Discuss critically religious and secular ethical arguments about environmental issues (35) In his book, 'The End of Nature', Bill McKibben highlights the fact that we are destroying the natural environment at an increasing rate, for our own short-term gain. Since the day that man created agriculture, and industrialisation to follow, the imbalance between man and nature has been growing. This has been accompanied by a massive population increase, tripling in the twentieth century alone. Human pressure on nature has never been so great. Such pressure has resulted in 'environmental issues', ranging from global warming and eutrophication, to the depletion of natural resources and an increase in the number of landfill sites.
Many of the aquatic invertebrates are responsible for keeping the ecosystem clean by feeding on litters. Extinction of theses invertebrates would totally disrupt the balance of the ecosystem. The aim of this study is to bring awareness about the harmful impact global warming has on the local aquatic invertebrates and on the ecosystem at a global scale. The hypothesis for this study is that the biotic diversity of the slow moving water and fast moving water are driven by abiotic factors. To support this hypothesis, three predictions were made.
Over consumption has led to many cures and medicines being created, and has made the world a better and safer place then it once was. The Buy Nothing Day would only hinder the progress that mankind has made in keeping the environment intact. The way of life in the 21st century has and will be defined by consumerism. Consumerism has lifted nations out of recessions and created millions of jobs and opportunities. The Buy Nothing Day is just a way for environmentalists to voice their theories about how to fix the environment.
As centuries came and went health problems increased. The Earth’s natural resources were diminishing. Some believed the causes were natural; however, studies concluded that the steady increase in population is a co-conspirator. In the 1960s when noticeable natural disasters were occurring, the environmental movement became forefront. The oil spills in California and Massachusetts raised serious issues warranting an environmental conference to prompt international awareness of environmental concerns.
Running head: BORN TO THE LAND 1 Born to the Land BORN TO THE LAND 2 "Environmental history unites the oldest themes with the newest in contemporary historiography: the evolution of epidemics and climate, those two factors being integral parts of the human ecosystem; the series of natural calamities aggravated by a lack of foresight . . . ; the destruction of Nature, caused by soaring population and/or by the predators of industrial overconsumption; nuisances of urban and manufacturing origin, which lead to air or water pollution; human congestion or noise levels in urban areas, in a period of galloping urbanization,” stated Emmanuel Le Roy Ladurie. Environmental history is an all-encompassing
The economic growth has put too much stress on the nature. There are many types of environmental damage, and Mckibben examines climate change in the chapter. He points out that climate change is not some future specter and it’s already emerging as the biggest problem the world faces. He also insists that the richer people get, the dirtier the air is, and this is indeed one of the environmental destruction that he described in the chapter. Another destruction that he talks about is the global warming.
They have also received criticism for depending on ecologically damaging monoculture planting, and posing a risk to the rights of indigenous people and people in developing countries in order to solve an issue that is mainly of importance to developed countries. One of the more controversial techniques for GHG recapturing involves increasing algae blooms at the ocean surface. The idea is that eventually the algae will die and sink, and remove carbon from the atmosphere for hundreds of years. However, the results of experimentation thus far have been ambiguous; there is uncertainty as to whether a significant portion of the algae even sunk, or re-oxidized into atmospheric
David Zhang Ms. Khan ENG3U1-08 25 March 2012 Oryx and Crake: Climate Change Climate change is a tough subject for humans to deal with; ever since the Industrial Revolution, our dramatically increased consumption of energy over the century has brought about immense consequences. Abnormal weather conditions, an increased frequency of natural disasters, and rising sea levels are what many of us claim to be part of a “natural cycle”. However, it is no coincidence that we are on the wrong end of that “natural cycle”, and our behaviours and activities have only caused it to worsen. Climate change will worsen if we continue to disregard its existence and compromise with its consequences, rather than confronting the source of the issue and taking responsibility. Our irresponsibility could ultimately lead to the destruction of our world and civilization, as portrayed in “Oryx and Crake” by Margaret Atwood.
Research Paper National parks have been under threat sense the day they got created and they now face new and surprising threats by free development, the human appropriation of natural resources that the parks require, and fundamental changes in climate. “If we let our parks become fenced, static, ecologically impoverished oases in a sea of unsustainable development, they will cease being the living wonders envisioned by their founders.”(Gleick) What this quote is saying is that if we let the national parks get developed that they will be ruined and no more enjoyable parts of Mother Nature we be able to be appreciated. National parks first got started in 1872 and Yellowstone was the first one in the United States. They did it to preserve the land and its beauty, wildlife, and to use it as a symbol of national pride. There is such a long history now with national parks and it’d be a shame to see it get ruined by developers and natural resource projects.
However, deforestation effects everyone on a global scale. The loss of species, never to be seen again, is heartbreaking enough, but the loss of entire ecosystems might not effect anyone emotionally but it will affect them physically, with rising water levels, rising temperatures, and the greenhouse effect. By causing local wildlife to relocate into more urban environments, adversely impacting climate change, and negatively contributing to global atmospheric changes, deforestation should be a huge concern, especially for Americans who are typically more educated then the rest of the world. Americans have a responsibility to nature, and should use the education afforded to them by this country to spread awareness on deforestation. As Berlau states in Our Unhealthy Future, “It’s important to do what we can to protect the inhabitants of the environment or the planet...