If you look at the long term effects of globalization, the growing industry and growing wealth will benefit environmental protection in the future.
But the hard reality: Profits go to global corporations.
Trade has evolved from just a simple transfer of goods to economic activity that directly serves the efficiency needs of the largest corporations by allowing expansion of corporate markets.
Organisations like the World Trade Organization (WTO), World Bank, International Monetary Fund (IMF) are the instruments of globalization that control many nations, by creating rules and principles that require nations to conform to them, and eliminating any obstruction that restricts or limits trade.
Yes, unfortunately, we now live in a world where profit is placed before people and planet.
Let us take the WTO for example. WTO is the most powerful and most secretive international bodies, representing the rules-based regime of the policy of economic globalization. It operates on the principle that commercial interests should supersede all others, including environmental protection and human rights, which are viewed as obstacles that hinder trade activity.
With the abolishment of these
obstacles is when harm is done.
World TradeFor example, US issued the Clean Air Act in 1970, to reduce air pollution and protect air quality, when high standards were set against polluting gasoline. However, the WTO ruled against the reformulated gasoline regulations of the US Clean Air Act because it was non-compliant to WTO principles.
The WTO also favours machinery and chemical intensive global farming methods to primitive methods. Caribbean bananas are usually grown on small farms. However, in 1997, the WTO made a decision that meant that local producers would have to compete with large businesses like Chiquita, one of the major multinatonal corporations. Environmental, labour and health standards fall to a low as laws are designed so that it doesn't obstruct the nations' trade and economy.
For example, in 1998, the Canadian government banned the gasoline additive, MMT, a manganese compound, which when burned in automobile engines, results in manganese air pollution. Excess amounts of airborne manganese are toxic when breathed in. However, this was soon lifted when the North American Free Trade Agreement felt that the ban was not necessary and only caused losses to the MMT companies.
Global transportIn a global economy, countries do not have to worry about getting their resources because with the emphasis on export-oriented production and increased transport and shipping methods, everything is easily and readily available from other countries.
Of course, this also has its negative environmental effect.
Firstly, in order for the global transport system to be efficient, it requires global infrastructure like airports, oilfields, railways and highways. Most of these require alot of space, so natural habitats like forests and wilderness are exploited to make way for these developments. This, in turn, results in the destruction of the natural ecosystem of the habitat.
It is estimated that the increase in global transport is the largest contributor to climate change. For example, ocean shipping (which carries up to 80% of the world's goods) and air transport contribute to pollution.
The increase in global transport also means the increase in spread of organisms. Health crises increases as rats/bacteria/mosquitoes/exotic seeds travel around the world thanks to the efficieny of global transport. This is of course, inevitable if global transport and trade is to be continued.
Industrial agricultureIndustrial agriculture is an efficient way of food production. However, it contributes to air, water and soil pollution as chemical pesticides and machinery destroy the soil and toxify rivers. The UN has reported that 1 billion people on Earth lack access to drinking water. Despite the growing population of the Earth, water consumption rate is increasing to be higher than half the population. Only 15% of the global fresh water supply is used by human, and 65% is used for industrial agriculture.
And how is the lack of access to drinking water combated?
Instead of conserving, exploitation rights are sold to corporations; most of the water go to industrial users, rather than rural users.
Agribusiness tends to eliminate small farms and farmers, as small farms are merged into large corporate farms. This also gives rise to the problem of unemployment as small farmers are left with limited jobs. This monoculture also results in the loss of crop diversity; it has been reported that the world has already lost up to 75% of crop diversity.
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After examining the detrimental effects globalization can have on our environment, many will argue that it is inevitable. Yes, it is inevitable
now, because we cannot possibly throw away all our machines and factories and turn back into rural farmers milking cow. However, I think that things could have been different if the world hadn't turned to this face of globalization just yet.
But then, of course, there are the long term effects which will hopefully show us some significant changes.
Only time wil tell.
Bibliography
http://www.fdimagazine.com/news/fullstory.php/aid/624/The_evolution_of_trade.html
http://www.globalexchange.org/campaigns/wto/OpposeWTO.html
http://www.globalexchange.org/campaigns/wto/
http://www.citizen.org/trade/wto/Dispute/articles.cfm?ID=5499 http://www.cbc.ca/news/story/1998/07/20/mmt980720c.htmlhttp://www.globalissues.org/TradeRelated/Bananas.asphttp://usinfo.state.gov/xarchives/display.html?p=washfile-english&y=2005&m=August&x=20050811133827ASrelliM0.6663172http://home.ica.net/~fresch/ndp/ethylmmt.htmGlobalization - Opposing Viewpoints, published by Greenhaven Press
