Ecological Justice

It has become common for those individuals involved in the protection of human and environmental rights to advocate for the need to preserve the ecological rights to be enjoyed by future generations. This has been done mainly because of the influence of scholars in environmental law whose studies concerning the use of resources in the current age and the need to preserve some of it for future generations have been used in the arguments made by supporters of environmental justice. While this has been the case, physical influences such as changes to the climate that are irreversible, the reduction of vital resources as well the fast growth in the population of many states all over the world, have also come to be considered when dealing with ecological justice. There has developed the realization that if nothing is done by the current generation to conserve the environment, then there is the possibility that future generations will not enjoy the same environment as that which was inherited by preceding generations.

There has to be the realization that despite the failings of previous generations, the current generation is bound to ensure that the planet will be able to provide sustenance for today's children and those of the future. If a claim is made for the future generations, then it will be possible to take away from the current world order, which has certainly been responsible for much of the earth’s environmental damage, the power to continue doing what it is currently doing so that there might be a break from the environmental degradation that has been witnessed for the last two centuries. While it is a fact that not everybody is moved to action because of the ecological plight of others, especially those in future generation, it is still the duty of the current generation to ensure that there is proper consciousness concerning the environment. It is a fact that if the current generation does not meet this obligation to the future ones, then there is the possibility that future generations will look back upon it with resentment because of the failed responsibility. It is in the interest of the current generation to ensure that the sustainability of the planet and as well as the survival of the human race, is highly dependent on the achievement of the ecological justice that has to be attained for future generations. If no account is kept in the current era for the protection of the ecological interests of future generations, there is little assurance that the ecology will be maintained for future generations to enjoy, therefore resulting in crisis.

There are some who have argued that there is no need for attention to be given to future generations because their protection has already been considered in the laws that protect current generations. They would further argue that the creation of laws aimed at protecting the environment are based on the protection of future generations hence there is no need to take an active part in ecological justice. Since most of the rules concerning modernity state that individuals should live in the present and forget about the future, many individuals have come not to take any action to ensure that the environment is protected and maintained. In fact, it can be said that most individuals believe that the best way to live is to live in the present and forget about the future because it will take care of itself. Although it is necessary to protect the rights of the current generation before that of the future, the rights of this generation should not be allowed to overshadow the main priority of environmental protection which is its preservation for the future. It has therefore become necessary to ensure that there is a balance between the ecological interests of the current generations as well as those of the future so that there is no conflict of interest in the long run. If inter-generational justice is to be attained, it will be necessary to convince the current generation to ensure that the ecological aspect of the planet in the current state is protected so that future generations may be able to enjoy an even greater piece of it than the current one. The current generation has to be able to learn that the conservation of the global ecology is essential if there is to be ecological justice for future generations. The rights of future generations have to be preserved in the same way as those of the current ones are protected so that there is no break in the way in which the world functions. This is mainly because of the fact that it is extremely difficult to determine where the ecological rights of the current and future generations begin or end and therefore, it has become essential for them to be treated on an equal basis.

It is a fact that whatever the arguments made for or against ecological justice, nature has its own limitations and these have to be put into consideration whenever this subject is discussed. Therefore, where ethical arguments fail to convince the current generations, then it is a must that pragmatic arguments have to prevail otherwise, all will be lost. If ecological justice is not implemented by the current generations, then it is most likely that the future generations will end up suffering in a disproportionate way from climate change, a fact which will be detrimental for the continued survival of not only the human species, but also of other species as well. The adverse effects of climate change for future generations will possibly take place if there is the continued disregard for the environment, thus resulting in the increase in the levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. It is however, the current practice of those institutions tasked with the continued finding of solutions for climate change to account for the interests of the generations that will live in the future than those that live in the present and this is a good indicator that all is not lost in the fight for ecological justice. Because of such considerations, it is possible that future generations will be able to be protected from the worst of climate change through the actions of current policymakers. Thus, there is a high possibility that ecological justice might indeed be achieved if not only the smaller effects of climate change are dealt with but also those that are harsher, therefore saving the world from a catastrophe.

It is suggested that it is because of the disregard for the ecological justice of future generations that there have developed those activities that have contributed an immense deal in the development of such ecological hazards as global warming. Such acts, which include the accumulation of nuclear waste, the loss of biodiversity in certain parts of the world as well as the reduction of the ozone layer, are perhaps the worst episodes in human history because they are ignorant of the need to protect future generation from the effects of global warming as a result of ecological damage. It is a fact that over the past fifty years, the alteration of the natural ecosystems of the world has been accelerated at such a rate that most of these ecological systems are no longer recognizable from only a few decades ago. The degradation of the natural environment has created a situation where it has become difficult for some ecosystems to renew themselves, and this has become detrimental for the achievement of ecological justice. It is estimated that more than half of the ecosystems that have been put under research have shown signs of being either degraded or being used in an unsustainable way, and this is not good news for those who are fighting for ecological justice because it means that they have an uphill task in order to achieve their goals of ecological sustainability. The fact that a significant part of the world’s ecosystems have been degraded has been sighted as a manifestation of the absolute disregard for future generations through the failure to recognize the limits to growth.

Alongside the current ecological crisis, there has also developed the dilemma of distributive justice, where it has been argued that there is the need for the world’s resources to be shared equally between its populations. It has been stated that without access to the resources that nature provides, it would be extremely difficult for the human race to survive and this is because of the fact that it is these resources which are the source of the sustenance of human development. It is a fact that human beings have to have access to the basic needs such as food shelter and clothing to ensure their survival but this is currently not the case because most of the human population lives in abject poverty, earning less than a dollar a day. This finding is truly appalling considering that it shows that the majority of the world’s population has no access to the natural resources which are essential for their development, as well as to sustain the future generations. The irresponsible use of the available natural resources by the rich has created a situation where there is the increase in the degradation of the natural environment, making life harder for the poor who often rely on these resources for their own survival. It has been found that many poor people, who have been pushed into poverty by the prevailing environmental circumstances, end up further degrading the environment to such an extent that it is difficult to achieve ecological justice for future generations. The fact that the poor end up degrading their local environments makes it difficult for there to be any alleviation to their hardships, which deprives them of the potential for developing themselves economically. Such a situation has come to be aptly named the pollution of poverty, since it involves the destruction of the environment by the poor, further worsening their economic situation. 

It can be said that those groups that quest for ecological justice have failed to achieve their objectives because of the internal disagreements between them. These disagreements stem from the fact that the various groups within the movement have differing views of how to approach the various ecological problems that they have to deal with. It can further be stated that these disagreements are based on the mutual suspicion between the rival groups within the movement concerning each other’s methods in dealing with the ecological issue. This has led to the complete failure of the environmentalist movement to stop the increasing greenhouse gas emissions into the environment, and this has in turn led to the increase in global warming. The main reason for this failure is that the members of the environmentalist movement join it not because of being convinced that they are joining it to save the environment, but because it is the current trend in the global scene. Another reason why the quest for ecological justice is failing in its endeavor to clean up the environment is that many environmentalist groups focus more on the technical policy solutions involved in the process than on actually taking the action needed. Many environmentalist organizations have come to separate the environment from environmentalism, creating a situation where more attention is given to the latter than to the former. 

In conclusion, it can be said that there has come to be a realization that the environmental cause cannot succeed without the direct involvement of the governments of countries which are responsible for most of the greenhouse emissions into the atmosphere. Governments have come to see the need to be actively involved in the creation of international agreements for the sole reason of dealing with environmental problems that affect the global environment, in effect helping the achievement of ecological justice. These governments have come to the realization of the need of having rules and regulations that are able to promote cooperation and prevent conflicts so that there can be sustainability in the environment. The achievement of ecological justice should be considered the priority in all matters concerning the environment because this is the only way through which the ecology of the planet can be sustained for the sake of future generations.

Disinfection of Drinking Water

It is a fact that although the protection of water against microbial contamination is extremely important, it is also important to ensure that water systems are also protected against disinfection byproducts. These are normally chemical elements which are produced when chlorine and other decontaminators respond with natural organic substances in water. Scientists have come to determine the fact that the chlorination of water for consumption, for example, has a high possibility of forming a set of derivatives known as trihalomethanes (THMs). Among these said byproducts of the chlorination process include what has been identified as chloroform. While regulations against these byproducts have been put in place by the European Union government, it has also been recognized that a large quantity of the said products have no direct effect on the health of human beings. However, it has been determined that the presence of these byproducts in drinking water in large amounts is not desirable. It has been recognized that cost effective methods in the reduction of disinfection byproducts have to be applied within the EU to ensure that the risk to human health is reduced to insignificant proportions. It has been found that while these byproducts may be harmful, the health risks associated to them are significantly smaller when compared to those that occur if water is not disinfected. Thus, it is important to ensure that disinfection of water is not compromised during attempts to ensure that such byproducts are brought under control. It has now become a reality within the EU that water systems are meeting the standards that have been put in place for the prevention of byproducts through controlling the amount of natural organic material preceding disinfection.

One of the most used water disinfection methods in the European Union is the ozone water disinfection method which utilizes the use of Ozone. Because of its unstable quality, it has been found to be ideal as a purifier since it is a powerful oxidant that is toxic for those harmful organisms living in water. Ozone has been found to offer a wide spectrum sterilization ability since it can only be produced at the site of the purification and its production can be done using oxygen as well as ultra violet light. Because of the unique qualities that it has, ozone has been found to produce byproducts that are less harmful to humans than those produced in other treatment processes such as chlorination. As a result, this process has come to be widely adopted by the European Union within many water treatment plants, thus guaranteeing that those who consume the water are protected from any harmful byproducts that are prevalent in other methods of water purification.

It has been found that the use of ultraviolet light is also a highly effective means of water purification as it has the ability to deactivate cysts as well as other harmful contaminants that might be found in drinking water. Ultraviolet light, when used for the purpose of water purification is non residual and this means that whenever it is used, it does not leave behind and disinfectants or harmful byproducts in the water. While this might be considered to be an advantage, in some cases, it can also be considered to be a disadvantage because of the fact that it also does not leave behind any of the minerals that are useful to the human body. It can therefore be said that while the use of ultraviolet light for water disinfection has an important advantage over chlorination and the use of ozone, because of its non residual nature, it makes the water less useful to the human body.

In conclusion, it is suggested that the best means of water purification that can be employed in Edinburgh is the use of the ozone treatment method. This is because of its extreme effectiveness in the destruction of those harmful microbes while at the same time not leaving behind any byproducts that may be detrimental to human health. The use of this method is likely to result in the effective purification of water while at the same time retaining those mineral elements which are useful for the human body. When compared to chlorination as well as the use of the ultraviolet method, one will find that ozone treatment is the most effective because unlike the former, it does not leave behind any harmful byproducts while unlike the latter, it leaves behind those minerals which are of use in the human body.

Natural Systems in the Middle East

The natural systems of the world are some of the most its most important aspects since they are the ones which enable the earth to sustain itself and all the creatures that are within it. The various natural systems are the ones which define the environmental zones that can be found all over the world, and without them, then the earth would be unrecognizable. In some cases, it is possible that without the natural systems, then the earth would become a harsh environment indeed, not being able to sustain those that currently exist within it. Since time immemorial, human beings have had to adapt to these different natural systems in order to survive and throughout this time, this race has proven to be among the most resilient in the world. While one cannot help but commend the hardiness of this race in its ability to survive even some of the harshest conditions in the world, it should be noted that human beings, through their activities, have had an impact on the naturals systems within which they have come to settle. This is a consequence of the of their attempts to adapt to these environments and while some of the impacts may be positive, sadly, a majority of them tend to be negative, as it has often led to the destruction of the natural systems that are involved. Among the most affected areas in the world today, due to human activity, is the Middle East where there has existed, for thousands of years, great civilizations, which have impacted significantly on the natural systems.

Human beings in the Middle East were, for a long time, primarily pastoralists and because of this, they had an impact on the environment. This region is primarily arid or semiarid and because of this, the pastoralists had to move from place to place with their livestock in order to find sustenance. These people tended to have large herds which fed on the scarce vegetation that could be found in this region at the time. As a consequence, large tracts of rare vegetation were destroyed by these animals and with this destruction also came the destruction of many diverse ecosystems. With the destruction of the plant life also came the continued desertification of the region as the scarce plant cover was stripped away by the large herds of livestock. In recent times, however, as many people in the region have come to abandon pastoralism in favor of living in urban areas, some of the vegetation that were almost completely destroyed have began to thrive again.

The Middle East is a major source of oil and natural gas and it has been stated that it holds some of the largest reserves of these resources in the world. These resources have, over the last few decades, been a major source of income for the countries which can be found in this region. Not only has it enabled their governments have plenty of wealth to fund expansive social welfare systems, but it has also enabled the increase of the standard of living, with some even stating that these standards are higher than those in the Western world. While this is true, there has also been a significant impact on the environment. The first of these has been the discharge of carbon fumes to the environment from the oil mining sites. The mining of oil and its refining involves the burning of the fossil fuels involved so that the product can be extracted from the ground, and this means that there has been a rise in the carbon emissions in the region in recent decades. While the mining of oil has and continues to be a profitable venture, it has come to bring harm to the environment as it has contributed an immense deal in global warming. While some places in the Middle East were extremely dry, with the commencement of oil mining, these places have become even drier and hotter and this has led to the destruction of quite a number of plant and animal life since the increased heat has destroyed their ecosystems.

The increase in heat has also ensured that the scarce water resources that were previously available have become scarcer. The increase of the heat in the desert has meant that the rate of water evaporation has also increased and this has created a situation where life in this environment has become unsustainable. The plant life which depended on this scarce resource to survive now has less of an opportunity to survive because of the high rates of evaporation. Furthermore, the creatures which depended on these plants for survival have also come to reduce in number because there are not enough of the plants available to sustain them. Human activities in the Middle East have therefore created a situation where the natural ecosystems have come to slowly die away as they attempt to gain a profit from the natural resources available. It has become the norm for the human population in the region to move to the urban areas in search for a better life. This is because of the fact that the increasing heat in the desert has made life unbearable and the traditional, nomadic way of life has become unsustainable. The urban areas have now become the places where they can live comfortably due to the modern appliances that are available. The nomadic way of life, which was more in harmony with the environment, has largely been abandoned and this has created a situation where it is difficult to maintain the natural environment as multinational corporations move into the seemingly abandoned areas to prospect for oil. The natural systems are therefore being slowly destroyed with very little being done to stop their destruction either by the governments involved or by their business partners.

The population of the Middle East is currently largely concentrated in the urban areas and this has created a situation where the likelihood of pollution of all types has become a reality. The burning of fossil fuels in such concentrated areas as the cities has led to high levels of air pollution which has come to affect the natural systems which are close to these cities. The pollution of air has not only caused related diseases in human beings, but it has also done so in animals which have come into contact with this polluted air. While thee diseases can be easily diagnosed among human beings and treated, in animals living in the wild, this is impossible and it has in fact led to the reduction of this animals to a level which can be considered near extinction. While the numbers are not currently known, this senseless destruction of animal life has come to destroy the various natural systems, which depend on the significant numbers of these animals to remain sustainable. The destruction of such systems means that entire habitats are at risk of either leading to the extinction of certain species of both plants and animals, or the possibility of these habitats becoming unpredictable. This would create a situation where certain species of plants or animals would be able to gain an advantage over others as some parts of the food chain will be removed, enabling the population of some to increase at the expense of others.

The rapid human population growth in the Middle East has come to affect the natural systems available, especially those that deal with water. Historically, the Middle East is known as a place which has had extremely little water resources and because of the rare occurrences of rainfall, it is difficult to have a steady replenishing of the water supply. The population growth of this region is putting an immense strain on the available water resources as the demand for this commodity continues to increase by the day. It has also led to a belief within the scientific community that if something is not done to ensure the security of this resource, then the Middle East is in danger of falling into a situation akin to famine, where the entire population as well as the natural systems involved are likely to fail. The insatiable need for water is slowly but surely depleting this resource and there is a fear that it may lead to a shortage in the food supply of the region. Such a shortage is likely to create a situation where there may develop political instability in the region, and as is well known, such occurrences tend to lead to conflicts which have the potential of further worsening the environmental situation. The shortage of water will probably be caused by nations which fail to cooperate in the equitable allocation of the water resources they share, since they continue to behave more as rivals than as partners when this precious resource is concerned and this is likely to lead to future conflict.

Another part of the natural systems in the Middle East that has been affected by human activity has been the marine environment, which has increased significantly over the last century. The coastal engineering projects that have been put in place either by the governments and private interests of the Middle East have contributed an immense deal in the changing or damaging of the marine natural systems. In addition, there has been increased shipping in the Middle East due to the development of the oil industry as well as the increased purchasing power of many Middle Eastern states. The ships which sail along the coast of this region tend to bring about plenty of pollution since the fumes they emit as well as the oil that is spilled into the oceans come to affect the marine life of the Middle East. This has come to change the marine ecosystems in the places affected as some marine life have either had to move away from their natural habitats which have become inhospitable, or others have been destroyed.

The marine environment of the Middle East has also come to be affected, in recent times, by the development of desalination plants for the purposes of providing fresh water for the region’s population. While these plants are good for the people because they allow them to have fresh water, they have a disastrous impact on the marine ecosystem of the region. A lot of energy is used during the desalination process and this naturally leads to the emission of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Furthermore, the salt which is the end product of the desalination process is dumped back into the sea; it has a massive environmental impact on marine life because it creates a situation where the salt concentration in the water is doubled. The increased salt concentration in the seawater has the potential of killing many marine organisms and it is possible that it can also cause damage to the marine population.

It can be concluded that human beings have indeed had quite an impact on the natural systems of the Middle East as they have attempted to adapt to their environment. To be able to live comfortably, human beings have made advances both in their social lives and also technologically. These, however, while succeeding in their goal of providing comfort have also taken a toll on the natural systems in the region. Throughout the ages, livestock have been reared to provide sustenance but in this region, they have also led to the rapid desertification of certain areas as they have ended up stripping away the plant cover. Moreover, in modern times, humans have developed desalination plants as well as oil wells so that they can get fresh water and satisfy the demand for oil respectively. While both of these ventures have bee highly profitable, this profit has come at the expense of the natural environment as in some places, whole ecosystems have been destroyed. The concentration of the human population in the urban areas has led to an increase in the pollution levels which have had an impact on the natural systems that exist near them, or those in areas where the resources needed to supply the cities are found. It can, therefore, be said that human beings have had a significant impact on the natural systems of these region.