1. Environment: The Science behind the Stories
Lecture Outlines
Chapter 2
Environment: The Science behind the Stories
4th Edition
Withgott/Brennan

2. This lecture will help you understand:
Culture, worldviews, and choices
Environmental ethics
Economics and the environment
Classical and neoclassical economics
Economic growth, well- being, and sustainability
Environmental and ecological economics

3. Central Case: The Mirrar Clan Confronts the Jabiluka Uranium Mine
Commercially valuable uranium deposits in Australia occur on sacred Aboriginal land
The Mirrar oppose the mine for economic, social, cultural, spiritual, ethical, and health reasons
Despite the economic benefits of jobs, income, development, and a higher standard of living
Mining options may be revisited due to increased uranium prices

4. Ethics and economics involve values
Both disciplines deal with what we value
Values affect our decisions and actions
Solving environmental problems needs more than understanding how natural systems work
Values shape human behavior
Ethics and economics give us tools to pursue the “triple bottom line” of sustainability
Environmental, economic, social

5. Culture and worldview
Our relationship with the environment depends on assessments of costs and benefits
But culture and worldview also affect this relationship
Culture = knowledge, beliefs, values, and learned ways of life shared by a group of people
Worldview = a person’s or group’s beliefs about the meaning, operation, and essence of the world
How a person sees his or her place in the world
People draw dramatically different conclusions about a situation based on their worldviews

6. Worldviews differ among people
Well-meaning people can support or oppose an action
Some support uranium mines
Jobs, income, energy, economic growth
Opponents see other impacts
Destroyed land, pollution, radiation poisoning
Community disruption, substance abuse, crime, etc.

7. Culture and worldviews affect perceptions
The landscape is a sacred text to Australian Aborigines
Holding their beliefs and values
Equal to the Christian Bible or Islamic Koran
Spirit ancestors leave signs and lessons in the landscape
Aborigines construct mental maps of their surroundings in “walkabouts”

8. Many factors shape worldviews
Religious and spiritual beliefs shape our worldview and perception of the environment
Community experiences shape attitudes
Political ideology: government’s role in protecting the environment
Economics
Vested interest = the strong interest of an individual in the outcome of a decision
Results in gain or loss for that individual

9. Environmental ethics
Ethics = the study of good and bad, right and wrong
Moral principles or values held by a person or society
Promoting human welfare, maximizing freedom, minimizing pain and suffering
Relativists = ethics varies with social context
Universalists = right and wrong remains the same across cultures and situations
Ethics is a prescriptive pursuit: it tells us how we ought to behave

10. Ethical standards: judging right and wrong
Ethical standards = criteria that help differentiate right from wrong
Categorical imperative: the golden rule
Most world religions teach this same lesson
How would you feel if your sacred homeland was defiled with a uranium mine?
Principle of utility = something right produces the most practical benefits for the most people
A uranium mine could benefit thousands of people

11. We value things in two ways
Instrumental (utilitarian) value: valuing something for its pragmatic benefits by using it
Animals are valuable because we can eat them
Intrinsic (inherent) value: valuing something for its own sake because it has a right to exist
Animals are valuable because they live their own lives
Things can have both instrumental and intrinsic value
But different people emphasize different values
How we value something affects how we treat it

12. Environmental ethics
Environmental ethics = application of ethical standards to relationships between human and nonhuman entities
Hard to resolve: it depends on the person’s ethical standards and domain of ethical concern
Should we save resources for future generations?
When is it OK to destroy a forest to create jobs?
Should humans drive other species to extinction?
Is it OK for some communities to be exposed to more pollution?

13. We have expanded our ethical consideration
People have granted intrinsic value and ethical consideration to more and more people and things
Including animals, communities, and nature
Animal rights activists voice concern for animals that are hunted, raised in pens, or used for testing
Rising economic prosperity broadens our ethical domain
Science shows people are part of nature
All organisms are interconnected
Non-Western cultures often have broader ethical domains

14. Three ethical perspectives
Anthropocentrism = only humans have intrinsic value
Biocentrism = some nonhuman life has intrinsic value
Ecocentrism = whole ecological systems have value
A holistic perspective that preserves connections

15. History of environmental ethics
Christianity’s attitude toward the environment: anthropocentric hostility or stewardship?
The Industrial Revolution increased consumption and pollution
John Ruskin: people no longer appreciated nature
Transcendentalism = nature is a manifestation of the divine
People need to experience nature
Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau’s Walden

16. The preservation ethic
Unspoiled nature should be protected for its own intrinsic value
John Muir had an ecocentric viewpoint
He was a tireless advocate for wilderness preservation

17. The conservation ethic
Use natural resources wisely for the greatest good for the most people (the utilitarian standard)
Gifford Pinchot had an anthropocentric viewpoint

18. 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
The land ethic can help guide decision making

19. Deep ecology, ecofeminism, and justice
Some scholars feel that male-dominated societies cause both social and environmental problems
Domination and competition degrade women and the environment
Ecofeminism = the female worldview interprets the world through interrelationships and cooperation
More compatible with nature
Environmental justice = the fair and equitable treatment of all people regarding environmental issues
The poor and minorities have less information, power, and money

20. Environmental justice (EJ)
The poor and minorities are exposed to more pollution, hazards, and environmental degradation
North Carolina wanted to put a toxic waste site in the county with the highest percentage of African Americans

21. Environmental justice and Native Americans
From 1948 to the 1960s, neither the U.S. government nor industry provided Navajo miners with information or protection

22. Significant inequities still remain
Significant inequities remain despite progress toward racial equality
Economic gaps between rich and poor have widened
Minorities and the poor still suffer substandard environmental conditions
Poor Latino farm workers in California suffer from unregulated air pollution (dairy and pesticide emissions)
Organized groups convinced regulators to enforce the Clean Air Act and state legislatures to pass new laws

23. Environmental justice and Hurricane Katrina
People most affected by the hurricane and its aftermath were poor and nonwhite

24. Environmental justice: an international issue
Wealthy nations impose pollution on poorer nations
Hazardous waste is expensive to dispose of
Companies pay poor nations to take the waste
It is dumped illegally
It may be falsely labeled as harmless or beneficial
Workers are uninformed or unprotected
The Basel Convention prohibits international export of waste
But illegal trade and dumping continue
The United States has not ratified this treaty

25. The environment vs. economics
Friction occurs between ethical and economic impulses
Is there a trade-off between economics and the environment?
People say protection costs too much money, interferes with progress, or causes job loses
But environmental protection is good for the economy
Traditional economic thought ignores or underestimates contributions of the environment to the economy
Human economies depend on the environment

26. Uranium mining: ethics vs. economics
Uranium mining provides jobs and income
Unemployment is above 16% among Aborigines
20% of mine employees are Aboriginal

27. Economics
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, meaning “household,” gave rise to both ecology and economics
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

28. Types of modern economies
Subsistence economy = people get their daily needs directly from nature or their own production
They do not purchase or trade products
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
Unregulated financial practices caused the 2009 recession

29. Governments intervene in a market economy
Even in mixed market economies, governments intervene to:
Eliminate unfair advantages held by single buyers or sellers
Provide social services (national defense, medical care, education)
Provide safety nets for elderly, disaster victims, etc.
Manage the commons
Mitigate pollution and other threats to health and quality of life

30. The economy exists within the environment
Economies receive inputs (resources)
Process them
Discharge outputs (waste)
Traditional economics
Ignores the environment
Resources are “limitless”
Wastes are absorbed at no cost

31. Environmental view of economics
Human economies exist within, and depend on, the environment for goods and services

32. Environmental systems support economies
Environmental goods = natural resources (sun’s energy, water, trees, rocks, fossil fuels)
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
Depleting natural resources, generating pollution
15 of 24 ecosystem services are being degraded or used unsustainably

33. Adam Smith’s “invisible hand”
Classical economics: when people pursue economic self-interest in a competitive marketplace
The market is guided by an “invisible hand”
Society benefits
This idea is a pillar of free-market thought today
It is also blamed for economic inequality between rich and poor
Critics feel that market capitalism promotes environmental degradation

34. Neoclassical economics includes psychology
What psychological factors underlie consumer choices?
Market prices reflect supply vs. demand
Buyers vs. sellers
The “right” quantities of a product are produced
“Optimal” levels of pollution, resource use
The market favors equilibrium between supply and demand

35. Cost-benefit analysis
Cost-benefit analysis = costs of a proposed action are compared to benefits that result from the action
If benefits > costs: pursue the action
Cost-benefit analysis is controversial: not all costs and benefits can be identified or defined
It is easy to quantify wages paid to miners
But hard to assess the cost of a scarred landscape
Monetary benefits are overrepresented
Analysis is biased in favor of economic development
Biased against environmental protection

36. Neoclassical economics
Capitalist market systems operate according to 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

37. Assumption: resources are infinite
Economic models treat resources as substitutable and interchangeable
A replacement resource will be found
Goods and services are treated as “free gifts of nature”
Infinitely abundant, resilient, and substitutable
But Earth’s resources are limited
Nonrenewable resources can be depleted
Renewable resources (e.g., forests) can also be depleted

38. Assumption: costs and benefits are internal
Only the buyer and seller experience costs and benefits
Pricing ignores social, environmental, or economic costs of pollution and degradation
Externalities = costs or benefits involving people other than the buyer or seller
External costs = borne by someone not involved in a transaction
Health problems, resource depletion, property damage
Governments develop laws and regulations
But how do you assign monetary value to illness?

39. People suffer external costs
External costs include water pollution, health problems, property damage, and harm to other organism

40. Assumption: discounted long-term effects
A future event counts less than a present one
Discounting = short-term costs and benefits are more important than long-term costs and benefits
Present conditions are more important than future ones
Cutting trees now brings in more money than cutting them in the future
Policymakers ignore long-term consequences of actions
Puts costs of degradation, resource depletion, pollution on to future generations

41. Assumption: growth is good
Economic growth = an increase in an economy’s production and consumption of goods
It is necessary to maintain social order
Promoting economic growth creates opportunities for poor to become wealthier
Progress is measured by economic growth
But economic activity and true wealth are not the same
Affluenza = material goods do not always bring contentment
Runaway growth can destroy our economic system

42. We live in a growth-oriented economy
Growth is used to measure progress
All economic growth is seen as good and necessary
Economic growth is always good news
Modern global economic growth is unprecedented
Higher trade, production, amount and value of goods
The United States has a “more and bigger” attitude
Americans are in a frenzy of consumption

43. Is the growth paradigm good for us?
The dramatic rise in per-person consumption has severe environmental consequences

44. Can growth go on forever?
Economic growth comes from:
Increased inputs (labor, natural resources)
Economic development = improved efficiency of production (technology, ideas, equipment)
Uncontrolled economic growth is unsustainable
Technology can push back limits, but not forever
Efficient resource extraction and production perpetuate the illusion that resources are unlimited
Many economists believe technology can solve anything

45. Cornucopians vs. Cassandras
Cornucopians = economists, businesspeople, policymakers
Improved technology allows continued economic growth
Human innovation, technologies, and market forces increase access to resources and avoid depletion
Cassandras = scientists and others
Limits to Growth, Beyond the Limits, Limits to Growth: The Thirty-year Update
Computer models predict economic collapse as resources become scarce

46. Computer simulations project future trends
Current consumption patterns predict economic collapse
Results of policies of sustainability

47. Other types of economies
Environmental economics = unsustainable economies have high population growth and inefficient resource use
Modify neoclassical economics to increase efficiency
Calls for reform
Ecological economics = civilizations cannot overcome environmental limitations
Endless economic growth is not possible
Calls for revolution
Steady-state economies mirror natural ecological systems—they neither grow nor shrink

48. A steady-state economy
As resources became harder to find, economic growth slows and stabilizes (John Stuart Mill, 1806–1873)
Individuals and societies exist on steady flows of natural resources
Herman Daly does not think a steady state will evolve on its own
We must fundamentally change our economics
This does not mean a lower quality of life
Technology and behavior will enhance sustainability

49. Measuring economic progress: GDP
Gross Domestic Product (GDP) = the total monetary value of goods and services a nation produces
Does not account for nonmarket values
Does not express only desirable economic activity
Pollution, oil spills, disasters, etc. increase GDP

50. GPI: An alternative to the GDP
Genuine Progress Indicator (GPI) = differentiates between desirable and undesirable economic activity
Positive contributions (e.g., volunteer work) not paid for with money are added to economic activity
Negative impacts (crime, pollution) are subtracted
In the United States, GDP has risen greatly, but not GPI

51. More green accounting indicators
Net Economic Welfare (NEW) = adjusts GDP by adding the value of leisure time and personal transactions
While deducting costs of environmental degradation
Human Development Index = assesses a nation’s standard of living, life expectancy, and education
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

52. Valuing ecosystem 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 (e.g., ecological, cultural, spiritual)

53. 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
Measures actual costs of restoration, cleanup, etc.

54. The global value of all ecosystem services
The global economic value of all ecosystem services equals $46 trillion
More than the GDP of all nations combined
Protecting land gives 100 times more value than converting it to some other use

55. Markets can fail Market failure = occurs when markets ignore:
The environment’s positive impacts
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 fairness, conservation, and sustainability (e.g., pollution permits)

56. The market can counter market failure
Ecolabeling = tells consumers which brands use environmentally benign processes
A powerful incentive for businesses to change
Dolphin-safe tuna, organic food
Socially responsible investing in sustainable companies
$2.7 trillion in 2007

57. Corporations are responding to concerns
Industries, businesses, and corporations make money by “greening” their operations
Ben & Jerry’s (ice cream), Patagonia (clothing)
Industries donate to environmental groups, preserve land, etc.
Manufacturers use recycled materials, cut energy use, etc.
Local sustainable businesses

58. A “green wave” of consumer preferences
Large corporations are riding the “green wave” of consumer preference for sustainable products
McDonald’s, Starbucks, Intel, Ford, Dow, etc.
Greenwashing: consumers are misled into thinking companies are acting more sustainably than they are
“Pure” bottled water may not be safer or better
Any changes made by large companies will help
Hewlett-Packard, Wal-Mart
Corporate actions hinge on consumer behavior
People must support sustainable economics

59. Conclusion
Recent developments have brought economic approaches to bear on environmental protection and conservation
Corporate sustainability, ecolabeling, new ways of measuring growth, valuation of ecosystem services
Environmental ethics has expanded people’s ethical considerations
Environmental justice
Economic welfare can be enhanced without growth
Increasing economic health and environmental quality

60. QUESTION: Review
An anthropocentric 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
Answer: a

61. QUESTION: Review
Which ethic holds that unspoiled nature should be protected for its own intrinsic value?
a) Land ethic
b) Preservation ethic
c) Conservation ethic
d) Deep ecology
e) Biocentrism
Answer: b

62. 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 are ecosystem services
Answer: e

63. QUESTION: Review
Which is NOT an assumption of neoclassical economics that can lead to environmental degradation?
a) Resources are unlimited
b) Long-term effects are downplayed
c) Costs and benefits are experienced by buyers, sellers, and the public
d) Growth is good
Answer: c

64. QUESTION: Review
Which of the following statements would be spoken by an environmental economist?
a) The current economic system is working well.
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.
Answer: b

65. 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
Answer: d

66. QUESTION: Interpreting Graphs and Data
Which conclusion can you draw from this graph?
a) GDP has not increased since 1950.
b) Despite 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.
Answer: b

67. 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
Both; a compromise must be reached
Whatever costs the taxpayers the least
Answer: any

68. QUESTION: Viewpoints
What entities do you include in your domain of ethical concern?
a) Humans only
b) Humans and pets
Humans, pets, and other animals
Humans, pets, other animals, and nature
Answer: any