Importance Of The Protection Of The Environment

It would not be an exaggeration to suggest that the contemporary humanity is much more aware of the environmental impact that its activities have if compared to the past. That is why the protection of the environment has become an important issue in the social environment. Given the fact that politics may be defined as the struggle of groups of people to achieve the authority to make decisions that will be mandatory for the entire society, it has been a matter of time until the environmental issue turns into political issues. That is why one might suggest that the current view on environmental problems is heavily influenced by the political world. Therefore, any decisions that are made to preserve the environment will have to go through the established political procedure. This paper will examine the political nature of environmental decision making, determine whether it is problematic for environmental protection of not and what are the major side effects of this phenomenon.

First of all, one may be interested in situating the environmental topics in the political spectrum correctly. Thus, it is true that at a certain point the two parties did view protection of the environment as a goal that it bipartisan; however, later the views on this issue have changed dramatically. Thus, the Democrats believe that it is the responsibility of the government to take care of nature because it is the only actor that is powerful enough to achieve any positive results. In addition to that, they point out that it is an inalienable right of a citizen to live in a safe environment that includes clean air, clean water, clean soil and so on. A good example is Al Gore who is a prominent Democratic politician known for his concern over global warming and the desire to encourage the government to fight it.

Since it has already been established that environmental protection is the topic that is associated with the Democrats, it is quite obvious that the Republicans will have a different point of view on these issues. Thus, this political parties has been traditionally known for deregulation and the desire to limit the government as soon as possible. Therefore, by rejecting environmental protection as a responsibility of the federal government, the Republicans successfully reduced the amount of power granted to it which adheres to their political ideology. Moreover, this party believes that environmental protection may interfere with property rights of people; therefore, it would not be correct from their point of view to give preference to some vague ideas over the solid institution of private property: the institution that is fundamental to the American government. Furthermore, the Republics insist that if there is a need to protect the environment, then it should be done on a competitive basis, thus honoring free market principle.

The increased level of involvement of politics in environmental protection may be quite problematic. For example, Layzer states that “in 1995 a reaction against environmentalism that had been growing in scale and intensity since the late 1980s found expression in Congress with the ascension of the Republican Party (383). All this shows that if environmental issues become a part of the political struggle than one party will most certainly retaliate if it has a chance to: the Reagan years with its vivid anti-environmentalism were changed by the Clinton years when the political course was quite the opposite. So, it seems that the government will be stuck in a seesaw position when one political agenda will always be changed by another. Therefore, under these conditions, it will impossible to achieve anything since the efforts of one administration will be canceled by the next.

Another interesting aspect that should be mentioned with this regard is a devaluation of environmentalism as such. Indeed, it used to be that people who were well aware of the problem would advocate for the chance, but now environmental protection is something that any person who believes that he or she is progressive will support. A good example is the perception of Earth Day. Layzer writes that in 1970 “Earth Day was a resounding success – an outpouring of social activism comparable to the civil rights and Vietnam War protests” (33). Therefore, one might suggest that environmentalism simply filled the void that remained after the civil rights movement disappeared and the Vietnam War ended. Therefore, active individuals simply needed to care about something and they chose the environment. So, protection of nature became yet another ideal that nobody wanted to achieve, but everyone was eager to protect.

The points that were mentioned above suggest that there are several side effects of environmental issues becoming political. First of all, it becomes obvious that the division of the public based on their loyalty to the party appears to be artificial. Indeed, the Democrats and the Republicans may hold different, often conflicting views on virtually any aspect of the society, but environmental protection is not a zero-sum situation. If the planet loses, figuratively speaking, then every country in the world will lose. Therefore, if the Unites States as a nation experiences catastrophic consequences of climate change, the distinction between Democrats and Republicans will not matter. Therefore, this area may and should be something that both parties agree on because there is simply no politics involved in nature. So, neither Democrats nor Republicans will lose or gain anything by protecting the environment. Therefore, the latter should be separated from the political world.

Finally, one should note that by turning environmental decision-making into a part of the political life, the government reduced the importance of environmentalism to yet another bargaining chip that the parties use to attract people. Indeed, the issue of birth control or gun control can hardly be compared to any environmental issue in terms of consequences. Thus, whether people will be allowed to buy and carry guns freely or not will not matter if the climate will change and the conditions will become terrible. Therefore, environmental protection should note appear as one of the bullet points in the campaign of the parties, it should be a mission that each party wants to be a part of. Furthermore, it is worth pointing out that the benefits of sustainable environment will be equally enjoyed by every citizen regardless of one’s political affiliation. Therefore, it is not logical to turn this into a partisan issue.

As one can easily see based on the analysis which was performed before, the environmental decision-making process has indeed become too political. Even though it used to be that the two parties cooperated with each other to protect nature, nowadays the Democrats turned environmentalism into their cause, while the Republicans seem to be opposite it. It is worth pointing out that this division may have negative consequences. Thus, as Layzer noted, one administration will try to undo what the previous administration did, ultimately making it impossible for the society to achieve anything in terms of environmental protection. Furthermore, environmentalism was turned into yet another important political issued that activists will care about in the absence of other issues. Moreover, this division among the people may be seen as artificial since environmental issues affect everyone equally. Finally, it seems that environmentalism was turned into a bargaining chip that the parties use to attract people.

The terms offer and acceptance. (2016, May 17). Retrieved from

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016.

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]

freeessays.club (2016) The terms offer and acceptance [Online].
Available at:

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]
close
Haven't found the right essay?
Get an expert to write you the one you need!
print

Professional writers and researchers

quotes

Sources and citation are provided

clock

3 hour delivery

person