Seite 31 [31]
OCR
1.5. Regulatory Concepts in Environmental Codifications "Nor can the moral character of development exclude respect for the beings which constitute the natural world, which the ancient Greeks - alluding precisely to the order which distinguishes it - called the ‘cosmos.’ Such realities also demand respect, by virtue of a threefold consideration which it is useful to reflect upon carefully. The first consideration is the appropriateness of acquiring a growing awareness of the fact that one cannot use with impunity the different categories of beings, whether living or inanimate - animals, plants, the natural elements - simply as one wishes, according to one’s own economic needs. On the contrary, one must take into account the nature of each being and of its mutual connection in an ordered system, which is precisely the ‘cosmos’. The second consideration is based on the realization - which is perhaps more urgent - that natural resources are limited; some are not, as it is said, renewable. Using them as if they were inexhaustible, with absolute dominion, seriously endangers their availability not only for the present generation but above all for generations to come. The third consideration refers directly to the consequences of a certain type of development on the quality of life in the industrialized zones. We all know that the direct or indirect result of industrialization is, ever more frequently, the pollution of the environment, with serious consequences for the health of the population. Once again it is evident that development, the planning which governs it, and the way in which resources are used must include respect for moral demands.”* Pope John Paul II, Sollicitudo Rei Socialis (encyclical, 30 December 1987), Acta Apostolicae Sedis 80, no. 5 (1988): 513-86, e.g., §34, https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/ encyclicals/documents/hf_jp-ii_enc_30121987_sollicitudo-rei-socialis.html. Pope John Paul II, Redemptor Hominis (encyclical, 4 March 1979), Acta Apostolicae Sedis 71 (1979): 257-324, https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/encyclicals/documents/ hf_jp-ii_enc_04031979_redemptor-hominis.htm. 29
