Why it is said that we may brave human laws but cannot resist natural laws?

Working of all the entities are governed by certain laws for instance a human body has its own set of laws, society and nations have their own laws. Human laws have been created by humans  to  enforce a standardized behavior in order to maintain peace and harmony.

Natural systems have their own laws like flow of river, growth of certain trees in certain areas etc. These laws have been responsible for smooth working.

In pursuit of material needs humans have violated these laws. For instance dams are constructed on rivers and their flow is changed. These dams are used for hydro-electric power generation, meeting water needs of the society around. These violations have created comfort for humankind but in long run have invited troubles.

A man can violate a law and runaway or bribe the law enforcement agencies, thus escape the punishment. In case of natural laws this does not happen, dams constructed lead to flooding and heavy destruction. Uttarakhand floods were an example where the region could not escape from punishment for violation.

Rapid urbanisation and industrialisation have released vast amount of carbon dioxide and other polluting gases in the atmosphere. These gases are being held responsible for global warming as they exceed the absorption capacity of natural system. Global warming is melting the glaciers, causing extreme weather events thus a catastrophe awaits.

Every natural resources has its own process of regeneration over time. Intensive agriculture, overfishing, indiscriminate cutting of trees for making roads have deteriorated the natural resources available by stretching beyond  their regenerative capacity. This deterioration threatens food security, livelihood  of many dependent on it directly and indirectly.

In case of human laws one has an opportunity to defend oneself but this does not happen in case of natural laws. No amount of justification that violations have resulted in poverty reduction hold as the damage remains irreversible. In case of natural laws, people who suffer are not always the ones who have committed the crime but become innocent victims.

Most of the environmental issues being currently faced by the world are result of violation of natural process of regeneration and flow. Over-exploitation of resources, replacing an endemic species with a profitable one endangers the sustainable development.

It also holds true that eradication of evils of poverty, hunger requires rapid growth which may not be in line with natural laws. To ensure growth as well as compliance with natural laws requires growth strategy aligned with natural laws and any violation is minimum.


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