Globalization Straining Planet's Health
Monday, May 22, 2006
Globalization is a powerful driving force behind today's unprecedented biological implosion.
An upsurge of trade and investment in natural resources sectors (e.g. forestry, mining, and petroleum development) is threatening the health of the world's forests, mountains, waters, and other sensitive ecosystems.
The rapid growth in the movement of human beings and their goods and services has provided convenient transportation for thousands of other species of plants and animals that are now taking root on foreign shores. On any given day, some 2 million people cross international borders, while 3,000 to 10,000 aquatic species are moving around the world in ship ballasts. Once "exotic species" establish a beachhead in a foreign ecosystem, they often proliferate, suppressing native species, and imposing high economic costs.
High-tech industries such as computers and electronics have also gone global in recent years. Despite their early reputation as relatively clean, these industries can exact heavy environmental costs.
Semiconductor manufacturing employs hundreds of chemicals, including arsenic, benzene, and chromium, all of which are known carcinogens. More than half of all computer manufacturing and assembly operations processes intensive in their use of acids, solvents, and toxic gases are now located in developing countries
Despite the environmental risks, the forces of globalization can also produce environmental gains, such as helping developing countries leapfrog to the cleaner technologies of tomorrow.
China has become the world's largest manufacturer of energy-efficient compact fluorescent light bulbs in recent years, in part through joint ventures with lighting firms based in Hong Kong, Japan, the Netherlands, and Taiwan.
And India has become a major manufacturer of advanced wind turbines with the help of technology obtained through joint ventures and licensing agreements with Danish, Dutch, and German firms.
Several countries are working to harness the global economy to protect rather than decimate natural wealth.
Costa Rica is now a major destination for eco-tourists, capitalizing on its moist cloud forests, sandy beaches, and dry deciduous forests. And many other countries have moved to tap into the booming international market for organic produce.
Mexico now has some 10,000 organic farms on 15,000 hectares of land, most of them run by small farmers. While coffee is their mainstay, Mexico's organic farmers also cultivate apples, avocados, coconuts, cardamom, honey, and potatoes.
Redirecting the global economy away from environmentally harmful activities and into more sustainable ones will require a multi-pronged strategy, starting with requiring international economic institutions to pay more heed to the environmental impact of their programs.
Environmentalists should take a page from the World Trade Organization and push for international environmental commitments that are as specific and enforceable as trade accords have become.
New information and communications technologies can be harnessed to forge powerful cross-border political alliances trend that is already well underway. The number of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) working across international borders soared during the last century, climbing from just 176 in 1909 to more than 23,000 in 1998. Empowered by e-mail and the Internet, environmental activists have gradually organized themselves into a range of powerful international networks, such as the Climate Action Network, the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements, and the Women's Environment and Development Organization.
Some forward-looking corporations are helping to chart the path to an environmentally sustainable global economy, according to the report.
Private investors are also increasingly active on environmental issues.
Despite these encouraging developments, environmental destruction continues to outpace society's collective response.
"Over the course of the twentieth century, the global economy stretched the planet to its limits,"
"The time is now ripe to forge the international policies and institutions needed to ensure that the world economy of the 21st century meets peoples' aspirations for a better future without destroying the natural fabric that underpins life itself."
brought to you by: xiu (health and environment expert)
Posted by xiu at 9:36 am
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