That moralistic attitude manifests itself in a number of ways. For example, physicist Gregory Benford has pointed out that if global warming is occurring, the best way to deal with it may be to mitigate it, instead of simply trying to reverse its effects by reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Yet, when reading the popular media, it seems that the only way to deal with global warming is to impose costs on ourselves, make sacrifices, and change our lifestyles, in essence, to repent. They rely on human labor rather than expensive machines. Great, so as long as everyone has a job and we don't make any nasty smoke, it doesn't matter whether anything actually gets produced.
Many people equate the market system with exploitation of the environment.
But stewardship and conservation are only feasible when property rights are clear. Moreover, markets allow people who value nature to indulge that preference. What the market does not allow is a small group to force its own values, for nature or anything else, on everyone. Moralism has its attractions. Otherwise, there wouldn't be nearly as many of them.