Do Environmentalists Overstate Their Case?
Student ID Number : 11411024 Student name : NGUYEN, NGOC NHU Class : WORKSHOP 1 Instructor : ROTHMAN, STEVEN B. Teaching assistant : SOE THURA POH Assignment : FINAL PAPER Assigned topic DO ENVIRONMENTALISTS OVERSTATE THEIR CASE?
REALITY PLUGGED IN FORECASTS
People have always been relying on environmentalists to report statistics, educate and launch campaigns to improve environmental conditions. However, it is human’s nature to doubt. So, the more information people have access to, the more questions and doubts are raised. In fact, in response to the ever-growing streams of doom-laden forecasts on environmental issues, a few even went so far as to accuse the environmentalists of exaggerating data to mislead people (Lomborg, 2001). There are two prominent claims among all the others which the sceptics base their arguments on: the self-balance of the amount of water through global warming and clean water shortage; and the self-recovery in biodiversity and natural resources. This paper seeks to disprove these claims, in order to show that environmentalists are not overstating their case.
Self-balance in global water availability: global warming and water shortage
Self-balance is defined as a state of equilibrium, in, which the amount lost is compensated enough that the system remains at its initial condition. Based on this concept, Bjorn Lomborg (2001) argues that it is unnecessary to worry about global warming and water shortage at the same time since the two are mutually exclusive. According to Lomborg (2001), ocean makes up 97.2 percent and polar ice contains 2.15 percent of earth water. If global warming takes place with high world temperature, ice will begin melting at the poles, which naturally leads to more evaporation and precipitation. The amount of water per capita will then increased and water shortage is solved.
However, it is unjust of Lomborg to judge the water’s
REALITY PLUGGED IN FORECASTS
People have always been relying on environmentalists to report statistics, educate and launch campaigns to improve environmental conditions. However, it is human’s nature to doubt. So, the more information people have access to, the more questions and doubts are raised. In fact, in response to the ever-growing streams of doom-laden forecasts on environmental issues, a few even went so far as to accuse the environmentalists of exaggerating data to mislead people (Lomborg, 2001). There are two prominent claims among all the others which the sceptics base their arguments on: the self-balance of the amount of water through global warming and clean water shortage; and the self-recovery in biodiversity and natural resources. This paper seeks to disprove these claims, in order to show that environmentalists are not overstating their case.
Self-balance in global water availability: global warming and water shortage
Self-balance is defined as a state of equilibrium, in, which the amount lost is compensated enough that the system remains at its initial condition. Based on this concept, Bjorn Lomborg (2001) argues that it is unnecessary to worry about global warming and water shortage at the same time since the two are mutually exclusive. According to Lomborg (2001), ocean makes up 97.2 percent and polar ice contains 2.15 percent of earth water. If global warming takes place with high world temperature, ice will begin melting at the poles, which naturally leads to more evaporation and precipitation. The amount of water per capita will then increased and water shortage is solved.
However, it is unjust of Lomborg to judge the water’s
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