How Does Environmental Security Affect Sustainable Development?

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Table of Contents

Introduction
The Concept of Environmental Security
The Notion of Sustainable Development
Environmental Security’s Requirements for Achieving the Sustainable Development
Possible Limitations and Solutions
Conclusion
Reference List

Introduction

Sustainable development is an important notion that implies addressing environmental, economic, and societal issues to maintain the provision of resources upon which the existence of the society depends. This paper scrutinizes the influence of environmental security on sustainable development, namely, the requirements the former sets to achieve the latter. It is also argued that these requirements are crucial for human society. The concepts of environmental security and sustainable development are explained; the mentioned requirements are exposed, and their importance is shown; and, finally, possible limitations related to the two concepts in question are considered, and a way to deal with these limitations is offered.

The Concept of Environmental Security

Environmental security is an interdisciplinary issue concerned with researching the natural environment and human activity in order to find out what hazards the latter creates for the former and what threats nature might pose to human security as a result and averting these hazards and threats (Khagram, Clark & Raad 2003 p. 291). Here, human security includes the possibility to have a reasonable life expectancy, to live without experiencing poverty, to be able to satisfy basic material needs, to take part in the life of one’s community, and to have freedom from want or fear (Khagram, Clark & Raad 2003, p. 292).

It is important to point out that environmental issues are capable of causing various social problems and even lead to violent conflicts. These may result not only from the scarcity of natural resources but also from numerous effects of the human’s influence on the natural world, such as climate change. For instance, the global heating results in polar ice caps melting, which leads to the sea level rise (Riebeek 2010). If the rise is significant, many lowlands might be flooded permanently, which would cause people to seek new places to live; it is clear that violent actions and surges of xeno- and migrantophobia are quite probable to follow. They can be exacerbated by the lack of food due to desertification of formerly fertile lands, overpopulation, unequal resource access, etc. Such migrations would also cause further harm to the environment due to the increase in population density, resource conflict, and so on.

On the other hand, the preservation of natural environment can have multiple benefits to the humanity (Khagram, Clark & Raad 2003, p. 294). For instance, the proper usage and management of water resources are crucial for keeping and facilitating the stable supply of fresh, drinkable water to the areas where it is scarce.

Therefore, the maintenance of environmental security is essential. We need to preserve the natural world in order to keep a stable supply of freshwater, clean air, food, as well as minerals, medication, energy, etc., for they are crucial for the existence of the life-supporting systems necessary for the human (Institute for Environmental Security n.d.; Hecker 2011, p. 12).

The Notion of Sustainable Development

The umbrella term “sustainable development” is usually used to denote the type of human activity that allows for satisfaction of human needs, at the same time jeopardizing neither the natural world nor human society. It includes three main areas: ecological, economic, and societal (Giddings, Hopwood & O’Brien 2002). It is a multidimensional way of considering the issues of sustaining human life systems. For this goal, it is necessary to preserve natural resources and ecosystems, the diversity of species, as well as cultural traditions and values. This sustaining is to be followed by economic development, as well as the progression of social institutions and organizations for “participation and deliberation, negotiation and conflict resolution, policy formulation and implementation,” etc. (Khagram, Clark & Raad 2003, p. 296-297).

Sustainable development includes, but is not limited to, the “issues of population, climate, economic prosperity, energy, natural resource use, waste management, biodiversity, watershed protection, technology, agriculture, safe water supplies, international security, politics, green building… human values,” etc. (What is sustainable development? n.d.). Sustainable communities possess the following characteristics (What is sustainable development? n.d.):

economic security: a flexible and diverse economy that takes into account the needs of society and ecological limitations, and can satisfy both the needs of the current community and future generations;
ecological integrity: preserves the natural world a) to be able to obtain the sufficient amounts of natural resources and supplies and maintain their availability, b) to enable waste processing, c) for the sake of nature’s beauty and the environment’s livability;
social equality and well-being: includes the absence of dire economic inequity, as well as the respect for each other, the freedom from want and fear, the provision of education and medical services, etc.;
cultural health: the preservation of cultural heritage and promotion of culture;
civic participation and responsibility: the ability of the community’s members to take part in decision-making and influence the situation of their community;
institutional efficacy: effective and efficient governance, social institutions, non-profit organizations, etc.

Environmental Security’s Requirements for Achieving the Sustainable Development

Redclift (2002, p. 33) points out that the very term of sustainable development implies that ecological considerations ought to be taken into account and implemented into economic and social processes. It is easy to see that at least items 1- 4 from the previous subsection have a certain degree of dependence upon the natural world. As the ecological issues are global, they should be regarded while shaping both national and international policies.

Because sustainable development includes environmental aspects, an important part of it is the general goal of realizing environmental security. The latter includes many issues that must be addressed. We will discuss some of them.

Natural resources

First of all, environmental security considerations demand that we do not overuse natural resources. The reckless usage and exploitation of natural resources, followed by large amounts of pollution, and done with lacking investments into human capital, is a sign of unsustainable development (eds Matthew et al. 2010, p. 263). Renewable natural resources should be used at a pace that does not exceed the rate at which nature can regenerate these resources. Besides, the usage of non-renewable natural resources should be maximally decreased. The implementation of alternative technologies could significantly lower the number of used fossil fuels (Riddell et al. n.d.). The amounts of natural resources used can be controlled by utilizing various tools, e.g., certain taxation policies (Greiner & Semmler 2008).

Quantities of production

Careful and sustainable utilization of natural resources means that the amount of produced goods needs to be limited. The volume of products manufactured ought to be consistent with the needs of society. On the other hand, overproduction leads not only to ecological disaster but also to social and economic crises. The latter is due to the fact that, when the quantity of goods in the market significantly exceeds the total spending power in a society, the lack of sales leads to the downtime and to the inability of companies to provide jobs for the population, which further exacerbates the economic situation (Marx 2004). If we combine this with the extremely harmful effect of overproduction on the environment, it becomes clear that the amounts of production should be kept within reasonable limits. This can be achieved in many ways, for instance, by utilizing the taxation tools mentioned in the previous subsection.

The usage of efficient, environmentally friendly technologies

This is needed for both natural resource preservation and the reduction of greenhouse and noxious gas emissions and other discharges that pollute the environment (Riddell et al. n.d.). It is important to note that efficient technologies should be used not only in the industry but also in everyday life.

The preservation of landscapes

It is also paramount to strive for protection and preservation of natural landscapes, because their destruction (due to e.g., surface mining or agricultural land use) leads to deterioration of natural habitats of species and, therefore, poses a grave threat to biological diversity; the latter is also crucial for sustainable development of human society. This threat is further exacerbated by climate change. If not controlled, landscape destruction might lead to unforeseen and dire consequences. Travis (2003) argues that there usually exists a threshold of landscape deterioration; if it is exceeded, species begin to die out rapidly. The landscapes are also of immense value due to their cultural and aesthetical significance. Any industrial activities which ruin natural landscapes must be limited and kept within the bounds of the threshold, and measures for the renovation of the lost landscapes should be taken.

Waste management

Minimization and proper disposal of waste are of essence for the natural world preservation, as well as for the health of the human population. If properly recycled, waste can also serve as a significant source of materials or energy. This issue must be taken into account on all the levels of society: by local and national governments, organizations, and households (Vaughn 2009).

Armed conflicts

Armed conflicts are extremely devastating phenomena that take the lives of many people and ruin social institutions, exacerbate poverty and social inequity, etc. Armed conflicts also cause immeasurable damage to the environment and further harm communities that depend on natural resources. Needless to say that these conflicts are inconsistent with sustainable development and that they should be avoided at all costs. It is important that international law for environment protection applies during armed conflicts, and that the infliction of environmental damage which exacerbates these conflicts is considered a crime according to the international law (United Nations Environment Programme 2009).

Possible Limitations and Solutions

As we were able to see, the need for environmental security aimed at sustainable development demands us to take steps in a wide variety of issues. The introduction of these steps may require the implementation of policies that might cause controversy. For instance, we have already mentioned the need to limit the amounts of manufactured products. It is possible to use certain taxation policies to do this (Greiner & Semmler 2008); on the other hand, Moore (2015) claims that in some cases (namely, tax targeting), such policies would prove ineffective. Moreover, Viñuales (2013, p. 9) notes that sometimes environmental protection might lead to certain constraints on fundamental freedoms. In our opinion, it is rather tolerable to reduce the volumes of manufacturing (which would, of course, require the implementation of some social or welfare policies to compensate for lowered employment rates). On the other hand, the restriction of social freedoms of people is not acceptable, and it is necessary to ensure that they are not limited.

Viñuales (2013, p. 3) stresses that the notion of sustainable development is rather broad; it comprises numerous disparate elements, which makes it quite a vague concept. Viñuales (2013) argues that this notion was quite effective in the 1980-1990s and proved instrumental in creating a body of international law concerned with environmental protection; on the other hand, the author concludes, this concept is too broad to set clear priorities and implement the necessary changes, which is paramount nowadays.

To solve this problem, the scientist offers to focus on four issues: participation (the need to increase the role of social forces, such as civil activists and non-profit organizations, in shaping and implementing sustainable policies and making sure they do not restrict fundamental freedoms), differentiation (distribution of international obligations between concrete actors and executives), decarbonization (transfer to alternative sources of energy from fossil fuels), and innovation and technology diffusion (technological innovation is instrumental in shifting from fossil fuels; diffusion, or enabling access to innovative technologies for those who are not quite able to afford it, is an economic and a legal issue). Viñuales (2013, p. 11) emphasizes that these issues are “broad frontlines within which another area- or issue-specific frontlines would have to be open”; nevertheless, they provide a scale to assess the degree of implementation of proper global environmental management, which is necessary for sustainable development.

Conclusion

As we have seen, sustainable development is crucial for human society; it comprises environmental, economic, and societal aspects. The issue of environmental security sets some requirements that must be met if sustainable development is to be achieved. Complying with these requirements is of utmost importance. However, the concept of sustainable development remains somewhat vague, which hinders the implementation of its principles in practice. To overcome this weakness, it is necessary to specify the ways these principles can be realized.

Reference List

Giddings, B, Hopwood, B & O’Brien, G 2002, “Environment, economy and society: fitting them together into sustainable development”, Sustainable Development, vol. 10, no. 4, pp. 187-196. Web.

Greiner, A & Semmler, W 2008, The global environment, natural resources, and economic growth, Oxford University Press, New York, NY.

Hecker, JH 2011, Peace and sustainable development through environmental security. Web.

Institute for Environmental Security n.d., What is Environmental Security?. Web.

Khagram, S, Clark, VC & Raad, DV 2003, ‘From the environment and human security to sustainable security and development’, Journal of Human Development, vol. 4, no. 2, pp. 289-313. Web.

Marx, K 2004, Capital: a critique of political economy, volume 1, Penguin, London, UK.

Matthew, RA, Barnett, J, McDonald, B & O’Brien, KL (eds) 2010, Global environmental change and human security, The MIT Press, Cambridge, MA.

Moore, M 2015, The sustainable development goals – reject tax targeting. Web.

Redclift, M 2002, Sustainable development: exploring the contradictions, Routledge, London, UK.

Riddell, A, Ronson, S, Counts, G, & Spenser, K n.d., Towards sustainable energy: the current fossil fuel problem and the prospects of geothermal and nuclear power. Web.

Riebeek, H 2010, Global warming. Web.

Travis, JMJ 2003, ‘Climate change and habitat destruction: a deadly anthropogenic cocktail’, Proceedings of the Royal Society of London, vol. 270, pp. 467-473, viewed 27 August 2015, via JSTOR database.

United Nations Environment Programme 2009, Protecting the environment during armed conflict: an inventory and analysis of international law, Web.

Vaughn, J 2009, Waste management: a reference handbook, ABC-CLIO, Santa Barbara, CA.

Viñuales, JE 2013, ‘The rise and fall of sustainable development’, Review of European, Comparative & International Environmental Law, vol. 22, no. 1, pp. 3-13, via EBSCOhost database.

What is sustainable development? n.d., Web.

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