REVIEW

• By the late 1800’s still have the Imperial View, Darwinism, remnants of Malthus– the concept of conflict between humans and nature

with humans having the moral and technological might

• At the same time have social commentators writing about poor living conditions - i.e. Dickens - social conscience (easy to apply to environmental concerns)

GROWTH

• This is also a period of tremendous growth and therefore of environmental exploitation– First World is expanding– Domination and taming of wilderness

• J A Macdonald (USA) “doctrine of usefulness” - if it works do it

• Manifest destiny - might is right– Railway workers as ‘sod busters’

EXTINCTION - EXPECTED

• Extinction is a natural process

• Question is not about the process but about what humans are doing to the process– speed?

NOTICEABLE EXTINCTION

• Passenger Pigeon– Most numerous bird

on the planet– estimated pop. 5

billion

THE SENSE OF LOSS

• Passenger pigeons were so numerous that flocks flying overhead would blot out the sun for hours

• branches of trees would break under the weight of the birds landing on them

• villages would have competitions with small cannons - who could kill the most

LAST PASSENGER PIGEON DIED IN 1916 IN A ZOO

• The last sighting in Canada was in 1902• Why massive and quick extinction?

BISON IN N. AMERICA

• Similar timing to the passenger pigeon

• In 1800 about 60 million animals and an interlinked population of 300,000 Plains Natives

• By 1879 - few animals and many tribes were starving

• Bison loss in N. Am

• Note the railway dissecting the range

SIMILARITY OF REASONS

• Hunting– food for railway development and bones

shipped east for fertilizer– sport (shooting from rail coaches)– policy of destruction by army

SUMMARY

• Writers such as Thoreau arguing for preservation

• James Audubon publishing Birds of America• The US Department of the Interior

established in 1849 - eventually responsible for parks in 20th century

• The evident disappearance of species

• The writings of George Marsh and the concept that human action does modify the environment

• The establishment of “preserved” areas by law– first national park in the world is Yosemite in 1864– Banff is established as a reserve in 1885– Algonquin is established as a provincial park in 1893

FIRST CONSERVATION MOVEMENT - 1890’S

• Important as a concept because this is developed not for emotional reasons but for rational, utilitarian motivations

• RATIONALE

1. RESOURCE SCARCITY

• The unending frontier of American development was shutting down

• No new pioneers as “uncivilized” land is used up

• Therefore orderly development was the next step– still exploitation, but more efficient and rational

management

Map showing the position of the center of population at the close of each decade from 1790 to 1890, in Gannett, Statistical Atlas of the United States, based upon the results of the eleventh census, 1898

• Frederick Jackson Turner (1893): the US Census Bureau in 1890 notes that there is no longer a frontier line on their demographic maps

2. DETRIMENTAL IMPACTS

• Marsh had pointed out that America was squandering its heritage

• Realization that human activities could have negative impacts on the environment

• More importantly these impacts could affect the ability of the economy to grow and develop

3. SOCIAL REFORM MOVEMENTS

• Rising education levels and progressive attitudes towards wise use of resources

• Attitudes against trusts and combines

4. SCIENTIFIC RATIONALITY

• Government leading in the sense of management of resources - government agencies and policies

• Professional and sound management in all areas, including the environment

CONCLUSION

• THE PRIMARY PUSH IS ONE OF SELF INTEREST

• ONE HAS TO PROVIDE A MOTIVATION THAT IS MORE CONCRETE THAN GENERAL THEORY

PRESERVATION OR CONSERVATION ?• Original movement puts emphasis on

preservation– greater contrast to outright exploitation

CONSERVATION• Conservation implies use - specific use

• DEFINITION– Greatest use for the greatest period of time for the

greatest good of the people

• The battle between the two philosophies is still with us today– The Sierra Club is an example of a

preservationist group

• The other tendency out of this period is for the Canadian system to lag behind the U.S.– the establishment of parks– in 1905 the U.S. forest service established and

by 1906 the first “Canadian Forestry Conference”

CONCEPT OF UTILITY

• In both societies the concept of utility (use) takes priority over the concept of virgin preservation

• benefit of arguing for wise use in a rational economic sense