Book Review
Ecological Meltdown - Impact of unchecked human growth on the earth’s natural systems
Asheem Srivastav and Suvira Srivastav
In a recent article in Proceedings of National Academy of Sciences, Paul R.Ehrlich and robert M.Pringle observe that, in the absence of a rapid, tranformative intervention, the earth's biodiversity will gop "up in smoke" (PNAS, August 12, 2008).
There are several disturbing pointers to the impending crisis: trees that are vital for averting desertification and arresting the increase in greenhouse gas emmissions are felled at a perturbing rate- one estimate has it that, at the, at the current rate of destruction, rainforests across the world will be wiped out in 40 years; the oceanic zooplankton- a critical element in the food chain as well as the oxygen cycle- has declined at an alarming 73% since 1960; and the increase in greenhouse gas emmissions, especially carbon dioxide, has the potential not only to cause global climate change, but also to threaten living organisms in different oceans by raising the acidity level.
CAUSES
That there is, unmistakably, the human hand or influence behind all these factors is reflected in several recent publications, including the Millenium ecosystem Assessment. Through their analysis of the causes and implications of ecological meltdown, the authors of this book seek to convey the same message.
The first of the eight chapters in the book sets the tone by speaking about species extinction and the need for conservation. The second dwells on how population growth contributes to ecological destruction, while the third chapter highlights the multiple threats to ecosystems. The precarious condition in which the protected areas and their inhabitants find themselves as a consequence of human greed is depicted in the next two chapters. the rest of the book focusses on the remedies for the ecological destruction set in motion by the anthropogenic activities.
Asheem Srivastav and Suvira Srivastav argue that the ongoing conservation effoprts at the national and global levels through multilateral agreements and with international funding are useful only as a sort of 'first aid' and are not good enough to treat the "deep wounds" that are inflicted on the ecosystem. They contend that the notion of sustainable development needs to be revisited urgently if an ecological meltdown is to be averted.
Apart from population growth, unbridled consumption demand is held out as another vital cause for ecological destruction. But the authors fail to acknowledge the important role played by the divergence in consumption patterns of the haves and the have-nots.
For instance, the regional estimates of the ecological footprint prepared by the Global Footprint network reveal that the combined ecological influence of north America and the European Union( with a total population of about 780million) is more than that of Asia (comprising about 3,500 million people). The book is good in identifying the causes and implications of the ecological meltdown, but it puts forth hardly any new idea for tackling the problem. For instance, the authors discuss at length how consumption of wood fuel leads to degradation of forests, but fail to explore why a vast majority of the rural population is compelled to depend on wood for their fuel needs. Nor are the health implications of this continued dependence discussed.
SOLUTIONS
Use of improved stoves coupled with curbs by local governments on drawing fuel wood from a live tree will cut down not only the health-related social burden but also the household sector's contribution to greenhouse gas emissions. Similarly, in the developing countries, off-grid solutions involving renewable resourses have the potential to meet the energy needs of the poor, without pushing the Earth to the brink of disaster. The authors could well have focussed more on solutions to the problem.
In fact, a number of solutions have been in discussion for quite a few years now, and many of them are prima facie doable. Ehrlich and Pringle, in their article cited at the beginning, suggest some feasible pathways to avert an ecological disaster. Unfortunately, the academic community, which is all-too-familiar with the 'solutions', does not see their 'implementation' as part of its job description. Preventing an ecological meltdown lies not so much in the hands of cutting-edge science as in the ability of the academia to educate society at large. The Srivastavs, through their simple narrative, have sought to serve this objective.
Courtesy: The Hindu. This news item appeared in The Hindu as a book review on Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Posted by- Ananya Bose, First year, NLIU.
