The environmental laws of Commoner

Barry Commoner became a well-known ecologist thanks to his widely replicable books. He succeeded in explaining to the American public the danger of a frivolous attitude to the environment in a popular scientific language. The famous laws of Commoner are a summary of the conclusions that the researcher has made over the years of his professional career.

Biography of Commoner

The future scientist Barry Commoner was born in 1917 in New York, in a family of emigrants from the Russian Empire. He decided to devote his life to science. The young man entered Harvard University, which he graduated in 1941. The young specialist received a doctorate in biology. Even at university, he was interested in studying the problem of ozone depletion.

Research scientist formed the basis of several of his books on ecology. In them, among other things, the laws of Commoner were published, which became the visiting card of the researcher. Some books of the scientist were published even in the Soviet Union. At first glance this may seem strange, but Commoner was perfect for the USSR. The point was that the American ecologist adhered to socialist views. The combination of leftist ideology and environmental research became the foundation for his books "The Circling Circle" and "Profit Technology." In them there are laws of Commoner.

Capitalism harms the environment

Commoner believed that modern industrial technologies, as well as intensive fuel production, are a threat to all mankind. Pollution of the environment is growing because of the desire of entrepreneurs and the state to extract the maximum profit. The laws of the ecology of Commoner criticize the capitalist system, under which nature suffers most.

Also, the scientist tried to convey to his readers the idea that the damage caused is no longer possible to compensate. A person does not have the opportunity to restore a lost ecosystem. Therefore, the laws of Commoner were based on the fact that it is necessary to prevent possible harm, and not to treat the wounds already inflicted by society.

Alternative energy sources

The American ecologist not only pointed to the shortcomings of modern production. He also proposed solutions to overcome the current situation. The commoner was an active supporter of the use of renewable energy sources. First of all, this is certainly sunlight.

The ideas of Commoner were expressed in the 70s. Today you can personally observe the implementation of many of his projects. Solar batteries, windmills - all this has already become an everyday source of energy for rich countries. These technologies are used not only in large enterprises, but even in the homes of ordinary citizens. The market of solar batteries in the US and Europe is growing at the fastest pace.

Redistribution of benefits

The famous laws of the ecology of Commoner also refer to social problems that have caused pollution of the environment. The twentieth century further widened the gap between rich and poor countries. In some states there is rapid technical progress, in others life is changing very slowly.

These economic phenomena gave birth to the term "Third World countries". This is mostly Africa. On the other hand, in Asia there is a huge problem related to overpopulation. Giant Chinese cities are the world leaders in the release of smog and other harmful substances into the Earth's atmosphere.

The laws of Barry Commoner are based on socialist ideas. The scientist proposed to distribute the world's wealth. According to his idea, the surplus funds of wealthy societies had to improve the lives of countries with a low standard of living. This would allow avoiding colossal environmental problems in these regions. Because of overpopulation rivers become shallow, resources of bowels are scarce, stable natural connections and chains are destroyed.

"Everything is connected with everything"

In total there are 4 Commoner's Laws. The first one is called "Everything is connected with everything". What is its logic? Commoner in his books tried to explain that everything that happens in nature is closely interrelated. If a person harms one part of the environment, then it naturally strikes the rest.

The Law of Commoner "Everything is connected with everything" is also called the law of dynamic internal equilibrium. This principle says that even small changes made by a person in the world around him, eventually develop into a catastrophe.

Let's consider an example. A company specializing in the sale of timber is actively cutting down the forest. How can this affect the rest of nature? With a decrease in the number of trees, the amount of free oxygen also decreases. In addition, additional emissions of nitrogen oxide to the atmosphere occur, which depletes the ozone layer. Finally, the last link in this chain will be the amplification of ultraviolet radiation, harmful to all living organisms.

Darwin and buckwheat

It should be noted that the basic laws of the ecology of Commoner were formulated by him through the knowledge of the works of his predecessors. As you know, the scientist in his profile education was a biologist. He studied a lot of Darwinian theory and was thoroughly acquainted with the biography of his famous predecessor.

In one of his books, Commoner retold a curious fact from the life of the founder of the idea of evolution. Once the peasants asked Darwin to ask for advice on how to increase the buckwheat yield. The scientist answered quite unexpectedly. He invited the peasants to have more cats. Darwin, like Commoner, was well aware of the interconnection of everything that happens in nature. He understood that the new cats would exterminate the field mice, who regularly spoiled the buckwheat harvest from the peasants. This story is a perfect illustration of what Barry Commoner wanted to say. The laws of ecology, as this example shows, are proved empirically.

"Everything must go somewhere"

The second law of Commoner affects the phenomenon of redistribution of substances in the environment. This principle, formulated by the American scientist, is called "Everything must go somewhere". In the natural state of nature, each substance has its own cycle of "life." In the environment only what is synthesized can disappear.

The laws of Barry Commoner say that this is a natural process. And it's hard not to agree with this. However, since mankind entered the modern era, it systematically produces artificial substances that it is extremely difficult to destroy without consequences for nature. For example, it is DDT, polyethylene, etc. The same list includes resources extracted from the earth's interior. Recycled and used oil leaves an indelible mark in the environment. The laws of B. Commoner and his whole theory criticize such production. Oil, ore and other substances are transformed into new compounds that can not dissipate in the environment.

Combating waste products

Man can no longer give up modern industry. At the same time, making it completely non-waste is also not possible. Therefore, the scientist suggested at least to minimize the damage that production causes to nature.

The environmental laws of Barry Commoner say that, firstly, new technologies should be as resource-consuming as possible. Secondly, it is necessary to create such a production in which the waste of human activity could be used as raw materials. Finally, thirdly, if the release of harmful products is inevitable, then society must create for them a reasonable system of burial and disposal.

"Nature knows best"

The third law of Commoner concerns the complexity of the surrounding world. Even a modern man, with all his technologies, can not know all the relationships within nature. The biosphere consists of millions of different beings. It is divided into many zones. The flora and fauna of the world have evolved over billions of years. If a person interferes in these processes, even wanting to improve the situation around him, he will only cause additional harm.

The environmental laws of Commoner urge people to be cautious. Active transformations of nature can lead to the fact that our entire world will be unsuitable for a normal life. Human interventions are represented by hundreds of indicative cases only recently. For example, the shooting of wolves in some northern forests led to the fact that this natural zone lost its natural "orderly". In China, the sparrows were massively shot. Residents of the country believed that the huge flocks of these birds harm crops. When the sparrows disappeared, in their place came insects, which there was no one to eat. Changes in the biological chain led to even greater crop losses in China.

"Nothing is given for nothing"

This is the last law of the Commoner. He has another interpretation, which says that "everything must be paid for." The law is based on the principle that the natural system always develops at the expense of the environment. A single biosphere consists of many parts. If something new appears in it, it will necessarily replace something old.

The same can be said about the technical achievements of mankind. If we create something that affects nature, then it will lead to some losses in the environment. The laws of ecology B. Commoner are connected with the principle of internal dynamic equilibrium, which was already mentioned in the description of the first law.

The scientist compared the transformation of nature with payment on a bill. A person will have to destroy something old to get a new one. At the same time, he can postpone the inevitable payment "on a bill," but sooner or later you will still have to pay. The fourth law has a vivid example. This is agriculture. With the annual growing of vegetables in the same place, the level of nutrients in the soil (phosphorus, nitrogen, potassium, etc.) decreases. With each time the harvest is getting smaller and smaller. In the end, a person must either leave this site or treat it with fertilizers.

Ecotechnologies

The commoner suggested creating new types of production that would work in harmony with nature. These are so-called environmental technologies. The scientist believed that such projects can be realized if they are by their logic to coincide with processes occurring in the biosphere or even continue them. Therefore, mankind should find out the principles by which nature maintains its balance. Already based on these rules, society can create an environmentally friendly production.

An example is the situation with the processing of substances. In nature, they decompose only with the help of microorganisms. But some waste of human life only harm the environment. Therefore, according to the Commoner, mankind should throw into the biosphere only what it itself can absorb. The rest needs to be processed artificially with the help of modern technologies. This is a matter of ecological expediency.