Environmental Spaces - Essay Example

Although there are many actions that can be performed as a means of encouraging a to better the environment around it, one of the most effectivemeans is with regard to seeking to reduce the level of waste that such cities invariably create each and every day. However, as can aptly be noted, the fact of the matter is that reducing the overall level of consumption within any population center requires an added cost and commitment of both the individual member of society, as well as any corporations and businesses that might exists within the same city (Meeusen 79). Sadly, the fact of the matter is that many corporate interests are not concerned with their ultimate impact upon the environment. Instead, and as might be reasonably expected, such entities are focused upon profitability; therefore any actions that might require further time or financial commitment to fulfilling are oftentimes vehemently opposed. In this manner, legislation must be engaged that not only encourages but demands a level of compliance with regard to protecting the extant environment. In this way, both the average individual within a given population center as well as whatever moneyed interests might exist within this space will both be encouraged and required to abide by environmental controls that have been set forward by the a duly elected and representative government (Zhou 456). Another salient issue that must be addressed in terms of seeking to protect the environment and promote the conscientious development of human society alongside it, is with respect to the production, disposal, and storage of waste. For years, it has been economically beneficial to merely through something away; rather than to seek to have it repaired or recycle it. Yet, the issue at hand relates to the fact that landfills are coming to take up a larger and larger percentage of the land available throughout the world. In addition to this, these landfills are oftentimes toxic waste dumps that have long lasting and horrific impacts upon the extant environment for decades and centuries after they have been closed. In seeking to analyze the disposal of waste and encourage society towards a more renewable means of living, governments around the globe can place new taxes that will encourage individuals to reduce their rates of consumption and seek out alternative means of recycling as a means of ameliorating their tax burdens. Individuals that oppose such a system note the fact that people will merely seek to shirk their responsibilities and that the overall rate of environmental destruction will remain unchanged. However, as individuals operate in a self interested manner and seek out those means by which they can benefit the most, placing taxes not only upon consumption but upon disposal will create a strong incentivization for such individuals to find alternate means of recycling for the consumer products that they might otherwise seek to throw away. Studies abound within scientific research which point to the fact that human activity has drastically impacted upon the natural environment; to include both plant and animal life. Because of the fact that humans represent the very top of the food chain and also represent sentient beings that are capable of understanding ethics and responsibility, there is most certainly a moral obligation for them to engage with promoting environmental preservation as a prime and determinate goal for all forms of life. Although the discussion that has thus far been presented seeks to engage the reader with an understanding that it is the moral obligation of humanity to protect the different types of plant and animal life that exist on planet earth, it is also true that doing so is within the self interests of humanity. As each of these species is ultimately interdependent on one another, the impact that the loss of even one could have can likely be catastrophic to the way in which further life is exhibited on planet earth. Individuals that argue the inverse of what has been represented above generally point to the belief that the earth has a certain regenerative power that is somehow able to promote life regardless of what humans might do or how they might damage it. Whereas this may have been true before the age of industrialization, it is most certainly not the case within the current era. The drastically increasing global population, alongside the increase in carbon production and the means by which the natural environment is leveraged to a further and further degree means that the regenerative power that the earth is capable of representing is not close to being able to reverse the rate of destruction that humans are effecting. Taking an example of extant tuna fisheries as an example, this once plentiful fish is now nearly endangered throughout the world’s vast oceans as a direct result of overfishing. Yet, as demand for this fish remains high, the actual changes to the way in which such a resource is harvested have remained virtually unchanged. This serves as but one example of the way in which the “regenerative” power of the earth, long trumpeted by those that do not believe humans have an adverse or disastrous impact upon the environment, oftentimes point towards (Borges 2110). Additionally, one can take the example of carbon emission. Whereas the natural and regenerative power of the earth is able to convert CO2 into oxygen through photosynthesis, the ability to do this is primarily contingent upon certain limits of CO2 production being evidenced within the earth’s atmosphere. For centuries and eons, carbon levels have remained virtually static. However, with the dawn of industrialization, the impact that humans have had on increasing the levels of CO2 in the atmosphere have been profound. Not only is the current system unable to enough CO2 to oxygen, the potential for the earth to perform such a task is daily being reduced by destruction to old growth forests and the loss of habitat throughout the globe. Taking the case of the Amazon rainforest as a prime example, the researcher can adequately note that the Amazon has lost nearly 30% of its forests over the past 25 years. At such a rate, not only will the earth be unable to “regenerate” itself, it cannot even continue to perform the regenerative tasks that have been ongoing for thousands of years prior to humans being exhibited on the planet. From the information that has been presented, it is clear and apparent that the arguments against the fact that humans are destroying the environment fall far short of explaining the current situation. As such, it is the responsibility of stakeholders within society to ensure that all members, inclusive of corporations, are morally and ethically responsible and consider more than just their bottom line. Although it is true that changing the nature of the way that firms seek to engage in business is something of an impossibility, placing strict enforcement and taxes upon them will create a mechanism through which society can be assured that all members, regardless of their overall power and monetary resources, are abiding by the standards that have been set forth and attempting to promote the best interests of greater human society. Additionally, recognizing the patterns of interaction between human life, plant life, and animal life will be a further fundamental stepping stone to seeking to bring future society in a greater degree of harmony with the remainder of the environment. Naturally, the information that has been presented thus far is optimistic with regard to the potential for these processes to be engaged; however, without such a degree of optimism and idealism, it is unlikely that any changes can be made. Works Cited Borges, Aurélio Ferreira, et al. "Environmental Concern and the Future." Rural Studies 43.11 (2013): 2109-2114. Academic Search Complete. Web. 4 June 2014. Meeusen, Cecil. "The Intergenerational Transmission Of Environmental Concern." Journal Of Environmental Education 45.2 (2014): 77-90. Academic Search Complete. Web. 4 June 2014. Zhou, Min. "A Multidimensional Analysis Of Public Environmental Concern." Canadian Review Of Sociology 50.4 (2013): 453-481. Academic Search Complete. Web. 4 June 2014. Read More