People and Resource Use Conflicts
pollutants from refrigerators and air-conditioners anywhere in the world damage the upper atmosphere over all the earth.
10.3.3 THE REALITY OF THE PROBLEM: THREE IMPORTANT QUESTIONS
ERA is not making a moral judgement here, it is merely stating the reality of humanity’s condition, as an animal species living on earth: an animal which has gained an unnatural dominance over all other forms of life.
The Ecological Problem then, is a reality which has to be faced. But, it is a problem which, in the end, has no simple solution because there are just so many people wanting to survive; each of whom has an equal right to do so.
Nonetheless, it is a real problem, the practical solution of which demands an answer to three questions.
How can we minimise our use of resources, and maximise our returns from them?
How can we maintain a supply of resources which is sustainable; that is, at a level which does not damage the ecosystems which supply them?
Where damage has occured - that is, where the ecosystem is no longer able to repair itself - how can we repair it so that a supply of resources continues to flow?
In scientific terms, of course, we have the answers: there are solutions. But these answers are bound to entail restricting the supply and use of resources now in order to maintain a supply later. In this way, the Ecological Problem becomes an Economic and Political Problem which is not so easily solved. How can poor farmers support themselves without clearing the forest for farming? How can industry be persuaded to increase its costs by being more environmentally responsible? How can a government be persuaded to limit the production of certain resources and thus risk reducing its tax revenue? How can a nation be persuaded to use less resources such as water and petrol? How can people be persuaded that it is in the best interests of their country to have fewer children? How can people be persuaded to pay more taxes for environmental protection investments such as city sewage plants?
These are difficult questions with no easy answers. Difficult enough in relation to the Niger Delta on its own, but what about the global issues? For instance, as a result of the Greenhouse Effect, it seems that Global Warming is causing sea levels to rise, which will result in the coastal areas of Nigeria, including the Niger Delta, becoming inundated by the sea. It is a problem which can only be solved if all the countries of the world can come to an agreement. Is this in the realms of fantasy?
The Green-House Effect and Global Warming: The moon is very cold because it is a long way from the sun, and yet, the Earth, which is the same distance, is warm. This is largely because of the carbon dioxide in the Earth's atmosphere. Heat from the sun passes through the carbon dioxide to the surface of the earth. But, when the earth radiates this heat back out into the atmosphere, it is absorbed by the carbon dioxide which then re-radiates in all directions: some goes out into space but some goes back to the earth. As a result the earth is 30-40°C warmer than it would be if there was no carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
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