The Land Ethic

             The main idea of this article is to state that there is yet no ethic dealing with man’s relation to land and to the animals and plants which grow upon it. People tend to think land is merely a property. The land-relation is economic, entailing privileges but not obligation. Aldo Leopold, the author of this article, suggested treating land as an energy circuit conveys three basic ideas: 1. Land is not merely soil. 2. The native plants and animals kept the energy circuit open; others may or may not. 3. That man-made changes are of a different order than evolutionary changes, and have effects more comprehensive than is intended or foreseen.

            Aldo said landscape can be developed with expired. One of his example was the Pueblo Indians did not to be equipped with range livestock. I believe if they know how to do it, they would do it. Or it might just simply that it was not worth it to keep the livestock. Instead of working eight hours a day to take care of the livestock, it would be more efficient just to spend few hours to hunt them.

            I believe ancient people did not have land ethic. One theory said the cause of mammoth population died out due to overhunting by ancient humans. I agree we should protect the environment, but the reason behind that is economic, not ethic. Mankind is merely one among thousands other kind of species, and every species always try to do their best to stay alive.