Conservation and Environmental Movements

Rule-based Conservation

Using regulations to define acceptable human behavior

Incentive-based Conservation

Using economic incentives to change environmental use

Scales of Governance

Hierarchy: Individual → Community → National → International

Manifest Destiny

Political ideology to extend civilization to the Pacific

Primitivism

Belief in decreased well-being with increased civilization

Romanticism

Emphasis on emotional engagement with nature

Deism

Belief in a non-intervening supreme being

Sublime

Aesthetic value of nature's largeness and irregularity

Noble Savage

Belief in natural goodness of uncivilized people

Ecologically Noble Savage

Indigenous people as natural conservationists

George Perkins Marsh

Environmental analyst, emphasized nature's stability

Henry David Thoreau

Philosophy of spiritual truths in natural 'wildness'

Transcendentalist Philosophy

Belief in higher reality reflecting spiritual truths

Edenic Myth

Idea of untouched purity in the American West

Hetch Hetchy

Controversial dam project reflecting conservation principles

Tragedy of the Commons

Individuals deplete public resource in own interest

Environmental Conservation

Socially-organized changes to reduce human-induced environmental change

Community-based Conservation

Biodiversity protection with local community participation

Forest Reserve Act

Legislation related to forest preservation

John Muir

Advocate of preservation mindset

Gifford Pinchot

Advocate of conservation mindset

Landscape Permeability

Measure of landscape structure and connectivity

Progressive Era

Era valuing social good over private property

Homestead Act

Offered 160 acres to settlers living on it for 5 years

Urban Public Health Movement

Response to environmental problems from rural-urban migration

Federal Land Reclamation Program

Successful conservation program creating dams and recreation spaces

Antiquities Act

Executive authority to designate federal land as National Monuments

Taylor Grazing Act

Empowered Secretary of Interior to create grazing districts

National Park Service (NPS)

Mandate to preserve natural areas and provide public recreation

Bureau of Land Management (BLM)

Agency managing public lands for various uses

General (Hardrock) Mining Law 1872

Governs mining of hard minerals on public lands

30x30 Goal

Global goal to conserve 30% of land and sea by 2030

Below-cost Timber Sales

Federal timber sold for less than road building expenditures

Roadless Area Conservation Rule

Regulation related to conservation of roadless areas

Sagebrush Rebellion

Movement to shift federal land management to local authorities

Wise Use Movement (1980s and 90s)

Opposition to environmental regulations on public lands

EPA

Focuses on environmental protection matters

OSHA

Ensures safe and healthful working conditions

Wilderness Act (1964)

Allowed designation of Wilderness areas with greater protection

Rachel Carson

Publicized growing fears of chemical pollution

Environmental Impacts Statements

Tool for identifying probable adverse environmental impacts

Endangered Species Act of 1973

Protects endangered species and designates critical habitats

End-of-stack (pipe) Environmental Regulation

Methods to remove contaminants from air or water

Superfund

Government fund for urgent environmental clean-ups

Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) of 1976

Controls hazardous waste disposal with tracking system

Toxic Colonialism

Exporting hazardous waste from developed to underdeveloped countries

Environmental Justice Movement

Focuses on environmental quality for working-class people

NIMBYism

Pushes polluting activities away from local communities

Environmental Racism

Institutional racism leading to disproportionate environmental burdens

Basel Convention

Response to international toxic waste trade in the 80s