.12013 Walsh, B. (2012, December 20). Unbreathable: Air pollution becomes a major global killer read more. Retrieved from http://science.time.com/2012/12/20/unbreathable-air-pollution-becomes-a-major-global-killer/ Zeepedia. (2012). The ethics of pollution control . Retrieved from http://www.zeepedia.com/read.php?the_ethics_of_pollution_control_business_ethics&b=40&c=28 Read More