Global environmental issues are the responsibility of richer nations, not poorer ones. To what extent do you agree or disagree?

Global environmental problems are something that every living being is having to deal with,

both

in the developing and developed world. Some sections of society, argue that the developed

nations

are at fault whilst others believe that the poorer developing

nations

are

also

at fault.

However

, I believe that

both

the rich and poor

countries

are

both

responsible, as they

both

contribute to

this

problem, all be it in different capacities.

First

and foremost, the majority of the factories are operating in the more developed

nations

.

In addition

to

this

, most vehicles ownership is by people in developed

countries

, because of their strong purchasing power.

Therefore

with the major contributors to environmental pollution being in the richer

countries

, people feel that they are solely responsible for

this

environmental dilemma.

However

,

although

they contribute to a large portion of the problem, they possess the tools to remedy the predicament, whereas poorer

countries

do not. Poorer

nations

,

on the other hand

, do not have

this

luxury, because they are trying to play catch up with the economies of the wealthier

nations

. The crisis that poorer

nations

face, is that they do indeed need help via investment from the west. An example to illustrate

this

, is the deforestation in the Amazon, for the clearing of more area for American companies to set up their offices to establish their presence in the South American Continent. These effects can

also

be seen in Africa, as many

countries

are mining their natural resources and shipping them to the richer

nations

, in return for investment.

Furthermore

, as they don't have the luxury of switching to renewable sources of energy, mainly due to the cost involved, they need to stick to their current means, which is the burning of fossil fuels. To conclude, the bottom line is that

both

the developing and developed

nations

are responsible for the current global environmental crisis, all be it in different capacities and

therefore

they need to individually deal with their respective

nations

' contributions.