Modern Utilitarianism - Essay Example

Introduction The theory of utilitarianism is of the view that the right of action is one that reduces suffering and maximizes happiness. This theory holds that right worth of an action is determined by its results or consequences. According to utilitarianism if the outcome of doing something will be destructive or beneficial to a handful of people, then it is not worth being done. However, if the results will be good and will benefit many people then it is worth being done. Rachel Louise Carson is one of the legends who followed the principle of utilitarianism to come out to fight for environmental conservation, and wrote the book Silent Spring in 1962 whose arguments were used by federal utilitarian conservation legislation. Carson was a marine zoologist and conservationist from America who wrote about nature. She started writing at a young age and changed from studying English to Biology. She started campaigning for conservation of the environment especially on problems that she believed were caused by synthetic pesticides. This essay will analyze federal utilitarian conservation legislation and will incorporate Rachel Carson’s Ideas while analyzing the same (Minteer 169). Federal Utilitarian Conservation Legislation Utilitarian conservation theory aims at conservation for the protection of human beings. The federal government began making legislation on environmental conservation around the 19th century. However, it was after Rachel Carson came into the picture and published her book Silent Spring that the legislation took the path of utilitarian conservation, around the mid 20th century. This started off when the reports of the United States of America indicated that the number of birds were dropping at an alarming rate. All that people knew was that something was not right and the birds’ drop in number was not in vain. Guesswork started and a number of causes to the fall in the number of birds came up. Some said it was poison, others proposed it was a virus and others were of the view that it was diseased. No one had a precise cause (Minteer 62). The only person who had the exact answer to the question that no one was sure about the answer was Rachel Carson. This biologist had taken time to complete the book that would provide answers to the question of the decreasing number of birds. The answers she created enemies and friends for her and answers that saved the birds. Carson gave the cause of the decrease in the number of birds as the strong synthetic insecticides. These insecticides, like dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT), in the form of dusts, sprays, and aerosols were affecting the food chains. The insecticides achieved this by poisoning the food chain from insects to the top. The chemicals were not only harmful to the insects but to the humans as well. They caused cancer and liver tumors. This led to the banning of the DDT insecticides and consequently saving a huge number of birds. However, the companies that were producing the insecticides underwent loss hence viewing Carson as a foe (Minteer 169). Her encouragement and message that man needs to act in moderation for him to achieve an equilibrium with nature led to a number of legislations by the federal on utilitarian conservation of the environment. One of these acts legislations was the clean air act. This act, which has undergone a number of amendments, required the Environmental Protection agency to make and enforce laws that protect humans from airborne chemicals and contaminants that are dangerous to human health (Minteer 169). The Wilderness Act passed in 1964 created a legal description of the wilderness in the US. It protected around nine million acres of federal land. This act preserved the wilderness and hence the animals in it. The Clean Water Act was passed in the year 1972. This acts main aim was to protect the waters of the land from pollution by doing away with the release of large amounts of poisonous substances into the water. This act not only made safe the water that human beings consumed but also the fish they ate (Minteer 28). The National Wild and Scenic Rivers Act signed in on October 2 1968 were aimed at protecting scenic and wild rivers from any change or development that would alter their scenic or wild nature. This Act protects more than a hundred and fifty rivers in the US. These rivers are mainly protected for the number of values they posses. In the process of protecting the rivers human beings benefit from the values the rivers posses and also from the edible fish in the rivers. The National Trails System Act of 1968 created the National Trails System. The National Trail System aimed at preserving of, public reach to, travel within, and the appreciation and enjoyment of the open air, nation’s historic sources, and outdoor areas. Each of these trails administration is by a federal agency (Minteer 401). The last act is the National Environmental Act. This Law established a United States national policy which promoted the enhancement of the environment as well as the Council on Environmental Quality of the President. This act has been looked at like the environmental Magna Carta in the contemporary International System. Its most important effect was to make requirements for all governments in the federal system to get ready for environmental impact statements and environmental assessments. The two, environmental impact statements and environmental assessments, contain the environmental consequence of any action proposed by the federal agency. This ensures that the federal government takes action that is environmental friendly hence protecting the environment (Minteer 401). Conclusion Each of this action acts and laws passed by the federal government had some influence from Rachel Carson’s book, Silent Spring. Carson gave warnings on how not minding the environment could be hazardous not just to animals but to humans as well. This sent an alarm making President Theodore Roosevelt come up with acts and laws that would protect the environment. These acts have so far protected the environment of the US as well as the human beings up-to-date. The acts are what is known as the federal utilitarianism conservation legislations (Minteer 169). Work Cited Minteer, Ben A. Reconstructing Conservation: Finding Common Ground. Washington: Island Press, 2003. Print. Read More