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  3. With concerns over environmental degradation rising, a majority of Chinese people believe that environmental protection should b

With concerns over environmental degradation rising, a majority of Chinese people believe that environmental protection should b

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问题     With concerns over environmental degradation rising, a majority of Chinese people believe that environmental protection should be given higher priority, even if it risks the economic growth. Do you think the environment is more important than the economy? Read the following excerpts on environment and economy carefully and write your response in about 300 words, in which you should:
    1. summarize briefly the different opinions:
    2. give your comment.
    Marks will be awarded for content relevance, content sufficiency, organization and language quality. Failure to follow the above instructions may result in a loss of marks.
    D. J. Thampapillai
    Clearly, the natural environment is an important component of the economic system, and without the natural environment the economic system would not be able to function. Hence, we need to treat the natural environment in the same way as we treat labour and capital: that is, as an asset and a resource.
    Jim MacNeill
    The most urgent imperative of the next few decades is further rapid growth. A fivefold to tenfold increase in economic activity would be required over the next 50 years in order to meet the needs and aspirations of a burgeoning world population, as well as to begin to reduce mass poverty. If such poverty is not reduced significantly and soon, there really is no way to stop the accelerating decline in the planet’s stocks of basic capital: its forests, soils, species, fisheries, waters and atmosphere.
    Peter Self
    Economic markets follow an instrumental logic whereby, under the right conditions, rational egoistic behaviour is socially legitimated and acceptable. In politics, by contrast, it is or was a general social belief that individuals should have some regard to the "good of society" and not just their own private wants.
    Sharon Beder
    Economic efficiency does not necessarily equate with social or environmental welfare. Just because the benefits of an action outweigh the costs, it does not mean that the decision is morally correct or politically acceptable. For example, child labour or slavery would be considered immoral even if the economic advantages to the whole society outweigh the costs to some individuals. Pricing mechanisms and markets tend to ignore distributional issues such as who gets the benefits and who bears the costs.
    Mohamed Idris
    The term "sustainable" from the ecological point of view means the maintenance of the integrity of the ecology. It means a harmonious relation between humanity and nature. That is, harmony in the interaction between individual human beings and in their interaction with natural resources.
    The term "sustainable" from the point of view of non-ecological elites means "how to continue to sustain the supply of raw materials when the existing sources of raw materials run out".
    Edward Grumbine
    China has already proven that it can build a powerhouse economy and pull hundreds of millions of people out of poverty. Now comes another huge challenge—constructing an adaptive state under 21st century conditions of dwindling resources, greater social inequality, and climate uncertainty. The tasks are daunting: China must reboot economy, revamp environmental policies to reverse decades of decline, and rekindle its social contract to citizens in the face of unprecedented urbanization.
    Write your response on ANSWER SHEET FOUR.
选项
答案 Economy and Environment: Competitors? Some people believe that accelerating the development of economy is crucial because it will not only tackle the mass poverty problem as soon as possible, but in the long run, it will also benefit the environment if the poverty is reduced significantly. Some think that the natural environment is a part of economic system which needs to be treated the same way as economic development. However, it may be difficult for countries like China to have sustainable development because their urbanization is now speeding up. The reason why many people think the most urgent task is to boost economy lies in the fact that a lot of people nowadays, especially in rural areas, are living in poverty. Consequently, many children drop out of school and can’t afford even the compulsory education despite the government’s endeavor. Secondly, they believe that only by further developing our economy can we get rid of poverty and gain overall prosperity. Moreover, it seems a fact that the environmental benefits based on economic decline are fragile. However, we tend to forget or marginalize environmental problems while putting the forefront to more immediate concerns like money or materials. We have but one mother earth. If our ecological environment is continually being polluted or ruined, just as it is now, we could not even survive on this planet. It’s the rapid and advanced economic development that results in the present situation where most parts of the world are polluted. Leaving our grandchildren an environmentally-sound planet is more important than any other economic aid our descendants might be able to acquire. A simple preference leaves the fundamental problem unaddressed. Without economic development, we were in trouble or might be conquered or bullied by other powerful countries. And without environmental protection, we would lose our home and harm our offspring. Therefore, the best solution is to develop environment-protection-directed agriculture and industries so as to kill two birds with one stone.
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