Tuesday, November 10th, 2009 - 7 comments

The environment and the economic meltdown

With good planning, focus and commitment, our natural environment can survive the economic meltdown.

I have some questions for you: What is the relationship between the economic meltdown and environmental sustainability? How would the meltdown affect the course of environmental sustainability? How can we effectively manage our environment in the face of the present economic meltdown? This is the focus of this article.

It is quite interesting that the word, “meltdown” is being used to define the current economic crunch. Before now, meltdown is used to define the leakage or accident at a nuclear facility resulting in the exposure of dangerous nuclear elements to the environment. If such a word should be used to define an economic situation, then it is something very serious.

Environmental sustainability

The concept of environmental sustainability which came up as a result of observed damages done to the environment by human activities has faced so many challenges. These challenges have made it very difficult to fully put to work the prescriptions of sustainability. The prescription of using natural resources in such a manner as not to jeopardize their prospects to meet the demands of future generations. It demands among other things a drastic reduction in the emission of polluting substances, controlled deforestation and aggressive re-forestation, controlled use of water resources, execution of environmental impact assessment for projects, proper waste management, good and effective recycling and reuse policy and adoption of green living ideology by people.

With the present economic down turn, many nations are now more concerned with stabilizing their economies and this to a good extent involves increase use of natural resources to increase production and market.

Therefore, more natural resources would be used further depleting the highly diminished global resource base. It means more oil would be mined reducing the already disappearing global oil reserves. More fossil fuels might be burnt by industries increasing global warming. More sea food would be exported. More of the already decimated forests would be cleared for cultivation, and fuelwood for cooking, home heating and construction.

With a decrease in their financial power, people are bound to pounce on what is available and affordable and that would be nothing other than the natural resources. If great care is not taken by all and sundry, the economic meltdown would translate to a serious environmental meltdown.

To overcome this;

• Concerted efforts should be made by everyone to embrace green living.

• Governments, NGOs and other organizations should pull resources together and find lasting solution to the meltdown.

• Policies should be enacted and implemented to ensure that industries comply with environmental laws.

• People should be properly educated on the environmental implication of their lifestyle and encouraged to live green.

• Reduce. reuse and recycle principles should be encouraged.

The views expressed in this blog-post are solely those of the author.