Is it Possible to have Economic Growth without Environmental Harm (Essay Sample)

Economic Growth
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Economic Growth
Economic growth has various benefits among them being, improved standards of living, increased literacy, reduction in poverty levels and improved technology among others. However, environmental degradation, is a key disadvantage of economic growth (Panayotou, 2016). Achieving economic growth involves exploiting various resources on earth. The process of exploiting these resources, results in the release of various substances, such as gaseous wastes that are harmful to the environment (Saboori, & Sulaiman, 2013). Consequently, it is impossible to have economic growth without environmental damage.
One of the key facilitators of economic growth is the existence of industries that produce goods for customers. These industries, such as those involved in manufacturing, release waste materials, including poisonous gases that are harmful to the environment. In order for these industries to develop, and further continue to contribute to the growth of the economy, they need to expand. Their expansion entails the development and construction of new plants as well as increasing the size of the old ones. This expansion, in turn increases the volume of the waste materials, and consequently, the scale of environmental degradation (Saboori, & Sulaiman, 2013). Shutting down such industries for environmental reasons is impossible, because of the important function they have in the modern society. Consequently, achieving economic growth without environmental degradation is impossible.
Another reason that hinders the achievement of economic growth and a sustainable environment is the nature of the available sources of energy. Energy is the “lifeblood” of the modern society; it is used by people for transport, lighting, and cooking among other essential purposes. The conventional sources of energy such as natural gas and coal among others have harmful effects on the environment. The current solution to this problem lies in using renewable sources of energy such as wind, solar and geothermal (Pearce, Barbier, & Markandya, 2013). However, in order to exploit these renewable sources, the environment still has to incur some damage. For example, exploiting geothermal, a renewable source of energy, harms the surrounding environment, due to the distortion of the site that is necessary for its exploitation in pursuit of economic growth.
Furthermore, the initial cost of transiting from non-renewable sources of energy to renewable ones is high. This cost not only involves the financial aspect of such an undertaking, but also the political-will needed to rally people around the issue of shifting to renewable sources of energy, on the grounds of environmental conservation. In a democratic country, such a goal is difficult to achieve due to the difference in opinions of various people. For example, some people deny the concept of climate change caused by human activities, which is contrary to scientific findings (McCright, & Dunlap, 2011). Convincing such people is difficult and is nearly impossible to make an impact in the country, when they have the political power to stall or even prevent such changes. Consequently, achieving economic