Ecological Degradation: A Cause for Conflict, a Concern for Survival

Abstract

Koos Neefjes of Oxfam takes turmoil and instability as his starting point. How will carefully crafted sustainability and justice principles fare in zones of conflict? How can measurements of environmental stock and flow be made under conditions of war or even genocide? Neefjes implies that they cannot, and he focuses instead on the causes of conflicts and the role that environmental factors might play in them. After examining a number of cases drawn from Africa he concludes that environmental degradation and resource distribution play an increasingly important role in conflicts, and that supporting local use and management of resources is of paramount importance.

The Relationship between Intragenerational and Intergenerational Ecological Justice

“…9 In the context of facilitation hypothesis A, it is assumed that controlling population development in countries of the global South is a means to achieve greater intragenerational justice, which at the same time reduces poverty-induced ecosystem degradation and, thereby, facilitates intergenerational ecological justice. Conversely, the promotion of intragenerational ecological justice can reduce poverty and, thereby, slow down population growth (Neefjes 1999: 257, Thompson 1992, WCED 1987, whicht again takes human pressure from ecosystems. In this sense, the WCED argues that almost 'any activity that increases well-being and security lessens people's desires to have more children than they and national ecosystems can support' (WCED 1987: 98).…”

Natural Resources and Social Conflict

“…And there is an emerging consensus across the political spectrum that environmental sustainability and political security are fundamentally linked (Ronnfeldt, 1997). Thus, environmental stresses or insecurities can and often do precipitate, exacerbate or contribute to political unrest and violence (Neefjes, 1999;. In the case of Western Canada, environmental stresses from petroleum exploitation include loss and disturbance of living spaces, landscape fragmentation, wildlife disturbance, oil spills; aquifer depletion and pollution; health and ecological effects from the flaring of sour gas; and greenhouse gas emissions (Timoney and Lee, 2001).…”