Eric Davis

Soc 120 Introduction to Ethics & Social Responsibility

Joe Niehaus

October 3, 2010

Environmental Ethical Issues
History

According to the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, (2008) environmental ethics began to come to the surface in 1970s. The environmentalists started urging philosophers who were involved with environmental groups to do something about environmental ethics. Most academic activity in the 1970s was spent debating the Lynn White thesis and the tragedy of the commons. These debates were primarily historical, theological, and religious, not philosophical. Throughout most of the decade philosophers sat on the sidelines trying to determine what a field called environmental ethics might look like. The first philosophical conference was organized by William Blackstone at the University of Georgia in 1972. Environmental ethics is the discipline in philosophy that studies the moral relationship of human beings to, and also the value and moral status of the environment and its nonhuman contents. In the literature on environmental ethics the distinction between instrumental value and intrinsic value has been of considerable importance. When environmental ethics emerged as a new sub-discipline of philosophy in the early 1970s, it did so by posing a dispute to traditional anthropocentrism. It questioned the assumed moral superiority of human beings to members of other species on earth. In addition, it investigated the possibility of rational arguments for assigning intrinsic value to the natural environment and its nonhuman contents.

Environmental Ethical Issues
Current events

British Petroleum industry has a long history of oil spills which have destroyed beaches. For example; when an oil slick from a large oil spill reaches the beach, the oil coats and clings to every rock and grain of sand. If the oil washes into coastal marshes, mangrove forests or other wetlands, fibrous plants and grasses absorb the oil, which can damage the plants and make the whole area unsuitable as wildlife habitat. It can damage the ocean’s ecosystem, for example; when oil eventually stop floating on the surface of the water and begins to sink into the marine environment, it can have the same kind of damaging effects on fragile underwater ecosystems, killing or contaminating many fish and smaller organisms that are essential links in the global food chain. In addition the oil spill can kill animals, and threaten the fishing and shrimping industry. For example; Oil-covered birds are practically a universal symbol of the environmental damage wreaked by oil spills. Any oil spill in the ocean is a death sentence for sea birds. Some species of shore birds may escape by relocating if they sense the danger in time, but sea birds that swim and dive for their food are sure to be covered in oil. Oil spills also damage nesting grounds, which can have serious long-term effects on entire species. Oil spills frequently kill marine mammals such as whales, dolphins, seals and sea otters. The deadly damage can take several forms. The oil sometimes clogs the blow holes of whales and dolphins, making it impossible for the animals to breathe properly and disrupting their ability to communicate. Oil coats the fur of otters and seals, leaving them vulnerable to hypothermia. Marine mammals that eat fish or other food that has been exposed to an oil spill may be poisoned by the oil and die or can experience other problems. The United States experience a great tragedy during the DEEP WATER HORIZON, that take place at the Gulf of Mexico a semi-submersible drilling rig, sank on April 22, after an April 20th explosion on the vessel. Eleven people died in the blast. When the rig sank, the riser- the 5,000- foot-long pipe that connects the wellhead to the rig became detached and began leaking oil. U.S. Coast Guard discovered the leak in the wellhead itself. As much as 60,000 barrels of oil per day were leaking into the water, threatening wildlife along the Louisiana coast. Home Land Security Janet Napolitano declared it a “spill of national significance.” British Petroleum, which leases the DEEP WATER HORIZON, is responsible for the clean up. Oil reached the Louisiana shore on April 30, 2010 affected about 125 miles of coast. By early June, oil had reached Florida, Alabama, and Mississippi; it is the largest oil spill in U.S. history. B.P spent billions of dollars to correct this oil spill; BP remains committed to remedying the harm that the spill caused to the Gulf of Mexico, the Gulf Coast environment, and to the livelihoods of the people across the region.

Future of environmental ethical issues

United States cities all over have instituted recycling programs, water conservation projects, and other waste management policies to help appease the concerns of the people that they represent. Environmental Ethics in many U.S. cities stress the importance of environmental laws, because not everyone has the same amount of anxiety about the environment. Many large organizations in the U.S. have had to adjust their waste management procedures, in order to stay incompliance with the Environmental Protection Agency, and the public as well. Even oil companies have started to run advertisements, promoting that they are looking into alternative resources for oil, and implementing plans on other ways to improve our environment. This is where the ethics in the business world blend in very much so with the ethics of the environment. If CEO’s of big corporations had it their way, there would be no compromise to preserve our environment, because it has yet to be seen if there can be the same amount of profit by meeting the requirements to help save the environment.

Reference

Oil Spills and Disasters." Infoplease.
© 2000–2007 Pearson Education, publishing as Infoplease.
27 Sep. 2010 <http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0001451.html>. Http:// www.BP.com/GulfofMexicoRespons http://environment.about.com/od/petroleum/a/oil_spills_and_environment.htm

Eric, your topic is good and fits in with the class and our second week assignment. The oil spill in the Gulf is perhaps a great example of how things can go wrong when man tries to control nature and such – so you may want to expand on that some more. A little more development is needed but so far so good – I didn’t notice any problems with spelling and grammar but a little polish would help. Also make sure you look up proper APA citation of your resources – but this looks like a good start!