catastrophic consequences, and that food aid to the developing world should be
ended so that population levels can be allowed to fall ‘naturally’ (his argument is
discussed later in this chapter). Hardin is often thought of as an ecologist, and his
misanthropic argument is used against ecologism, but, in fact, Hardin reasons from
straightforwardly human-centred premises: human beings will suffer from
overpopulation.
Although ecologism (also called ‘deep ecology’) is the primary focus of this
chapter, we will also discuss environmentalism. We will consider how environ-
mentalism can be a strand in almost all the other ideologies discussed in this book,
and why environmental concerns now play such a significant part in the politics
not only of the West, but also the East. The reason is obvious: there is a consensus
that humanity faces an environmental crisis, and that later in this century many
other social and political problems – above all, war and famine – will have their
root causes in the negative environmental changes brought about by human beings.
We begin by considering this environmental crisis.Environmental crisis
Most popular discussion of environmentalism – and ecologism – takes place within
the context of a discussion of the so-called ‘environmental crisis’. The first point to
note is the singularity of the phrase: there is a crisis. This is controversial, for it
may be that there is a series of distinct environmental problems. However, virtually
all ecologists, and many environmentalists, argue that these problems are
interconnected, and a coherent engagement with the environment must recognise
this fact. Among the specific environmental problems are the following:- Global warming This is acknowledged by most, but not all, scientists as the
most serious environmental problem facing the planet – the minority who
challenge the consensus do not question the evidence of global warming, but
question its causes, arguing that warming is not primarily caused by human
activity. However, the majority of scientists do believe that humans are largely
responsible for global warming. The earth’s temperature is maintained by the
‘greenhouse effect’ – a layer of gases in the atmosphere traps a small percentage
of the sun’s radiation – but the burning of fossil fuels increases the greenhouse
effect, with the result that sea levels will rise due to the melting of the ice caps,
with fairly obvious consequences for low-lying land areas. At a certain point in
the process of global warming life forms will be threatened. - Resource depletion Some resources, such as fish, are, with careful stewardship,
naturally replenished; other resources, such as coal and gas, are not. Both types
of resource are threatened by excessive demand and so overproduction (this raises
the question of the ‘tragedy of the commons’, discussed in the section on Garrett
Hardin). - Localised pollution This may not cause a global crisis, but poor air in places
such as Mexico City can have a debilitating effect on inhabitants. Localised
pollution is also likely to increase migration. - Decline in species Although the effects of species loss – or decline in biodiversity
- are unclear, many ecologists would argue that the loss of species is bad in itself,
Chapter 16 Ecologism 359