Three Kinds of Argument
There are many reasons for conserving biodiversity — some obvious, some less so, but all equally important. It helps to group them into three categories: the narrowly utilitarian, the broadly utilitarian, and the ethical. The first two rest on the benefits we gain from nature, one direct and one indirect; the third rests on what we owe to other living things. Understanding all three gives you a complete answer to the exam favourite, 'Why should we conserve biodiversity?'
The Narrowly Utilitarian Argument
The narrowly utilitarian arguments are the most straightforward: humans draw countless direct economic benefits from nature. Think of food (cereals, pulses, fruits), firewood, fibre and construction material, and a long list of industrial products such as tannins, lubricants, dyes, resins and perfumes — along with products of medicinal importance.
The medicinal angle alone is striking. More than 25 per cent of the drugs sold in the market worldwide are derived from plants, and about 25,000 plant species contribute to the traditional medicines used by native peoples around the world. Nobody knows how many more useful plants still lie undiscovered in tropical rainforests. This is why bioprospecting — exploring molecular, genetic and species-level diversity for products of economic importance — matters so much: nations rich in biodiversity stand to reap enormous benefits from it.
The Broadly Utilitarian Argument
The broadly utilitarian argument goes beyond products you can sell and points to the ecosystem services that biodiversity provides — services so large that they are hard to put a price on.
The fast-dwindling Amazon forest is estimated to produce, through photosynthesis, about 20 per cent of the total oxygen in the earth's atmosphere. Try to imagine the cost of buying that much oxygen in cylinders. Pollination is another such service: without pollinators, plants cannot give us fruits or seeds, and this work is done free of charge by bees, bumblebees, birds and bats. On top of these measurable services are intangible benefits — the aesthetic pleasure of walking through thick woods, watching spring flowers bloom, or waking to a bulbul's song. There is no price tag for such things, yet they are real reasons to protect nature.
The Ethical Argument
The ethical argument sets aside economics altogether and asks what we owe to the millions of plant, animal and microbe species with which we share this planet. Philosophically and spiritually, we need to recognise that every species has an intrinsic value — a worth in itself — even if it is of no current or any economic value to us.
From this follows a simple responsibility: we have a moral duty to care for the well-being of other species and to pass on our biological legacy in good order to future generations. The Earth we inherited was rich in life; the ethical view says we are obliged to hand it on no poorer than we received it.
Quick Recap
- Reasons to conserve biodiversity fall into three groups: narrowly utilitarian, broadly utilitarian and ethical.
- Narrowly utilitarian = direct economic benefits: food, firewood, fibre, construction material, industrial products (tannins, lubricants, dyes, resins, perfumes) and medicines.
- More than 25 per cent of drugs sold worldwide come from plants; about 25,000 plant species are used in traditional medicines; bioprospecting lets biodiversity-rich nations profit.
- Broadly utilitarian = ecosystem services: the Amazon supplies about 20 per cent of atmospheric oxygen; pollination by bees, bumblebees, birds and bats; plus aesthetic benefits.
- Ethical = every species has intrinsic value; we have a moral duty to protect them and pass our biological legacy to future generations.
Solved Examples — Section 8
Q1. Into which three categories are the reasons for conserving biodiversity grouped?
Answer: Narrowly utilitarian, broadly utilitarian and ethical.
Q2. Give three direct economic products we obtain from biodiversity.
Answer: Any three of food (cereals, pulses, fruits), firewood, fibre, construction material and industrial products such as tannins, lubricants, dyes, resins and perfumes.
Q3. What fraction of drugs sold worldwide are derived from plants, and how many plant species contribute to traditional medicines?
Answer: More than 25 per cent of drugs sold worldwide are derived from plants, and about 25,000 plant species contribute to traditional medicines.
Q4. What is bioprospecting?
Answer: Exploring molecular, genetic and species-level diversity for products of economic importance; biodiversity-rich nations can reap enormous benefits from it.
Q5. Name two ecosystem services cited under the broadly utilitarian argument.
Answer: Production of about 20 per cent of atmospheric oxygen by the Amazon forest through photosynthesis, and pollination by bees, bumblebees, birds and bats.
Q6. State the core idea of the ethical argument for conserving biodiversity.
Answer: Every species has an intrinsic value even if it has no economic value to us, so we have a moral duty to care for other species and pass on our biological legacy in good order to future generations.