Limits of nature Trade jeopardises the environment because it has become self-governing. Trade no longer responds to the needs of people or countries, but rather to the very need for trade. We no longer trade to live, we live to trade. This means that trade is governed by its own logic, which, among other things, requires generating more wealth through exploiting more natural resources. This has resulted in rivalry over the consumption of resources, with no respect or consideration for nature's limits.
Much trade involves generating waste or plundering resources.
The final result of trade in oil, for example, is increased levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. In many cases this natural limit is exceeded, as with emissions of carbon dioxide, largely responsible for the change that is taking place in the Earth's climate. It is not just that frenetic trade is causing environmental deterioration. There is also a question of justice. The impact of the deterioration is shared neither equally nor fairly.