Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings Environmental ethics Environmental ethics = application of ethical standards to relationships between human and non-human entities -Hard to resolve; depends on the person’s ethical standards -Depends on the person’s domain of ethical concern Should we conserve resources for future generations? Is it OK for some communities to be exposed to excess pollution? Should humans drive other species to extinction? Is is OK to destroy a forest to create jobs for people?

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings We have expanded our ethical consideration To include animals, communities, nature

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings Western ethical expansion

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings History of environmental ethics People have questioned our relationship with the environment for centuries Christianity’s attitude towards the environment Anthropocentric hostility, or Stewardship? The Industrial Revolution increased consumption and pollution People no longer appreciated nature Transcendentalism = nature is a manifestation of the divine Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings The preservation ethic Unspoiled nature should be protected for its own inherent value John Muir (right, with President Roosevelt at Yosemite National Park) had an ecocentric viewpoint

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings The conservation ethic Use natural resources wisely for the greatest good for the most people Gifford Pinchot had an anthropocentric viewpoint

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings The land ethic Healthy ecological systems depend on protecting all parts Aldo Leopold believed the land ethic changes the role of people from conquerors of the land to citizens of it

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings Environmental justice (EJ) The poor and minorities are exposed to more pollution, hazards, and environmental degradation 75% of toxic waste landfills in the southeastern U.S. are in communities with higher racial minorities

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings Economics Friction occurs between people’s ethical and economic impulses Is there a trade-off between economics and the environment? Generally, environmental protection is good for the economy Economics studies how people use resources to provide goods and services in the face of demand Most environmental and economic problems are linked Root “oikos” gave rise to both ecology and economics

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings Types of modern economies Economy = a social system that converts resources into Goods: manufactured materials that are bought, and Services: work done for others as a form of business Subsistence economy = people get their daily needs directly from nature; they do not purchase or trade Capitalist market economy = buyers and sellers interact to determine prices and production of goods and services Centrally planned economy = the government determines how to allocate resources Mixed economy = governments intervene to some extent

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings Government intervenes in a market economy Even in capitalist market economies, governments intervene to: Eliminate unfair advantages Provide social services Provide safety nets Manage the commons Mitigate pollution

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings Conventional view of economics Conventional economics focuses on production and consumption Ignores the environment The environment is an external “factor of production”

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings Environmental view of economics Human economies exist within, and depend on, the environment Without natural resources, there would be no economies

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings Environmental systems support economies Ecosystem services = essential services support the life that makes economic activities possible * Soil formation * Pollination * Water purification * Nutrient cycling * Climate regulation * Waste treatment Economic activities affect the environment Deplete natural resources Produce too much pollution

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings Classical economics Competition between people free to pursue their own economic self-interest will benefit society as a whole (Adam Smith, ) The market is guided by an “invisible hand” This idea is a pillar of free-market thought today It is also blamed for economic inequality Rich vs. poor Critics think that market capitalism should be restricted by government

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings Neoclassical economics Examines the psychological factors underlying consumer choices Market prices are explained in terms of consumer preferences Buyers vs. sellers The “right” quantities of a product are produced The market favors equilibrium between supply and demand

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings Neoclassical economics Enormous wealth and jobs are generated -Environmental problems are also created Assumptions of neoclassical economics: -Resources are infinite or substitutable -Costs and benefits are internal -Long-term effects are discounted -Growth is good

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings Assumption: Resources are infinite Economic models treat resources as substitutable and interchangeable -A replacement resource will be found But, Earth’s resources are limited -Nonrenewable resources can be depleted -Renewable resources can also be depleted -For example, Easter Islanders destroyed their forests

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings Costs and benefits are experienced by the buyer and seller alone -Do not affect other members of the society -Pricing ignores social, environmental or economic costs Externalities = costs or benefits involving people other than the buyer or seller External costs = borne by someone not involved in a transactionExternal costs -Human health problems -Resource depletion -Hard to account for and eliminate -How do you assign monetary value to illness? Assumption: Costs and benefits are internal

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings A future event counts less than a present one -Discounting = short-term costs and benefits are more important than long-term costs and benefits -Policymakers ignore long term consequences of our actions -Discourages attention to resource depletion and pollution Economic growth is necessary to maintain employment and social order -Promoting economic growth creates opportunities for poor to become wealthier -Progress is measured by economic growth Assumptions: Long-term effects are discounted and growth is good

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings “More and bigger is better” The dramatic rise in per-person consumption has severe environmental consequences Is the growth paradigm good for us?

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings Is economic growth sustainable? Affluenza = material goods do not always bring contentment Uncontrolled economic growth is unsustainable -Technology can push back limits, but not forever -More efficient resource extraction and food production perpetuates the illusion that resources are unlimited Many economists believe technology can solve everything

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings Marginal benefit and cost curves Cost-benefit analysis = the costs of a proposed action are compared to the benefits that result from the actionCost-benefit analysis If benefits > costs: pursue the action Not all costs and benefits can be identified Marginal benefit and cost curves determine an “optimal” level of resource use or pollution mitigation

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings Costs of Pollution Control A situation: -A company will produce 100 million $ in output but pollute a river. -That same company can use workers to clean the pollution but only make 90 million $ and have a clean river. -What will the company do????? -Problem is there is no value on the clean river…. Only GNP is calculated…

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings Economist’s View of Pollution If a product is made that harms the environment, that harm is not factored into the cost of the product. -H-Hmmmmm, sounds a little irresponsible. Some sort of marginal cost needs to be associated with the product. -E-Ex. Effect of the pollutant on human health. -E-Ex. Effect of the pollutant on organisms within the environment.

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings Marginal Cost of Pollution This is the added cost for all present and future members of society of an additional unit or pollution. Ex. Sulfur Dioxide -Used in manufacturing and comes out of the atmosphere in acid rain.

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings What about stopping pollution? Marginal cost of pollution abatement: -The amount of money needed to dispose of a pollutant in a non harmful way.

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings What is the optimal amount of pollution? (If there is such a thing?) If pollution exceeds the optimum amount of pollution -the harm done exceeds the cost to reduce it. If pollution is small it may cost too much to control the small amount.

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings Flaws in Optimum Pollution 1. The true cost of environmental damage by pollution is too difficult to assess. 2. The risks of unanticipated environmental catastrophe are not taken into account in assessing the potential environmental damage of pollution.

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings So…………… How much is a scenic river worth???? -Maybe more so to some people than others.

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings Other types of economists Ecological economists = civilizations cannot overcome environmental limitations -Steady state economies should mirror natural ecological systems -Calls for revolution Environmental economists = unsustainable economies have high population growth and inefficient resource use -Modify neoclassical economics to increase efficiency -Calls for reform

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings A steady state economy As resources became harder to find, economic growth slows and stabilizes (John Stuart Mill, ) We must rethink our assumptions and change our way of economic transactions This does not mean a lower quality of life Economies are measured in various ways Gross Domestic Product (GDP) = total monetary value of final goods and services produced Does not account for nonmarket values Pollution increases GDP

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings GPI: An alternative to the GDP Genuine Progress Indicator (GPI) = differentiates between desirable and undesirable economic activity -Positive contributions (i.e. volunteer work) not paid for with money are added to economic activity -Negative impacts (crime, pollution) are subtracted In the U.S., GDP has risen greatly, but not GPI

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings More “green accounting” indicators Net Economic Welfare (NEW) = adjusts GDP by adding the value of leisure time, while deducting environmental degradation Sustainable Economic Welfare (ISEW) = based on income, wealth distribution, resource depletion These indicators give a more accurate indication of a nation’s welfare -Very controversial, hard to practice

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings Valuing ecosystems goods and services Our society mistreats the very systems that sustain it -The market ignores/undervalues ecosystem values Nonmarket values = values not included in the price of a good or service

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings Assigning value to ecosystem services Contingent valuation = uses surveys to determine how much people are willing to pay to protect or restore a resource -Measures expressed preferences -But, since people don’t really pay, they may overinflate values Revealed preferences = revealed by actual behavior -Time, money, effort people spend -Measuring the actual cost of restoring natural systems The global value of all ecosystem services = $42 trillion!

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings Markets can fail Market failure = markets do not account for the environment’s positive impacts -Markets do not reflect the negative effects of activities on the environment or people (external costs) Government intervention counters market failure -Laws and regulations -Green taxes = penalize harmful activities -Economic incentives to promote conservation and sustainability

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings Ecolabeling addresses market failures The market can be used to counter market failure -Create markets in permits -Ecolabeling = tells consumers which brands use sustainable processes -A powerful incentive for businesses to switch to better processes -“Dolphin safe” tuna -Socially responsible investing in sustainable companies

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings Corporations are responding to concerns Industries, businesses, and corporations can make money by “greening” their operations -Local sustainably oriented businesses are being started -Large corporations are riding the “green wave” of consumer preference for sustainable products -Nike, Gap Be careful of greenwashing, where consumers are misled into thinking companies are acting sustainably

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings Conclusion Recent developments have brought economic approaches to bear on environmental protection and conservation Environmental ethics has expanded people’s ethical considerations Economic welfare can be enhanced without growth, resulting in economic health and environmental quality

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings QUESTION: Review An ecocentric worldview would consider the impact of an action on… ? a) Humans only b) Animals only c) Plants only d) All living things e) All nonliving things

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings QUESTION: Review Which ethic holds that healthy ecosystems depend on the protection of all their parts? a)Preservation ethic b)Land ethic c)Conservation ethic d)Deep ecology e)Biocentrism

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings QUESTION: Review Which of the following is an ecosystem service? a)Water purification in wetlands b)Climate regulation in the atmosphere c)Nutrient cycling in ecosystems d)Waste treatment by bacteria e)All of the above

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings QUESTION: Review Which is NOT an assumption of neoclassical economics that can lead to environmental degradation? a)Resources are limited b)Long-term effects are downplayed c)All costs and benefits are experienced by the buyer and seller alone d)Growth is good

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings QUESTION: Review Which of the following statements would be spoken by an ecological economist? a)The current economic system is working fine b)The current economic system simply needs to be fine-tuned c)The current economic system is broken and a new one needs to be developed d)Economic systems never work

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings QUESTION: Interpreting Graphs and Data Market equilibrium, which sets the price of a product, is reached … a) When supply exceeds demand b) When demand exceeds supply c) By demand when quantity is low, and supply when quantity is high d) When supply equals demand

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings QUESTION: Interpreting Graphs and Data Which conclusion can you draw from this graph? a) GDP has not really increased since 1950 b) Although we are spending more money, our lives are not much better c) We are spending less money, and our lives are much better d) The GPI is not as accurate as GDP

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings QUESTION: Viewpoints Think of an issue in your community that could pit environmentalists against economic development. What do you think should prevail: environmental protection or economic development? a) Economic growth; we need the jobs b) Environmental protection; we need the environment c)Both; a compromise must be reached d)Whatever costs the taxpayers the least

Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Benjamin Cummings QUESTION: Viewpoints What entities do you include in your domain of ethical concern? a)Humans only b)Humans and pets c)Humans, pets, and other animals d)Humans, pets, other animals, and nature