Environment Case

The forces of globalisation, being the increased mobility of goods, services and labour on a global scale, have had an undeniably negative influence on the world environment. The overexploitation of resources, the development and implementation of the Kyoto Protocol and other international pacts and the connection between environmental abuse and medically diagnosed illnesses are all linked to the globalisation of the environment.

Since the industrial revolution of the 1800s the need for natural resources has continually grown, and demand has been met, regardless of the toll that it has had on the environment. The growing population has and continues to have an unquenchable thirst for the latest and greatest in gadgets, technology and equipment; this has meant that nature has had to keep up with demand. In the past, oil has been found in abundance, and when one oil well dried up, there was always another well available for use, whether it be for vehicles, production or for agricultural reasons. However we will find in the next fifty to one hundred years, there is going to be a substantial lack of oil. "Oil is running out, and nobody is ready for the cataclysm that is bound to follow" (Gelpke), sums up the immeasurable need that the world has for oil, and the unpreparedness for what will happen when it runs out. The same doomsday forecast can be predicted for most other natural resources. If people look to nuclear energy as an alternative to oil, around the world over 10, 000 nuclear power plants will need to be set up; however, uranium will only be sustainable for 10 to 20 years (A Crude Awakening).

Serious action also needs to be taken in relation to deforestation and overfishing. Multinational Corporations can be held responsible for the destruction that has been caused to the Amazon and to Brazil and other areas of South America because of the effects of deforestation. The wood gathered from deforestation goes towards building furniture and housing, however, sustainable forests need to be developed otherwise, historic villages have been destroyed through the effects of the deforestation. Villages which are located on mountain sides in South America are being wiped out due to landslides as a result of the excessive deforestation, and also results in soil degradation, which makes agricultural efforts in some areas futile. "As a result of massive deforestation in the Philippines, flooding is often greater and landslides more extreme." (Yee), this quote provides categorical evidence of the hardships that the people of the Philippine's face with their environment, due to the exploitation of forests. Action has been taken through initiatives such as the UN Global Compact, and state based initiatives, however, much more needs to be done in order to preserve the worlds natural resources for years to come. The Global Compact has benefitted the environment greatly, by providing guidelines to Multinational Corporations