This multimedia product and its contents are protected under copyright law. The following are prohibited by law: • any public performance or display, including transmission of any image over a network; • preparation of any derivative work, including the extraction, in whole or in part, of any images; • any rental, lease, or lending of the program. Chapter Seven: The Environment ‹#› ‹#› Overview Chapter Seven examines the following topics: The meaning and significance of ecology The traditional business attitudes toward the environment The moral problems underlying business’s abuse of the environment The costs of environmental protection The methods for pursuing environmental goals Some deeper questions of environmental ethics Moral Issues in Business Chapter 7 ‹#› Introduction The effects of environmental recklessness by manufacturing, industry, and consumers are now being seen. Humankind has scarred the globe, polluted the air, contaminated the soil, and used up the resources. What are the responsibilities of businesses regarding the environment, plants and animals, and all other resources? Moral Issues in Business Chapter 7 ‹#› “A home that was flooded with toxic sludge following the coal-ash spill at the Kingston Fossil Plant in Tennessee. Even if an environmental calamity like this does not directly affect our lives, should it still be a cause of concern?” ‹#› Business and Ecology Definition of ecology: The science of the interrelationships among organisms (especially humans) and their environments. Ecosystems: A total ecological community, both living and nonliving, webs of interdependency structure ecosystems – a change in one element can have ripple effects through the system. Business inevitably intrudes into ecosystems as it produces the things we want – but not all or all kinds of intrusions are justifiable. Moral Issues in Business Chapter 7 ‹#› Business’s Traditional Attitudes Toward the Environment Traditionally, business has regarded the natural world as a free and unlimited good – pollution and the depletion of natural resources is the result. The “tragedy of the commons”: Damage to the environment can also be explained as the result of a situation in which each person’s or business’s pursuit of self-interest can make everyone worse off – the reverse of Adam Smith’s invisible hand. Moral Issues in Business Chapter 7 ‹#› Business’s Traditional Attitudes Toward the Environment Spillover: Unintended costs to third parties from transactions; also called “externalities” In viewing things strictly in terms of private industrial costs, business overlooks spillover So business often derives a profit from a product without considering the overall social cost – the damage the product or the production process has caused to the environment and human populations Moral Issues in Business Chapter 7 ‹#› Th ...