The article addresses topical issues of environmental safety, which is still insufficiently studied in the socio-political literature. In the article in more detail addresses environmental threats to humanity: the greenhouse effect, environment pollution, and ozone hole, radioactive contamination of the biosphere, acid rain, soil pollution, fresh water shortage, water pollution, and pollution of the oceans. However, article also focuses on the questions.
First of all it should be said that environmental safety issues are relevant, important issue of social and political Sciences, which are insufficiently studied in scientific literature. It should be noted that the most important element of socio-political security is the study of risks arising from the impact of human activities on the environment and reverse the effects of environmentally contaminated, transformed as a result of human exposure to natural environment on health, genetics, the world of human life, etc. Recall that environmental risks and threats are closely linked to man-made. A hasty and not well-calculated from the point of view of possible near and long-term environmental consequences of the action are usually associated with use in varying degrees harmful industrial and military technologies, recycling and disposal of radio-active and chemical waste, with industrial and transportation accidents, terrorist acts, whose objects are the enterprises of power plant, etc.,
Indeed, the undisputed fact is that the modern ecological crisis is a downside of scientific and technological progress and the benefits that it brought to the man. Not by chance the most outstanding public and technical innovations are ultimately the cause of the worst environmental disasters. Thus, the creation of nuclear weapons and the development of nuclear energy during the second half of the twentieth century led to two major disasters in human history – the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and the explosion of the reactor at The Chernobyl explosion in the biosphere were released more radioactive substances than the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
The Chernobyl catastrophe has affected the destinies of over 7 million people and will affect the health of many, many more, including unborn generations. Its consequences have become a serious problem for several countries and proof the validity of the use of the term "ecological disaster". A terrible natural disaster that occurred in Japan in the current 2011 has become another tragedy of the radiative nature of the threatening environmental problems not only affected Japan but also around the world, representing the inseparable ecological system.
Even relatively recently (last century) the media gleefully reported on the construction of the Karakum canal, intended to drink water the desert and turn it into a fertile plain. Soon, however, the soil was that the joy was premature. However, it soon turned out that the joy was premature. Irrigation soils have not yielded the desired effect, the water of the Aral lake has decreased. To date, the area of the Aral Sea has decreased by half, and winds have brought toxic salt with its bottom on fertile land, distant thousands of kilometers. Some scientists say that drinking water has got such a number of chemical discharges that mothers in the Aral Sea region cannot breast- feed their children, not exposing them to the risk of poisoning.
Scientific analysis show that the forests on our planet have greatly reduced. Unsustainable deforestation and fires have led to the fact that in many places, once entirely covered by forests, to date, they survived only 10-30% of the territory. The area of tropical forests in Africa has decreased by 70%, South America - 60%, in China only 8% of the territory is covered by forest. Widely known other cases of environmental disasters which long time was suppressed. This radioactive contamination of the natural environment in the areas of the polygons, where for
many years he conducted tests of nuclear weapons (for example, near Semipalatinsk in the former Soviet Union, the Atoll Mururoa in the Pacific, etc.). It must be said those in recent years, cases of oil pollution of seas and oceans. Finally, the consequences of military operations in regional conflicts, such as multiple cancers in soldiers who participated in military actions on the territory of Serbia, in the result of NATO bombs containing slightly enriched uranium. The same as a result of hostilities in the soil and water sources in Yugoslavia hit 7 tons of mercury.
It should be said that the scientific analysis of the environmental threats of the day makes clear to realize that the man and his various activities are in close unity with nature. If in the past the normative ideal was the active transformation of nature, the subordination of it to the person that assumed the well-known confrontation, the confrontation of man and nature, the modern possibilities of self-destruction of human civilization requires replacement of this outdated paradigm of thought to another, in which man appears as part of the global natural environment, the state of which depends the health, well-being and the very life of present and future generations. With all of the uniqueness of man as a rational and creative living space of the subject it is involved in the ecological system along with other creatures. His behavior is therefore motivated not only specifically human and rational, socio-cultural factors, but also natural, woven into the system of natural connections, whereby any purposeful social action is not only expected, but also a variety of unintended consequences. Human activity in their capabilities are limited to physical and biological parameters and the surrounding natural environment is subject to environmental laws that can't be undone. As emphasized by U. Beck, "our age is the end of the opposition of society and nature. No nature outside of society, as no society outside of nature. At the end of the twentieth century nature is society, and it is also nature" [2]. According to the decision taken at the UN world conference on environment in Rio de Janeiro, economic growth and environmental protection can be compatible in that case, if to follow the model of development, called "ecological modernization".
The industrial age with its contempt for nature and the underestimation of the law of feedback gave rise to a series of long-term environmental problems that today threaten the health and lives of both present and future generations. In this regard, we will consider briefly the major environmental threats, the future of human society.
The greenhouse effect. In the twentieth century, human activities caused by the development of technology, violated the ratio of absorbed and emitted by Earth's surface energy. While the man did not intervene in global processes of Land change on its surface and in the atmosphere were related to the content in the nature of the gases, called "greenhouse".
Without sheath gas enveloping the Earth, the temperature on its surface would have been lower by 30-40° that would call into question the existence of highly developed organisms. Temporary greenhouse gases retain heat in the atmosphere, thereby creating the so-called greenhouse effect.
One of the most important environmental problems of today is that as a result of anthropogenic human activities percentage of some greenhouse gases in the atmosphere increases. Over the past 200 years as a result of human activity the content of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has increased by 25%. This is due, on the one hand, intensive burning of fossil fuels: gas, oil, shale, coal, and with another – an annual reduction of areas of forests, which absorb carbon dioxide during photosynthesis. The increase in the area of city dumps leads to an increase of methane, nitrous oxide and some other gases. But if an increasing mass of the substance absorbing in the infrared region (e.g., carbon dioxide), the earth's surface absorbs more energy and its temperature increases. Today it is clear that the use predominantly of oil, gas, coal will inevitably lead to global climate change. According to some forecasts, the average temperature of the globe may start to increase, especially in areas with temperate and polar regions.
The level of the ocean by 2050. As a result of melting polar ice could rise by 1-1. 2 m. coastal areas, which are home to tens of millions of people, will be flooded. But in some regions of the globe, such as Canada and Siberia, the climate may significantly improve.
This temperature rise is threatened by unprecedented environmental and social explosion. The increase in temperature will cause a decrease in soil moisture in many regions of the Earth. Drought and typhoons will become commonplace.
Global warming will affect the state of the world's forests. Most of the vegetation may die eco-system will be on the stage of destruction, and this will lead to a catastrophic reduction of species diversity of plants.
The ozone hole. Ozone is a molecular form of oxygen (O3). It forms in the upper atmosphere (the stratosphere), a very thin layer – the ozone shield, which protects life on Earth from ultraviolet radiation. Getting to Earth the hard ultraviolet rays can cause skin cancer, harm to animals and plants. The ozone shield prevents this. At the same time the formation of ozone in the lower atmosphere can be harmful to living organisms.
Environmental threat is the impact of nitrogen oxides emitted by jet engines of supersonic aircraft at an altitude of 20-25 km (at this height is the protective layer of ozone molecules, which hold the hard ultraviolet radiation of the cosmos). Currently, the "ozone hole" had formed over Antarctica, Europe, and Asia. The "ozone hole" in the upper atmosphere over Antarctica reached record proportions.
Pollution of the natural environment. Often enough in the surrounding natural environment appear previously not in it the components that fall into it as a result of the active influence of man. This acquired state of the environment is called pollution. Under the pollution means the presence in the environment of harmful substances that violate the functioning of ecological systems or their individual elements and reducing the quality of the environment from the point of view of human habitation or the conduct of business activities.
In this regard, it should be said that there are natural and anthropogenic pollution. Natural pollution is a result of natural causes – volcanoes, earthquakes, floods and fires. Anthropogenic pollution is the result of human activity.
Anthropogenic sources of pollution are present in its harmful impact on the environment was more dangerous than natural. For example, natural sources of nitrogen oxides emit 30 million metric tons of nitrogen per year, while human – 30-35 million tons; sulfur dioxide, respectively, about 30 million tons and 150 million tons as a result of human activities lead enters the biosphere is almost 10 times more than in the process of natural contaminants.
Air pollution is associated with active human activities, in particular with the work of fuel-energy enterprises, internal combustion engines.
All the factors of anthropogenic pollution of the atmosphere can be divided into the following groups: Mechanical contaminants – industrial emissions, smoke from coal combustion, carbon black, and washable rubber tires, etc.; Chemical contaminants – dust or gaseous substances that can enter into chemical reactions; Radioactive pollutants – radionuclide emissions as a result of accidents at nuclear power plants, nuclear military installations, radioactive contamination from weapons of mass destruction and nuclear waste production.
Currently, with the development and implementation of efficient filters for industrial plants amount emitted into the atmosphere in particulate contamination has decreased. Paramount among the factors of atmospheric pollution took chemical pollutants. The release of a wide spectrum of gases containing toxic substances, leads to dangerous levels of air pollution in areas of chemical plants. Thus, in addition to gaseous pollutants, in the atmosphere there are many particles. There are dust, soot and soot. Atmospheric pollution by heavy metals such as lead, cadmium, mercury, copper, Nickel, zinc, chromium, vanadium is very dangerous. The impurities of these elements are constantly present in the air of large industrial cities.
It should be said that radioactive contamination has a significant difference from the other. A radioactive nuclide is the nucleus of unstable chemical elements emitting charged particles and short wavelength electromagnetic radiation. These particles and radiation, getting into the human body destroying the cells, which could cause various diseases, including radiation. Because of the prevalence of nuclear power plants, use of nuclear energy for military purposes, etc. This kind of air pollution is becoming an increasingly important and very dangerous.
Radioactive contamination of the biosphere. Currently, the radioactive elements widely used in various fields. Neglect of transport and storage of these elements leads to serious radioactive contamination. Emergency danger to life and health of many generations of people are testing nuclear weapons, and the recurrent disaster on the technical and military installations with nuclear reactors or warheads.
Acid rain. The development of industry, transport, the development of new sources of energy leads to a constant increase in the number of industrial emissions. This is mainly using fossil fuels in thermal power plants, industrial plants, internal combustion engines and in heating system. Consequently, combustion of fossil fuels in the earth's atmosphere do nitrogen compounds, sulphur, chlorine and some other elements. Among them is dominated by sulphur and nitrogen oxides. Connecting with the water particles, oxides of sulphur and nitrogen form a grey and nitric acid of different concentrations.
According to experts, the term "acid rain" is not precise enough. A more suitable expression is "acid rain". Indeed, contaminants can appear not only as rain but also as snow, clouds, fog ("wet draught"), or in the form of gas and dust ("dry deposits") during the dry season.
First of all, from acid rain affects water bodies – lakes and rivers. The acidification of bodies of water leads to the increase of aluminum content is extremely toxic to fish. Acidification is particularly dangerous for the oceanic shallow water, with the reduced mass of the phytoplankton of the World ocean leads to the rupture of the food chain and ecological balance in the oceanic ecosystem may change.
Although the soil and is less susceptible to acidification than water, acid rain can negatively affect their condition, and especially on the vegetation cover.
Pollution of the soil. In normal natural conditions, all the processes occurring in the soil are in balance. However, human activities can disrupt this balance. In such cases, the pollution, the change in the composition of the soil, even its complete destruction. Currently, each inhabitant of our planet has less than one hectare of arable land. And even this small area is gradually decreasing as a result of irresponsible and negligent management. The construction of cities and industrial enterprises, the development of mining industry leads to reduction of arable land. The destruction of forests and grass cover maintained not by the rules of ploughing of land contributes to the process of erosion of soil destruction and erosion of the topsoil by wind and water. Only in the last century, erosion has destroyed 2 billion hectares of fertile arable land.
The shortage of fresh water. The availability of fresh water is one of the main conditions for the emergence of civilization, human existence and development of any production. Mankind need not just water, but fresh water and a certain quality. And it’s very little. Out of every 100 liters of water on Earth, 97 l. is salt water. Scientists have found that the total reserves of all types of fresh waters – rivers, lakes, groundwater and snow-ice resources amount to 2.5% of the total water on Earth.
In order to provide water to the modern city of a million people, you need at least 0.5 million m3 of water per day. Already, many cities have to replenish water supplies from sources located very far away from them, or to drill deep water wells. In modern conditions greatly increase the body's need for water for household needs. The amount of water depends on the region and standard of living and ranges from 3 to 700 HP for one person, in Moscow, for example, per capita is about 650 l, which is one of the highest rates in the world.
From scientific analysis of water use over the past 5-6 decades implies that the annual growth of irrevocable water consumption, which used water is irretrievably lost to the environment, is 4-5%. Perspective calculations show that at preservation of such rates of consumption and taking into account population growth and the production volumes by the year 2100, mankind may exhaust all reserves of fresh water.
It should be said that the problem is complicated by the fact that the quality of freshwater resources is getting worse, they are increasingly polluted by sewage and various waste.
Water pollution. Pollution of rivers and lakes, and groundwater occurs primarily for the following reasons: due to discharges of industrial enterprises with harmful chemical substances: heavy metals, phenols, acids, alkalis, cyanides, resulting in sewage runoff into the rivers without cleaning or insufficient cleaning, dumping of organic wastes pulp and paper, food, textile enterprises; as a result of falling into water radioactive substances improper storage of radioactive waste, in nuclear tests and disasters; when immersed in water mechanical pollutants – particles of clay, sand, slag, waste coal industry.
Pollution of the oceans. Special environmental threat is the pollution of the World Ocean. A historical perspective of all the destruction that man produces in their environment, the most dangerous is those that affect the life of the sea. Undoubtedly, due to the huge mass of the ocean to disturb the right balance is not easy. But for the same reason, it is difficult to restore the disturbed equilibrium. Today the river is continuously carried away into the sea of harmful dregs, and their accumulation there recalls growing account that will inevitably be presented for payment. A huge danger is ocean pollution with such metals as mercury, lead, cadmium, copper, zinc and chromium.
A lot of manufactures are responsible for the mercury pollution. These include the pulp and paper industry, use of organic mercury compounds for the protection of paper pulp from microbial infection, electrolytic production of chlorine and alkali, plastics, which use mercury catalysts, and many others.
Located in the ocean lead gets there as a result of natural leaching of the continental rocks, but today the flow of lead in the ocean occurs mainly from the air, which contaminates the exhaust gases. The use of tetraethyl lead as antiknock in operating on liquid fuel engines leads to the fact that each year from the atmosphere and rivers into the ocean is emitted 200 tons of lead.
Heaviest polluted them contaminated the surface water bodies and marine animals, especially filter organisms, which are equally able to accumulate and radioactive elements discharged into the ocean after the nuclear explosions and industrial garbage. The problem of disposing of radioactive waste is very complex, and their burial in the ocean is fraught with danger.
Since there was a marine carriage of oil by tankers, in the sea annually gets about 5 million tons of oil. Pollution by hydrocarbons is primarily due to these shipments. Well known how much dirt gets in the water when cleaning tankers in the open sea, but this problem is still not resolved by the international law - especially because tankers often go under the fictitious flag. But besides this reason there is another: the release of oil on the continental plateau in underwater drilling, which is becoming more common.
Thus, from the above, we see that threats to nature and man himself as a biological species resulting from the development and diffusion of industrial and military technologies generated by the industrial catastrophes, in other words, are the effects of ill-conceived and careless human activities, is very diverse. As society and nature are closely interrelated and this relationship is more clearly understood, one of the main tasks of social riskology or sociology of security is the study of the impact of environmental threats and risks on society and its functioning, the prevention of environmental disasters, methods and forms of maintaining a harmonious relationship between the natural and human factors [3] in the framework of the global environmental system. Considerable interest also represents the activity of various areas of the environmental movement (environmentalism). According to the Oxford English dictionary, environmentalist is a person preoccupied with the problem of protection of surrounding environment. In this regard, it should be noted that currently in the West most people fall under this definition. However, there is the phenomenon of social thought as "antienvironmentalist". The representatives of this recent direction accused of environmentalists that they are against any development and are pushing the world to the universal poverty. Other researchers believe environmentalists romantic rather than serious scientists, and others – all antihumanist because they ignore the welfare of animals and plants to the prosperity of the human race.
Common in all these attacks is that ignore differences between the various areas of environmentalism. However, such differences exist. So, the radical environmentalists require the adoption of strict measures in the protection of nature and against its excessive use. Reformists are more soft and able to compromise. They seek to reform capitalism from the perspective of "technocentrism". Technocentrism proclaims its faith in science, technology, and rational management of the ecosystem and society, aimed at solving ecological problems. The question here is how you can intervene in a market economy. While liberals believe that natural market forces combined with maximum private ownership of the environment can ensure the preservation of the past, social reformers require the introduction of specific restrictions on the activities of firms and individuals and recent taxation environmental tax.
Supporters of radical environmentalism aim to eradicate environmental problems. They require fundamental social changes, a complete overhaul of capitalism, often deviating in the direction of the old counter-cultural traditions such as romanticism, anarchism or utopian socialism [4]. These include social ecology, eco-socialism and deep ecology. Deep ecology is biocentrism: according to the worldview of its members, the values associated with the biosphere, more important than the humanity. Ecosocialism, in contrast is anthropocentric, considering man as the source of all values and media responsibility for all living things. Social ecology seeks to reconcile the two opposites.
For a long time, many environmentalists believed socialism responsible in the same way that capitalism, impending ecological crisis. However, socialism itself was more complicated than previously thought. For example, eco-socialism grows in the soil of the socialist tradition, but not of the Stalinist state socialism with the "iron curtain", and utopian socialist ideas. That is why it is inherent in counter-cultural orientation and critical attitude toward the established values of the day. Despite the fact that eco-socialism and social ecology are subjected to each other's criticism, they have much in common.
In General, the environmentalism includes a variety of ideas and motivations, combines the modernity's values and postmodernity, capitalist progress and the socialist utopia.
In conclusion, it should be said that the main problem of environmental safety is to study the mechanisms of human impact on the environment and the transformations in her that are the result of human activity. The problem of modern ecological security basically can be summarized as follows: on a planetary scale-a global forecast for population and resources in conditions of intensive industrial development and to identify ways of further development of civilization; regional scale-a study of the state of ecosystem at the level of regions and districts; microscale-study of the basic characteristics and parameters of urban living conditions. Their solution requires joint efforts of all States for environmental security in the world and overcome the dangers of environmental disaster. A consistent solution to the problems of environmental safety involves the establishment of a harmonious relationship between society and nature, the elimination of socio - political antagonisms, the transition of society on a co-evolutionary path of development, etc.
References
- A major current political science – M.: EKSMO, 2209. – P.403
- Beck The society of risk. On the way to another modern. – M., 2000. – P.105.
- The newest sociological – Minsk: Book House, 2010. – С.227,1252-1253.
- Ivanov Nature and Society, St. Petersburg, 2016. – P.280.