Management of environmental resources is the interaction management and impact of human society on the environment. It is not, as the phrase might suggest, the management of the environment itself. The management of environmental resources aims to ensure that ecosystem services are protected and maintained for future generations of people, and also maintain ecosystem integrity by considering ethical, economic, and scientific (ecological) variables. Environmental resource management tries to identify factors influenced by increased conflicts between meeting needs and protecting resources. This is so related to environmental protection, sustainability and management of integrated landscapes.
Video Environmental resource management
Significance
The management of environmental resources is an increasingly apprehensive issue, as reflected in its prevalence in seminal texts affecting the global socio-political framework such as the Joint Future of the Brundtland Commission, which highlights the integrated nature of the environment and international development and the World World World Watch Institute of the World report.
The environment determines the nature of humans, animals, plants, and places around Earth, affecting behavior, religion, culture, and economic practice.
Maps Environmental resource management
Coverage
The management of environmental resources can be seen from various perspectives. It involves the management of all components of the biophysical and non-living (abiotic) biophysical environments, and the relationships between all living species and their habitats. The environment also involves the relationship of the human environment, such as the social, cultural and economic environment, to the biophysical environment. Important aspects of environmental resource management are ethics, economics, social, and technology. It underlies the principle and helps make decisions.
The concept of environmental determinism, probabilism and possibilism is important in the concept of environmental resource management.
The management of environmental resources covers many fields in science, including geography, biology, social sciences, political science, public policy, ecology, physics, chemistry, sociology, psychology, and physiology.
Aspect
Ethical
The strategy for managing environmental resources is intrinsically driven by the concept of human-nature relationships. The ethical aspect involves environmental and social issues related to the environment, and deals with those changes. "All human activity takes place in the context of a particular kind of relationship between the community and the biophysical world," and so, there is great significance in understanding the ethical values ​​of different groups around the world. Broadly speaking, two schools of thought exist in environmental ethics: Anthropocentrism and Ecocentrism, each affecting a wide spectrum of environmental resource management styles along the continuum. These styles perceive "... different evidences, imperatives, and problems, and provide solutions, strategies, technologies, different roles for economic, cultural, government and ethical sectors, etc."
Anthropocentrism
Anthropocentrism, "... the tendency to evaluate reality exclusively in terms of human values," is the ethic reflected in the main interpretations of Western religion and the dominant economic paradigm of the industrial world. Anthropocentrism views nature as existence solely for the benefit of man, and as a commodity used for the good of mankind and for improving the quality of human life. The management of anthropocentric environmental resources is therefore not only environmental conservation for the sake of the environment, but the preservation of the environment, and the structure of ecosystems, for the sake of humans.
Ecocentrism
Ecocentris believes in the intrinsic value of nature while maintaining that humans must use and even exploit nature to survive and live. This is a good ethical line in which ecocentris navigates between fair use and abuse. On an extreme ethical scale, ecocentrism includes a philosophy such as ecofeminism and deep ecology, which evolves as a reaction to the dominant anthropocentric paradigm. "In its present form, it is an attempt to synthesize many old and new philosophical attitudes about the relationship between nature and human activity, with particular emphasis on the ethical, social, and spiritual aspects that have been underestimated in the dominant economic outlook."
Economy
Economic functions are in, and dependent on the goods and services provided by natural ecosystems. The role of the environment is well recognized in classical economics and neoclassical economic theory, but the environment is a lower priority in economic policy from 1950 to 1980 due to the emphasis of policymakers on economic growth. With the prevalence of environmental problems, many economists are embracing the idea that, "If environmental sustainability should co-exist for economic sustainability, then the system as a whole must [permit] the identification of the balance between the environment and the economy." Thus, economic policymakers begin to incorporate the functions of the natural environment - or natural capital - primarily as a waste absorber and for the supply of raw materials and facilities.
The debate continues among economists about how to account for natural capital, in particular whether resources can be replaced through knowledge and technology, or whether the environment is a closed system that can not be recharged and limited. The economic model affects the management of environmental resources, where management policies reflect beliefs about the scarcity of natural capital. For someone who believes that natural capital is unlimited and easy to replace, environmental management is irrelevant to the economy. For example, the economic paradigm based on the neoclassical model of a closed economic system mainly deals with the scarcity of resources, and thus prescribes environmental preservation as an economic externality for an environmental resource management strategy. This approach is often called 'Command-and-control'. Colby has identified trends in the development of an economic paradigm, among them, a shift towards more ecological economies since the 1990s.
Ecology
"Couples of significant uncertainty about behavior and responsiveness of ecological systems with an urgent call for short-term action is a difficult reality, and a common lament" for many environmental resource managers. The scientific analysis of the environment relates to some dimension of ecological uncertainty. These include: structural uncertainty resulting from misidentification, or lack of information relating to the relationship between ecological variables; parameter uncertainty refers to "the uncertainty associated with the value of parameters not known with certainty but can be assessed and reported in terms of probability... to experience the specified results"; and stochastic uncertainties coming from accidental or unrelated factors. Adaptive management is regarded as a useful framework for dealing with situations with high levels of uncertainty even though not without its critics.
The general scientific concept and the impetus behind the management of environmental resources is the carrying capacity. Simply put, the carrying capacity refers to the maximum number of organisms that a particular resource can sustain. The concept of carrying capacity, while understood by many cultures over history, is rooted in Malthusian theory. An example is seen in the EU Water Framework Guidelines. However, "argues that Western scientific knowledge... is often insufficient to address the full complexity of variable interactions in the management of environmental resources.These concerns have recently been addressed by a shift in environmental resource management approaches to incorporate different knowledge systems including Traditional knowledge, reflected in approaches such as adaptive management-based natural resource management and transition among others.
Sustainability
Sustainability in the management of environmental resources involves the management of economic, social and ecological systems both within and outside the organizational entity in order to maintain itself and the system in which it exists. In context, sustainability implies that instead of competing for endless growth on a limited planet, development improves the quality of life without having to spend more resources. Sustainable management of environmental resources requires organizational change that instills sustainability values ​​that describe these values ​​outwardly at all levels and strengthens them to the surrounding stakeholders. The end result should be a symbiotic relationship between support organizations, communities, and the environment.
Many drivers force the management of environmental resources to consider sustainability issues. The current economic paradigm does not protect the natural environment, but they deepen the human dependence on biodiversity and ecosystem services. Ecologically, massive environmental degradation and climate change threaten the stability of a human-dependent ecological system. Socially, the gap between rich and poor and global North-South divides deny much access to basic human needs, rights, and education, leading to further environmental damage. Unstable planetary conditions are caused by many anthropogenic sources. As a factor that contributes very strongly to social and environmental change, modern organizations have the potential to apply environmental resource management with the principle of sustainability to achieve highly effective results. To achieve sustainable development with the management of environmental resources, organizations must work in the principles of sustainability, including social and environmental accountability, long-term planning; a strong shared vision; holistic focus; devolution and consensus decision making; broad stakeholder involvement and fairness; transparency; trust; and flexibility.
Current paradigm shift
To adapt to the current environment of rapid social and ecological changes, some organizations have begun experimenting with new tools and concepts. Those who are more traditional and stick to hierarchical decision making have difficulty handling requests for lateral decision making that support effective participation. Whether it's an ethical issue or just a strategic profit organization that internalizes the principle of sustainability. Some of the largest and most profitable companies in the world are shifting to sustainable environmental resource management: Ford, Toyota, BMW, Honda, Shell, Du Pont, Statoil, Re Switzerland, Hewlett-Packard, and Unilever, among others. An extensive study by the Boston Consulting Group that reaches 1,560 business leaders from different regions, work positions, sustainability expertise, industry, and organizational size, reveals the many benefits of sustainable practices and feasibility.
It is important to note that although the sustainability of environmental resource management has improved, the sustainability of the company, for one, has not yet reached the majority of global companies operating in the market. The three major obstacles to preventing the organization from shifting toward sustainable practices with environmental resource management do not understand what sustainability is; having difficulty modeling economically feasible cases for switches; and has a flawed execution plan, or lack thereof. Therefore, the most important part of organizational diversion to adopt sustainability in the management of environmental resources is to create a shared vision and understanding of what sustainability for a particular organization is, and to clarify the business case.
Stakeholder
Public sector
The public sector consists of general government sectors plus all public companies including central banks. In the management of environmental resources, the public sector is responsible for managing natural resource management and enforcing environmental protection laws. The traditional role of the public sector in environmental resource management is to provide professional judgment through skilled technicians on behalf of the public. With the increasing difficult environmental issues, the public sector has been led to examine alternative paradigms for managing environmental resources. This has resulted in the public sector working in collaboration with other sectors (including other governments, private and civil) to encourage sustainable natural resource management behavior.
Private sector
The private sector consists of private companies and nonprofit agencies serving households. The traditional role of the private sector in the management of environmental resources is the restoration of natural resources. Private sector recovery groups such as mining (minerals and oil), forestry and fisheries organizations. Environmental resource management undertaken by the private sector varies depending on the type of resource, which is a renewable or non-renewable resource and is private and public (also see Tragedy of the Commons). Private sector managers also need skills to manage collaboration in a dynamic social and political environment.
Civil society
Civil society consists of associations in which society voluntarily organizes itself into and represents interests and ties. This may include community-based organizations, indigenous peoples organizations and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). Functioning through strong public pressure, civil society can exercise their legal rights over the implementation of resource management plans, in particular land management plans. The objectives of civil society in the management of environmental resources should be included in the decision-making process through public participation. Public participation can be an effective strategy to generate a sense of social responsibility for natural resources.
Tools
As with all management functions, effective management tools, standards and systems are required. An environmental management standard or management system or protocol tries to reduce the environmental impact as measured by some objective criteria. The ISO 14001 standard is the most widely used standard for environmental risk management and is closely tied to the European Eco-Management and Audit Scheme (EMAS). As a general audit standard, the ISO 19011 standard describes how to combine this with quality management.
Other environmental management systems (EMS) tend to be based on ISO 14001 standards and widely extend them in various ways:
- The Green Dragon Environmental Management Standards are a five-level EMS designed for smaller organizations for whom ISO 14001 may be too heavy and for larger organizations wishing to implement ISO 14001 in a more manageable, step-by-step approach,
- BS 8555 is a step-by-step standard that can help small companies move to ISO 14001 in six manageable steps,
- The Natural Step focuses on basic sustainability criteria and helps techniques focus on reducing the use of materials or the use of unsustainable energy in the long term,
- Natural Capitalism suggests the use of accounting reform and the general approach of industrial biomimicry and ecology to do the same,
- The US Environmental Protection Agency has many more terms and standards set by the large-scale EMS,
- The UN and World Bank have encouraged the adoption of a "measurement" framework of natural capital and management,
- EU Ecosystem Management and EU Audit Scheme (GOLD).
Other strategies exist that rely on making a simple distinction rather than building a top-down "system" of management using performance audits and full cost accounting. For example, Intelligent Ecological Designs divide the product into consumables, service products or durable goods and can not be sold - toxic products that no one can buy, or in most cases, unaware that they are buying. By removing the unsaleables from the comprehensive results of each purchase, better management of environmental resources is achieved without the system .
A successful case recently put forward the idea of ​​ integrated management . It shares a broader approach and emphasizes the importance of interdisciplinary assessment. This is an interesting idea that may not be adapted for all cases.
Journals
- Ambiente & amp; Sociedade, Print version ISSN 1414-753X, On-line version ISSN 1809-4422
- Clean Technology and Environmental Policy , ISSNÃ,1618-954X
- Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management , ISSN, 1535-3966 (electronics) 1535-3958 (paper), John Wiley & amp; Children
- Environmental Management, Springer Media Business Science
- Environmental Practice , ISSN 1466-0474 (electronics) 1466-0466 (paper), Cambridge Press University
- Environmental Quality Management , ISSNÃ, 1520-6483 (electronics) 1088-1913 (paper), John Wiley & amp; Children
- Journal of Clean Production , ISSN: 0959-6526
- Journal of Economics and Environmental Management, ISSN 0095-0696
- Journal of Environmental Planning and Management , ISSN 1360-0559 (electronic) 0964-0568 (paper), Routledge
- Journal of Environmental Management , ISSN 0301-4797, Elsevier
- Environmental Value
See also
References
Further reading
- Schaltegger, Stefan; Burritt, Roger; Petersen, Holger (2003). Introduction to the Company's Environmental Management: Struggling to Achieve Sustainability . Green leaf. ISBN: 978-1-874719-65-6.
- Low Hock Heng (2003). "Globalization, Business and Environmental Management: to Fix Corrupt Damage?" (PDF) . Journal of Humanity . ISSNÃ, 1675-1930.
External links
- Economic Cost & amp; Environmental Management Benefits NOAA Economics
- business.gov - provides businesses with environmental management tips, as well as tips for green business owners (United States)
- Nonprofit research on managing the environment
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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