Environmental Laws, Economics, and Ethics Chapter 2

Spotted Owl  10%  Automation  Sustainability  Continued Battles  Jobs  ESA

Legends of the Frontier

Manifest Destiny Dominated by the frontier attitude What is a frontier attitude? What is manifest destiny?

Columbia Painted By John Gast

Gifford Pinchot

Historical Figures  James Audubon  Henry David Thoreau  Theodore Roosevelt  Gifford Pinchot 1905  John Muir  Franklin Roosevelt 1930’s  Aldo Leopold 1949  Bob Marshal 1930  Rachel Carson 1962  Paul Ehrlich 1968  Gaylord Nelson 1970

Aldo Leopold The Shack - In 1935, he and his family initiated their own ecological restoration experiment on a worn- out farm along the Wisconsin River outside of Baraboo, Wisconsin. Land Ethic “When the private landowner is asked to perform some unprofitable act for the good of the community, he today assents only with outstretched palm. If the act costs him cash this is fair and proper, but when it costs only forethought, open-mindedness, or time, the issue is at least debatable.”

Aldo Leopold Continued Land Ethic Continued “To sum up: a system of conservation based solely on economic self-interest is hopelessly lopsided. It tends to ignore, and thus eventually to eliminate, many elements in the land community that lack commercial value, but that are (as far as we know) essential to its healthy functioning. It tends to relegate to government many functions eventually too large, too complex, or too widely dispersed to be performed by government.”

Aldo Leopold Continued Land Ethic Continued Aldo Leopold, A Sand County Almanac The land Ethic All ethics so far evolved rest upon a single premise: that the individual is a member of a community of interdependent parts. His instincts prompt him to compete for his place in the community, but his ethics prompt him also to co- operate. The land ethic simply enlarges the boundaries of the community to include soils, waters, plants, and animals, or collectively: the land. We can be ethical only in relation to something we can see, feel, understand, love, or otherwise have faith in. The case for a land ethic would appear hopeless but for the minority which is in obvious revolt against these “modern” trends. Examine each question in terms of what is ethically and esthetically right, as well as what is economically expedient.

Environmental Justice Site Selection:  Low Income  Minority Based  Little Voice Lacking:  Few Natural Areas or recreational areas  Availability of Healthcare  Availability of Fresh Foods  Availability of Education

World Views Western (anthropocentric) Vs. Deep Ecology (spiritual life centered connection) Pg. 38 – which most appeals to you? “Could support only a fraction of world population” “Would need to give up many comforts and modern benefits”

Environmental History of U.S.

General Revisions Act The General Revision Act of 1891

Environmental History of U.S Several presidents, particularly Theodore Roosevelt, used this Act to establish 43 million acres of forest reserves. Republican General Revision Act 1 st National Park: Yellowstone (Est.1872) Yosemite and Sequoia National Parks

Antiquities Act 1906 The Antiquities Act of 1906 resulted from concerns about protecting mostly prehistoric Indian ruins and artifacts- collectively termed “antiquities ”

Wilderness What makes wilderness - wilderness?

Wilderness Act 1964 The Wilderness Act describes a wilderness as - Requires act of congress List of wilderness Areas:

Cohutta Wilderness

1970 EPA & NEPA  Other laws Page 27 of book

Clean Air Act Loophole 1970 (1977) Clean Water Act 1972 Endangered Species Act 1973

Optimal Amount of Pollution Cost-Benefit Analysis Marginal = ?

Economics and the Environment Cost-Benefit Analysis

Economics and the Environment Source Raw Materials Economy ProductionConsumption Products Money Sinks Waste

Full Cost Accounting

National Accounting Gross Domestic Product (GDP) Net Domestic Product (NDP) NDP = GDP - depreciation / capital expenses External Costs? GDP’s of Countries P_%28nominal%29  Environmental Performance Index  Black Triangle = cost of ignorance

Regulation & Market Corrections 1) Command and control regulations - catalytic converters 2) Incentive-based regulation Cap & Trade system (tradable Permits) In effect, the buyer is being fined for polluting, while the seller is being rewarded for having reduced emissions. Over time the cap can be lowered. Uses market forces & ideally value increases with time like a stock.