3.0 ETHICAL AND MORAL VALUES OF ENVIRONMENTAL BIOTECHNOLOGY
Environmental ethics enable us to comprehend and value the nature and invention of God but they may differ in terms of different civilisations and perspectives. There are two ways environment ethnics can be addressed which are human-centred and ecocentric. Human-centred approach is about what environment can supply to humans and the maintenance of the resources for present and future use. On the other hand, ecocentric approach is appreciated as core value which is what humans may give to the environment. Both of the approaches achieve a consensus that humans are a portion of biosphere, what human had did will affect themselves, environment and also the sustainability of the earth (Amin, 2009). Currently, there are some arguments about whether biotechnology will provide benefits or risks to the environment.
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For example, plant-based pharmaceuticals are useful in vaccine manufacturing to produce immune system against the pathogen. Although it is beneficial, it could also lead to changes in environment by retaining the transgenic materials in wildlife in the environment (Shama & Peterson, 2004). Another issues is the fish which are inserted with metal-sequestering protein for pollution clean-up may harm animals that consumes them. Morally, transgenic plants are made because they can be stored and shipped at room temperature however vaccine is unstable to the heat. It is unethical that some endangered wildlife can possibly ingest toxins from these plants and extinct. Plant parts which are not harvested must be completely removed and also must have proper management for disposing. Fish which is genetically modified should be removed and create new ways to solve this
In “Is Fish Farming Safe?” Terry McCarthy states that the current way of fish farming is ruining our water and eco systems by dumping waste. Elizabeth Kolber essay “The Acid Sea” discusses about the carbon dioxide we are pumping into our oceans, and Susan Casey “Our Oceans Are Turning into Plastics… are you?” focuses on how we are dumping plastics and garbage into our oceans. While despite these author’s talking about different topic they all agree about future ramifications of having wastes in our oceans and waters.
A biocentric worldview states that all life is equally important. Homo sapiens don’t possess the right to dominate other species just because they are rational creatures with the ability to make their own decisions. There is a delicate but complex balance that exists between all living organisms that they are wholly dependent on for their survival. There is only one Planet Earth with finite resources available to be used and it is rapidly being degraded through the presence of human-caused pollution. In fact, if human beings went extinct, the plants and animals would be much better off as the environmental contamination would become virtually non-existent.
The Perversion of Nature In modern day, families across the globe consume potentially harmful genetically modified products, with little to no knowledge of the effects they may have on a person's health (Bailey 4). The uninformed society will then go on to pass down the negative affects of these GMOs to children and pets (Bailey 1). Society relies on cheap, yet damaging, “frankenfood” leading corporations have created (Cummins 1). Poor regulation and greed of mankind has brought upon a devastating future for posterity (Cummins 2).
This exercise required me to consider this issue's legal, ethical, and social implications. After conducting research and careful consideration, I concluded that businesses should be able to preserve their property rights by patenting modified organisms, but with certain limitations and regulations in place to ensure that such practices do not restrict competition and access to essential technologies. To further consolidate my understanding of these concepts, I also completed a written assignment where I had to argue for and against businesses being able to preserve their property rights by patenting modified organisms. I referenced the United States Supreme Court decision of Diamond v. Chakrabarty in my argument, which ruled that a living organism can be patented if modified in a way that is not naturally occurring.
The relationship which Humanity sustains with Nature needs to be valued and taken responsibly. “Choosing a Warning Label For Human DNA” and “Songs for turtles in the gulf” both show mankind the positive and negative impact on sustaining our relationship with nature. Wohlforth says to us we need an earth environment it was meant for us so it’s our to maintain. Hogan give us insight on knowing the value of the creatures that keep our environment thriving.
Life extension technologies will make us lose our humanity. Also, the consequences of life extension technologies on the actual society are not known. Therefore it would be a mistake for humanity to engage in that path. Those arguments will inform my audience on the two main issues concerning life extension technologies
Environmental ethics refers to the relationship that humans share with the natural world (Buzzle, 2011), it involves people extending ethics to the natural environment through the exercise of self-discipline (Nash, 1989). Herein the essay will give examples of anthropocentrism and non-anthropocentrism as forms of environmental ethics, criticizing anthropocentrism in contrast with a defence of non- anthropocentrism precedents. Anthropocentrism also referred to as human-centeredness, is an individualistic approach, a concept stating that humans are more valuable, and the environment is only useful for sustaining the lives of human beings (MacKinnon, 2007). The practise of human-centeredness is associated with egocentrism (Goodpaster, 1979), by contrast non-anthropocentrism is a holistic approach
Rachelle Black Dr. Vivian Foss English 300 2 May 2016 Deforestation of the Peruvian Amazon: Economic Growth Leads to Environmental Decline Life of any kind is not sustainable without the environment. Likewise, the environment would not exist without life. Animal life and plant life are essential to maintaining a healthy environment because they create stability within the environment’s ecosystems and its natural cycles. Humans have not kept up their obligation to the environment that is so desperately needed.
Environmental injustice would more or less be considered a violation of civil rights, according to the Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 “prohibits discrimination based on race or national origin in federally funded programs and activities” (Fisher, 1995, p. 287). People could sue a company for stripping them of their civil rights. This headway in legal actions have resulted in polices like; Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA, also known as Superfund) and the 1986 Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) (Brulle & Pellow, 2006). When people started pushing back and demanding blame, it created more area of funds for hazardous waste cleanup and making sure there is a better monitoring
Ecological disequilibrium (non-human species) iii. Regulation for consumers (labeling and patenting) iv. Human germline/gene pool (Human genome as a patrimony) v. Editing for enhancement (non-therapeutic uses) vi. Animal chimeras for organ transplantation (moral status of non-human animals) 3. Inquiry Unit a.
We live in a world where technology is constantly changing and evolving for the better, and if w e continue to ignore and make assumptions about genetic engineering. We will not be able to feed our growing population. Both plants and animals can be genetically modified, many people it is not healthy and feel as though chemicals are used, however genetic engineering is no different to natural except the fact that the production of the plant or animal is being made in a lab. Genetic engineering often is used to supply mass amounts of people with ease. As genetically modified foods and animals are usually stronger and take less effort to grow, with many of the animals being engineered to grow at faster rates, especially farm salmon.
Therefore, we need to think about tomorrow with respect to every action that we take in the environment and in this case we can say that sustainable development requires slower population growth. With this in mind, we need to be educated through our cultures about the impact we caused to the environment as we continue to reproduce. The challenge of environmental ethics has led to the attempt to apply traditional ethical theories, including consequentialism, deontology, and virtue ethics, to support contemporary environmental concerns; the preservation of biodiversity as an ethical goal; the broader concerns of some thinkers with wilderness, the built environment and the politics of poverty; the ethics of sustainability and climate change, and some directions for possible future developments of the discipline [ CITATION And15 \l 1033 ]. With this multi-dimensional approach one can see that it is more of a cultural issue to think of it from its origin.
Environmental ethics By the early 1970s, thanks to investigative writers like Rachel Carson who looked at the use of pesticides in Agriculture and especially thanks to the media attention surrounding Santa Barbara oil spill. There is this strong national trend in America towards Environmentalism -It became very popular. The media really played a very big part in advancing that cause. In the early 1970s, the Keep America Beautiful organization was founded.
Though it is claimed by many experts that genetically modified foods are safe for the environment, they actually still contain several kinds of substances that are not yet proven to be such. And what’s worse? These substances are remained hidden to the
As children, we were taught by our parents that it is wrong to lie, cheat, and steal. As we grow up and enter into the real world with some knowledge of right and wrong, we see, first hand, the importance of ethics as well as its complexity. The role of ethics in our society and in an individual’s life is very necessary because it has a large influence on today, as well as the future. We need to learn about good ethics because they guide our decisions, make us who we are, and determine our future.