assumptions about the environmental impact of human behaviour can be derived
from three main theoretical perspectives: Modernization Theory, Political Economy
and Human Ecology. The related theoretical frameworks can be applied to the
distinction between responsibility for the environment and accountability for economic actions.
In the eyes of classic Modernization Theory, the impact of the economic performance of a country on the human environment depends on the stage of its economic
evolution. Beneath a certain threshold of economic development or affluence,
economic performance may cause damage, e.g. due to a dominance of the
agricultural sector, which is expected to have more negative effects on nature than
a service-oriented economy or lacking technology for clean production. But, from
this perspective, its harmful effects will eventually be overcome by the possibilities
of protection and regeneration it creates by “economic feedback mechanisms”
(Beckerman 1992: 483). Once the economic development reaches the turning
point it may run in a sustainable way—either “automatically when countries
Table 2 Estimates of annual costs/benefits (flows); p.p. own calculation based on numbers in refs
Estimated annual costs/
benefits (trillion
USD/yr ¼ 10
12 USD/yr)
References
Gross world product (GWP)
80.27–127.8
CIA (2018,
2019, 2020)
Entire biosphere
33 (16–54)
Costanza
et al. (1997)
Agriculture (5.9%–6.4% of GDP)
4.4–8.2
CIA (2018,
2019, 2020)
Production of natural resources incl. oil, gas, coal,
minerals, forest products (5.9% of GDP)
4.3–7.3
CIA (2018,
2019, 2020)
Ecosystem services of the oceans 2007
>3.61
Russi et al.
(2013)
Transnational crime
1.6–2.2
May (2017)
Food production
1.3
WWF
(2020)
Value of agricultural output in the EU 2017
0.48
European
Union
(2018)
Value of forestry products 2018
0.27
FAO (2020)
Total benefits by coral reefs in 2030
0.072
Lomborg
(2014)
Investments to preserve 50% more coral reef by
2030
0.003
Lomborg
(2014)
Illegal logging
0.052–0.157
May (2017)
Illegal mining
0.012–0.048
May (2017)
Illegal wildlife trade
0.005–0.023
May (2017)
Coral reef services 2007
<0.0012
Russi et al.
(2013)
Economy on Top, Nature on the Brink? A Closer Look on the Relationship Between. . .
201
from three main theoretical perspectives: Modernization Theory, Political Economy
and Human Ecology. The related theoretical frameworks can be applied to the
distinction between responsibility for the environment and accountability for economic actions.
In the eyes of classic Modernization Theory, the impact of the economic performance of a country on the human environment depends on the stage of its economic
evolution. Beneath a certain threshold of economic development or affluence,
economic performance may cause damage, e.g. due to a dominance of the
agricultural sector, which is expected to have more negative effects on nature than
a service-oriented economy or lacking technology for clean production. But, from
this perspective, its harmful effects will eventually be overcome by the possibilities
of protection and regeneration it creates by “economic feedback mechanisms”
(Beckerman 1992: 483). Once the economic development reaches the turning
point it may run in a sustainable way—either “automatically when countries
Table 2 Estimates of annual costs/benefits (flows); p.p. own calculation based on numbers in refs
Estimated annual costs/
benefits (trillion
USD/yr ¼ 10
12 USD/yr)
References
Gross world product (GWP)
80.27–127.8
CIA (2018,
2019, 2020)
Entire biosphere
33 (16–54)
Costanza
et al. (1997)
Agriculture (5.9%–6.4% of GDP)
4.4–8.2
CIA (2018,
2019, 2020)
Production of natural resources incl. oil, gas, coal,
minerals, forest products (5.9% of GDP)
4.3–7.3
CIA (2018,
2019, 2020)
Ecosystem services of the oceans 2007
>3.61
Russi et al.
(2013)
Transnational crime
1.6–2.2
May (2017)
Food production
1.3
WWF
(2020)
Value of agricultural output in the EU 2017
0.48
European
Union
(2018)
Value of forestry products 2018
0.27
FAO (2020)
Total benefits by coral reefs in 2030
0.072
Lomborg
(2014)
Investments to preserve 50% more coral reef by
2030
0.003
Lomborg
(2014)
Illegal logging
0.052–0.157
May (2017)
Illegal mining
0.012–0.048
May (2017)
Illegal wildlife trade
0.005–0.023
May (2017)
Coral reef services 2007
<0.0012
Russi et al.
(2013)
Economy on Top, Nature on the Brink? A Closer Look on the Relationship Between. . .
201