CHAPTER FIVE

5. Environment and Sustainable Development

Introduction

In previous chapter we try to see poverty, underdevelopment and sustainable development.

Goods and services are produced to satisfy human wants. The production of various goods and
services requires resources- both man-made and natural. As more goods are produced, more
resources are used up. The process of production not only uses up resources, but also causes
other problems. For example, when goods are produced in factories, the factories emit smoke
which pollutes the air we breathe. Similarly, sewage discharged into rivers pollutes our drinking
water. As the demand for goods and services keeps increasing, so does the demand for resources.
As a result, resources are getting depleted and also being damaged irreparably. As we cut down
forests, pollute the air and rivers, and mine minerals from the earth, we destroy nature. Such a
destruction of nature is adversely affecting human life.

5.1. Environment, Natural resources and sustainable development

The environment encompasses all living and non-living things occurring naturally on Earth or
some region thereof. It includes all the biotic and abiotic factors that influence each other in
nature. All the living elements like birds, animals, plants, forests, etc. comprise the biotic
elements. On the other hand, everything non-living like air, water, rocks, sun, etc. are examples
of the abiotic component of the environment. A study of the environment is thus a study of the
inter-relationship between the abiotic and the biotic components of the environment.

With in this environment there were resources. Here a resource is any physical or virtual entity
of limited availability that needs to be consumed to obtain benefit from it. or It could be any
form of human and natural appraisal which varies over time and space. Resources also refer to
the sum total of wealth or sources of wealth of a person or country (Danjuma, 2007).

Resources can be grouped into many types using different criteria. They can be natural (God
given) and manmade (human). Natural resources occur in nature within the environment that
exists relatively undisturbed by mankind in a natural form. And Natural resources can further be
sub-divided into different types - renewable and non renewable resources.

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Renewable:

Renewable resources are the ones that are consistently available regardless of their use. They
can be fairly recovered or replaced after utilization. Examples include vegetation, water, and air.
Animals can also be categorized as renewable resources because they can be reared and bred to
reproduce offspring to substitute the older animals.

As much as these resources are renewable, it may take tens to hundreds of years to replace them.
The renewable raw materials that come from living things namely animals and trees are termed
as organic renewable resources while those that come from non-living things such as sun, water
and wind are termed as inorganic renewable resources.

Non-Renewable:

Non-renewable resources are the ones that cannot simply be substituted or recovered once they
have been utilized or destroyed. Examples of such natural resources include fossil fuels and
minerals. Minerals are categorized as non-renewable because, even though they take shape
naturally through the rock cycle, their formation periods take thousands of years. Some animals
mostly the endangered species are similarly regarded as non-renewable because they are at the
verge of extinction.

It brings about the many reasons the endangered species have to be protected by all means. The
non-renewable materials that come from living things such as fossil fuels are known as organic
non-renewable resources while those that come from non-living things such as rocks and soil are
referred to as inorganic non-renewable resources.

5.2. Sustainable Development and Natural Resources

The sustainable development and natural resources are indissoluble linked of the society existence, of
development of the economic, technologic, social, human medium, and of ensuring the environment
protection. Therefore the irrational exploitation of non-renewable resources must be avoided if the
benefits from the intensive exploitation of natural resources are very high on short time term. This
represents a basic rule in approaching of environment conservation using standards of minimal safe.

If a resource is exploited into tolerability parameters. Contrarily, the reserve will be diminishing to the
prejudice of future generation. The basic rule is that the proper price of a natural resource must reflect the
extraction costs (or production costs), the environmental costs and the utilization costs.

By comparing of the concepts of economic and ecologic tolerability it is concluded that it is more suitable
to exam the keeping of a set of possibilities to rational exploitation of natural resources, in comparison
with the strict conservation to the basic value of natural resources. This fact is due to the fact that the

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preferences and technologies are not constant during generations, so that the conservation of a basic value
can be proven to be excessive.

The diversity of demands and preoccupations on short time term, as well as the targets on long time term
existed into the whole world, suggests the fact that it not exists a ”good”or“bad” sustainable development,
universally valid. The maximization concept for the net benefits of economic and social development in
conditions of keeping the natural resources and environmental services vs. time can be useful in decisions
taking. This supposes the use of renewable resources, especially if these are poor, in small rates or equal
with the natural rate of regeneration. The efficiency of using the non-renewable resources must be
optimized by mean of the technological progress.

5.3. Environmental Degradation and Its Major Causes

Environmental degradation is an umbrella concept which covers a variety of issues including

pollution, biodiversity loss & animal extinction, deforestation & desertification, global warming,
and a lot more.

Environmental degradation is the deterioration of the environment through depletion of resources

such as air, water and soil; the destruction of ecosystem and the extinction of wildlife. It is
defined as any change or disturbance to the environment perceived to be deleterious or
undesirable.

Environmental degradation is one of the ten threats officially cautioned by the High-level Panel
on Threats, Challenges and Change of the United Nations. The United Nations International
Strategy for Disaster Reduction defines environmental degradation as "The reduction of the
capacity of the environment to meet social and ecological objectives, and needs". Environmental
degradation is of many types. When natural habitats are destroyed or natural resources are
depleted, the environment is degraded. Efforts to counteract this problem include environmental
protection and environmental resources management.

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5.3.1. Causes of Environmental Degradation

The major factor of environmental degradation is human (modern urbanization, industrialization,

overpopulation growth, deforestation, etc.) and natural (flood, typhoons, droughts, rising
temperatures, fires, etc.) cause. Environmental pollution refers to the degradation of the quality
and quantity of natural resources. Different kinds of human activities are the main reasons for
environmental degradation. Unplanned urbanization and industrialization have caused water, air,
soil, and sound pollution.

1. pollution

Air pollution refers to the release of harmful contaminants (chemicals, toxic gases, particulates,
biological molecules, etc.) into the earth’s atmosphere. These contaminants are quite detrimental,
and in some cases, pose serious health issues. Water pollution is said to occur when toxic
pollutants and particulate matter are introduced into water bodies such as lakes, rivers, and seas.
These contaminants are generally introduced by human activities like improper sewage treatment
and oil spills. Pollution is a very serious worldwide problem, pollution resulted in the
deterioration of the quality of natural biotic and abiotic factors

2. Overpopulation

Rapid population growth puts strain on natural resources, which results in the degradation of our
environment. Mortality rate has gone down due to better medical facilities, which has resulted in
an increased lifespan. More population simply means more demand for food, clothes and shelter.
You need more space to grow food and provide homes to millions of people. This results in
deforestation, which is another factor in environmental degradation.
3. Landfills
Landfills pollute the environment and destroy the beauty of the city. Landfills come within the
city due to the large amount of waste that gets generated by households, industries, factories and
hospitals. Landfills pose a great risk to the health of the environment and the people who live
there. Landfills produce a foul smell when burned and cause substantial environmental
degradation.

4. Deforestation

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Deforestation is the cutting down of trees to make way for more homes and industries. Rapid
growth in population and urban sprawl are two of the major causes of deforestation. Apart from
that, the use of forest land for agriculture, animal grazing, harvest for fuel wood and logging are
some of the other causes of deforestation. Deforestation contributes to global warming as
decreased forest size puts carbon back into the environment.

4.3.4. Impact of Environmental Degradation

1. Impact on Human Health

Human health might be at the receiving end as a result of environmental degradation. Areas
exposed to toxic air pollutants can cause respiratory problems like pneumonia and asthma.
Millions of people are known to have died due to the indirect effects of air pollution.

2. Loss of Biodiversity

Biodiversity is important for maintaining the balance of the ecosystem in the form of combating
pollution, restoring nutrients, protecting water sources and stabilizing climate. Deforestation,
global warming, overpopulation and pollution are a few of the major causes of loss of
biodiversity.

3. Ozone Layer Depletion

The ozone layer is responsible for protecting the earth from harmful ultraviolet rays. The
presence of chlorofluorocarbons, hydro chlorofluorocarbons in the atmosphere, is causing the
ozone layer to deplete. As it will deplete, it will emit harmful radiation back to the earth.

4. Loss for the Tourism Industry

The deterioration of the environment can be a huge setback for the tourism industry that relies on
tourists for their daily livelihood. Environmental damage in the form of loss of green cover, loss
of biodiversity, huge landfills, increased air and water pollution can be a big turn off for most of
the tourists.

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 5. Economic Impact
The huge cost that a country may have to borne due to environmental degradation can have a
significant economic impact in terms of restoration of green cover, cleaning up of landfills and
protection of endangered species. The economic impact can also be in terms of the loss of the
tourism industry.

5.4. The link between environmental degradation and poverty

Poverty and environment are closely interrelated and each in turn affects the other, poverty leads
to environmental deterioration and environmental deterioration worsens the rate of poverty. In
short, poverty is the major cause of environmental degradation and when the environment is
degraded, the existence and the survival of man become threatened. Several species of plants and
animals become extinct while millions of birds, reptiles, amphibians, butterflies and other
resources of economic importance are destroyed (Ibimilua, 2011). A mutual link between
poverty and environmental degradation was further examined by Ikefiiji and Horii (2005) in an
overlapping generation's model with environmental externality, human capital, and credit
constraints. They found that environmental quality affected labour productivity and thus wealth
dynamics, whereas wealth distribution determined the degree to which agents relied upon natural
resources and therefore the evolution of environmental quality. This interaction created a
'poverty-environment trap' where a deteriorated environment lowered income, which in turn
accelerated environmental degradation. They also showed that greater wealth heterogeneity was
the key to escaping the poverty - environment trap, although it had negative effects both on the
environment and output when not in the trap.
World Bank (2003) on the other hand posits that in order to attain sustainable development there
is need for development of a better understanding of the status, issues, and threats to the
environment and the direct and indirect links to the welfare of the people. Similarly, different
scholar maintained that the first step in the effective control and management of the environment
is in the development of public environmental awareness most especially in the area of
conception, interpretation and perception of environmental issues.

From the foregoing, it could be deduced that a strong nexus exists between poverty and
environmental degradation, each enforcing the other and be tackled enormously by replacing
poverty coping strategies, activities or technologies that are environmentally damaging with

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environment friendly ones. Ensuring sustainable utilization of environmental resources calls for a
holistic approach in tackling the problem of poverty in such a way that avoidable damage(s) to
the environment could be averted.

5.5. Natural Resource Management and Sustainable Development

Natural resource management is a discipline in the management of natural resources such as
land, water, soil, plants, and animals with a particular focus on how management affects quality
of life for present and future generations. Hence, sustainable development is followed according
to judicial use of resources to supply both the present generation and future generations.
Management of natural resources involves identifying who has the right to use the resources, and
who does not, for defining the boundaries of the resource. The resources may be managed by the
users according to the rules governing when and how the resource is used depending on local
condition or the resources may be managed by a governmental organization or other central
authority. Hence there is an urgent need to conserve nature for the following reasons. Some of
the needs are:
 To maintain ecological balance for supporting life.
 To preserve different kinds of species (biodiversity).
 To make the resources available for present and future generations.
 To ensure survival of human race.

5.6. Measures Suggested To Reverse Natural Resource Degradation

In this part of discuss we try to see measure of conserving natural resource with specific
reference of Ethiopia case. Most ecological and environmental resources are scarce. In order to
secure continuous benefit from limited resources in Ethiopia, different policies had been
designed, institutions established and various management and conservation strategies
implemented. New environmentally-friendly management strategies had also been incessantly
suggested by scholars to minimize resource utilization problems identified. The most common of
those natural resource appraisals, management and conservation strategies so far recommended,
among others are described below.

Controlling the rate of population growth

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Ethiopia is among the most populous countries in Africa where its population has been growing
at a rapid rate since the 1950s. The population is increasing by over 2 million persons annually.
The population in Ethiopia is not evenly distributed. Normally, the population distribution is
largely influenced by altitude, climate, and soil. With such uneven distribution and highest
growth rate, the natural resource base which supports people’s livelihoods and wellbeing are
being rapidly degraded. Therefore, controlling the rapidly increasing population is considered as
one of the most important solutions to minimize natural resource degradation.

Afforestation and reforestation

Forestry can play a substantial role in either preventing or arresting land degradation basically by
avoiding or reducing soil erosion through reduced surface runoff and maintenance and/or
restoration of soil organic matter and other essential nutrients. Afforestation and reforestation
activities are valuable in not only to address on-farm and off-farm dimensions of the soil erosion
but are also helpful in improving soil fertility. Thus, it can possibly play its own part in reducing
land and other natural resources degradations.

Community-based ecotourism
Ethiopia is one of the renowned nations in the world in terms of ecotourism resources. The
country is endowed with the vast array of historical, archaeological, cultural, and natural
resources significant for the development of community-based ecotourism. Community-based
ecotourism is a new approach to the tourism development process (activities) that involves the
active participation of the local communities; where they can operate their lands based on their
culture, natural assets, and attractions. It fundamentality stresses out on the local community to
control over and effectively involved in tourism development and management or decision-
making the process thereby a major proportion of the benefits remain in the hands of the
community. In such instances, it becomes possible to control the undesirable social, cultural,
environmental, and economic effects of the community on tourism and vice versa. At a
nationwide, it offers the opportunity to get the most out of their resources and gain all the
economic benefits without losing it. Most importantly, ecotourism offers improved natural
resource management that leads to environmental sustainability and ensures ecologically
sustainable development

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