Regarding this week’s question, “Which argument is most compelling and why”, the arguments presented Debate 1.2 are not at odds with one another, they are discussing the same issue from a different ethical perspective.  Moreover, the authors of both arguments are addressing different aspects of the state of the environmental/economic issue, and need to recognize and work together on a common interest.

The primary fears of the environmentalist camp are that natural resources are running out, that species, water, and air quality are in decline, the decreasing food supply, and the current usage rate is unsustainable (Ecosystems and Human Well-being: Synthesis 2005).  Economists undermine the severity of these ecological issues with various market reports showing that human adaptations in the production of goods and services will compensate for the environmental condition.  

Economist purport that our technological advancements have led to an increase in food abundance, and that adequate corrections have been implemented so that the net output worldwide are improving.  Metrics show a slow in population growth rate.  Likewise, the growth rate in the last fifty years peaked at 2.11 and was 1.109 in 2018 (Population growth (annual %) 2019).  While the decrease is slowing from a rate perspective, any growth requires ever-increasing pressure to engineer and invent increasing food production yield rates to keep up with demand.  Furthermore, there is now a slow increase in the amount of food insecurity (Hunger and food insecurity 2017). Lomborg discusses advancement in efficiency yields, but fails to address the non-source point pollution effects of the increased synthetic fertilizer production and disparate impact third world nations such as Morocco in the pursuit of phosphate  (Kasprak 2016).

Inasmuch as the economic argument is incomplete, so too is the environmental one.  Environmental groups discuss reducing emissions, living green, and shrinking our ecological footprint.  Environmentalists are typically focused on modifying existing economic mechanisms, products, and services.  As environmentalists want big business magnates to adopt a land ethic, environmentalist must concede that slowing the rate of degradation just delays the inevitable.

References

2005. Ecosystems and Human Well-being: Synthesis. Synthesis, Washington, D.C.: Island Press. https://www.millenniumassessment.org/documents/document.356.aspx.pdf.
2006. Hunger and food insecurity. Accessed January 13, 2019. http://www.fao.org/hunger/en/.

Kasprak, Alex. 2016. November 29. Accessed January 13, 2019. https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2016/11/the-desert-rock-that-feeds-the-world/508853/.

2019. Population growth (annual %). January 12. Accessed January 19, 2019. https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.POP.GROW .