Conservation, ecological justice and harm to nature - Environmental Harm: An Eco-justice Perspective - page 66

are destroyed and why, and which are not? There is, for instance, both
selective destruction of eco-systems and bio-spheres (for example, the
clearfelling of forests), and selective protection of such (for example,
preservation of national parks and marine sanctuaries). Which eco-
systems and bio-spheres are privileged or valued above others is an
important consideration in critical evaluation of environmental harm
as this pertains to ecological justice.
Among the many environmental social movements, groups such
as Earth First!, Greenpeace, Sierra Club and Friends of the Earth
advocate on behalf of threatened environments and threatened species
(including plant life). Other types of intervention, particularly via
wildlife and forestry governance organisations such as Parks and Wildlife
Services, may be concerned less with 'preservation' as such than with
'management' of the natural world and what it has to offer to humans.
The drivers of engagement around ecological justice issues is thus
variable, and can be motivated by strategic instrumental concerns (to
use natural resources wisely) as well as considerations of intrinsic worth
and value (to leave natural environments untouched).
Contentious concepts: ecological justice
The response to environmental degradation and destruction is
to address the manifest and worst aspects through various policy
interventions. These take the form of environmental management
schemes, environmental impact assessments, and protection of high
value conservation areas by creating marine parks or national parklands.
How and why intervention takes place varies according to eco-
philosophy. Within criminological circles, at least two main approaches
can be identified: conservation criminology and an ecological justice
perspective. This section outlines these perspectives in the light of
concepts such as natural resource management, environmental crime,
sustainable development, ecological notions of rights and justice,
ecocide, and pristine nature.
Conservation criminology is concerned with natural resource
management as its main priority (Gibbs et al, 2010a; Herbig and Joubert,
2006). This has several different dimensions. On the one hand, nature in
general is viewed as something to be protected and cherished insofar as
air, land and water pollution negatively affect humans and community
life (see Mesko et al, 2011). The problem of air pollution, for example, is
of growing concern and is basically one that has an impact on humans
in ways that fundamentally undermine their health and wellbeing,
as evidenced in millions of premature deaths worldwide each year