Title 3: Ecology

The planet is an organism.
Like any organism,
it is self-regulating,
and able to heal itself.

But resilience is not invincibility.
There are parameters and conditions
necessary for its survival and stability.
The parameters necessary for a planet's survival
are intrinsically and automatically
Law upon that planet.

A planet is a Host.
A civilization is a Guest.
A guest must respect their host
to remain worthy of hospitality.

No person, group, or institution
can ever hold any authority to override
the Law of the planet on which they reside.

The Prime Directive

Let it be.
Let the planet be.
Do not reduce Ecological Integrity
unless absolutely necessary.

Ecological Integrity

In all decisions affecting the Earth's biological systems,
the Law requires the course of action
that maximizes Ecological Integrity,
which has three factors:
1. Animate surface area –
the area of ground on which flora can grow;
2. Biodiversity –
the number of species interacting in the ecosystem;
3. Purity –
the absence of unnatural contaminants
in soil, water, and air.

The Three Forms of Ecological Degradation

1. Dis-animation –
converting a surface from animate to inanimate;
2. Eco-reduction –
reducing the number of species in the ecosystem;
3. Pollution –
contamination, chemical or otherwise,
that damages the ecosystem.

Since survival requires some degree of ecological impact,
exemption from the Three Factors may be warranted
if all three Exemption Criteria are met:

1. the proposed action is necessary
to meet genuine needs;
2. no less harmful alternative exists;
3. council has been held, with the people of the place,
to determine the truth of the first two.

Genuine Needs

These are the needs that can potentially justify
the alteration of land:
full nutrition; clean, accessible water;
adequate temperature; comfortable sleeping;
convenient defecation; cleanliness and bathing;
protection from predators and insects;
medicine; social gathering;
and facilities for producing the tools or energy
necessary to fulfill these needs.

Land shall only be altered if doing so is wise.
To determine whether an alteration is wise,
council must be held to debate it.

Where

A Land Council is held
at the location of the proposed alteration.

Who

Decisions about land
rightfully belong to those
who are closest to the land.
In matters of land use, the land itself has the final say,
and those with the closest relationship to the land
have the final say in interpreting what that is.

Requirements

Anyone likely to be affected
is informed of the council, with ample notice.
Minds must be as clear as possible
before deliberation begins.
All arguments must be rationally evaluated.
Speech must be free, open, and uninterrupted.

In chronological order:
1. The time and location are announced in the local Village.
2. The council meets at the site of the proposed alteration.
3. Attendance is open to all.
4. Group meditation, seated in a circle on the ground,
to clear minds and get in touch with the Earth
before making decisions about the Earth.
5. An expression of reverence for the Earth,
such as kissing the ground or embracing a tree.
6. Discussion:
a. The proposer explains the proposal,
with time to explain all they believe needs explaining.
b. Questions are taken, as many as anyone has,
until all have been asked.
c. The chair asks: Is this alteration eco-benevolent?
Does it re-animate or dis-animate land?
Does it increase or decrease biodiversity?
Does it keep the land pure, or pollute it?
d. These are answered by arbitration,
according to the protocols of Rationality.
If eco-benevolent, proceed to the vote.
If degrading, continue:
e. Is the degradation necessary for meeting genuine needs?
Arbitration. If no, the project is rejected, and the council ends.
f. Is there a less harmful way to meet these needs?
Arbitration. If yes, the project is rejected, and the council ends.
If no, proceed to the vote.
7. A concluding meditation.
8. The vote is taken.

For a council's approval to be valid,
every step must be followed.

The people who live closest to a place
are the most intimately familiar with it,
and thus most qualified to evaluate proposals affecting it.
Voting power is a function of proximity:

V = T ÷ D

V – the number of points a person's vote is worth;
T – the length of time they have dwelt nearby;
D – the distance of their dwelling from the place.

Supermajority

Land alterations require a two-thirds supermajority;
without it, no alteration is made.
All decisions must respect the Earth.
No person or group, not even a Land Council,
has any authority to violate the Hard Rules.

Appeals

Land Council decisions may be appealed
to the Village Council, at its regular meeting,
and from there to the Township, City, Regional,
and finally the High Council,
as each is willing to hear the dispute.
Only approvals of alterations may be appealed.
Rejections may not.
No greater level of social organization
may impose a land alteration upon an unwilling Village,
though it may overrule a Village's desire to alter the land.
If a higher council overrules a Village's plan
to alter land to meet its needs,
it must provide an alternative
that meets those needs with less ecological harm;
otherwise, it may not overrule.

Whereas the Hard Rules are non-negotiable,
exceptions may be made to the Soft Rules,
but only with the approval of a Land Council.

Trees

It is unlawful to fell any tree without Land Council approval.
Such council must be held at the foot of the tree in question.
No Land Council may approve the felling
of more than one tree per meeting.
Felling means cutting the trunk or any major branch,
digging that gravely disrupts the root system,
or building a structure that blocks most of its sunlight.

Construction

Except for temporary dwellings, such as tents and yurts,
it is unlawful to build anything upon living soil
without Land Council approval.

Digging and Mining

No material may be removed from the ground
without Land Council approval.

Water

It is unlawful to alter the course of any river or stream
without Land Council approval.

Any activity that endangers the whole planet,
or eliminates entire ecosystems,
is universally unlawful, anywhere, at any time,
and beyond the authority of any Land Council to approve.

Fracking

It is unlawful to inject chemicals into the ground,
or to attack the structural integrity of the planet's crust.
All hydraulic fracturing equipment is contraband.

Strip Mining and Mountaintop Removal

It is unlawful to destroy the land's ability to support life.
All equipment for this purpose is contraband.

Dams

It is unlawful to dam a river so far
that entire ecosystems or villages are flooded and eliminated.
Existing dams must have fish ladders
that accommodate the largest aquatic animals
historically known to travel the river;
if this cannot be done, the dam must be dismantled.

Slashing and Burning

It is unlawful to deliberately set fire
to any forest, grassland, or brushland,
for any reason whatsoever.

Clear-Cutting

It is unlawful to cut two or more adjacent trees,
or any tree on the edge of the forest canopy.
It is unlawful to produce, distribute, or possess
machinery that expedites such destruction,
including all electric or fuel-powered timber machinery.

Backbone Species

It is unlawful to cut a healthy, mature, native tree
of a species that forms the backbone of its ecosystem.

Endangered Species

It is unlawful to harm any animal or plant
of any conservation status beyond Least Concern
on the IUCN scale.

Weapons of Mass Destruction

It is unlawful to knowingly participate in, or support,
the construction, assembly, research, development, or testing
of nuclear, chemical, or biological weapons, or their parts.
All facilities used for this purpose
are mandated for immediate dismantling.

Nuclear Reactors

It is unlawful to construct new nuclear reactors,
or to mine or refine nuclear fuel.
Existing reactors may continue to use existing fuel,
until it is spent, or until safe sources mature to replace them.

Hazardous Waste

It is unlawful to export hazardous waste for storage.
All nuclear waste must be stored within the district
for which it provided energy.
All exported nuclear waste shall be returned
to the district that used it,
which is responsible for its storage in perpetuity.

Genetic Corruption of Organisms

No organism may be genetically altered
if it could contaminate the gene pool
of non-modified individuals
by breeding with them without further human assistance.

Particle Experiments

Any device capable of producing black holes or strangelets
shall be considered a weapon of mass destruction,
and placed under planetary custody.
No such experiment may be performed
without approval by a majority of the human population.

Pollution

It is unlawful to dump artificial or dangerous chemicals
into the water or the soil.
Any facility that deliberately does this
is warranted for immediate dismantling.

Crimes Against Nature

Whoever deliberately violates any Hard Rule
is guilty of a Crime Against Nature.

Land is our home, not our property.

A member of an organization
cannot own the organization of which they are a member.
As a member of the ecosystem,
a human being may not own the ecosystem.
The finger cannot own the hand;
a person cannot own the land.

The greatest legal authority
anyone may unilaterally exercise upon land
is that of a Steward,
guarding and caring for the land's health.

Instead of ownership,
there are specific rights for specific uses,
from most universal to most specific:
1. Presence
2. Foraging
3. Hunting
4. Stewardship
5. Agriculture
6. Territorialization
7. Construction
8. Extraction

All of these, except Presence and Foraging,
are determined by the local Village.
Minerals, once extracted, belong to the human race.

Presence

A person may walk anywhere on Earth, so long as they
do not trample plants clearly planted by someone,
take genuine care not to step on sensitive plants,
do not walk on an especially sensitive patch of ground,
and do not enter anyone's legitimate Personal Territory.

Foraging

Foraging is picking and eating directly,
carrying nothing away, except in one's stomach.
All people have the right to forage any botanical fruit,
meaning any part of a plant that is botanically a fruit,
even if it is eaten as a vegetable.
All people have the right to forage any other part of a plant,
so long as the species is not endangered,
and no crippling amount is taken from any one plant.
After foraging from a plant someone else planted,
the forager must make a good-faith effort
to help replenish what was taken,
unless meeting the planter would endanger the forager
because the planter does not acknowledge the Law.

Plucking

Plucking is foraging that seriously damages or kills a plant.
A person may pluck a food plant only if
they have the right to harvest it,
or they are starving, and no ordinary forage is available.

Hunting

The local Village decides whether hunting is allowed,
and if so, how much.
If a species is in danger of being extirpated from an area
by excessive hunting or gathering,
a system of regulation and licensing may be used.
If such a system already exists and is not corrupt,
it may continue, with lawful authority.

Land Stewardship

Stewardship is deliberate but non-destructive change to land
that is not dis-animation, eco-reduction, or pollution,
and does not impede the movement of people or animals:
moving or carving rocks by hand;
shaping soil without powered machines;
chopping naturally fallen trees;
planting flora that does not reduce biodiversity;
caring for trees and shrubs;
keeping up existing footpaths;
making bridges of organic material;
making decorations and small shrines.
Stewardship involves no machines.
If machines are involved, the activity is a major alteration,
subject to Land Council.

Origin of the Stewardship Right

This right belongs to one person:
whoever has shown the most love for the land,
and the most competence in caring for it.
If more than one person claims it, these are weighed:
the length of time dwelling near the place;
the closeness of their sleeping space to it;
actions displaying love, such as planting or cleaning litter;
the condition of the land under their care;
and respect for the land, shown by keeping the Law.
Stewardship applies only to the area
immediately adjacent to one's dwelling.

All food production shall follow
Maximum Localization and Maximum Diversification.

Maximum Localization

All food shall be grown as near as possible
to where it is to be eaten.
Every household shall have its own garden
sufficient for its nutritional needs,
or be within walking distance of a shared garden that is.
Food shall not be transported long distances, except:
food that cannot grow in the local climate,
not even in a greenhouse;
while waiting for local crops of the same kind to mature;
or in famine, disaster, or humanitarian emergency.

Maximum Diversification

If a row of crops is so long and tedious
that heavy machinery is needed to farm it,
there are too many crops in a row.
It is unlawful to design farms as monocrops.
Food shall be grown in forest-garden arrangements,
different plants interspersed with one another,
woven between dwellings, throughout the village.
All existing monocrop fields shall be reduced in size each year,
and either converted into forest gardens
or regenerated into natural, mature forest.

Planting and Harvesting

Any person may plant any food plant
anywhere it will not harm or compete with another's planting,
unless that person gives permission.
A person may tend any plant they planted,
or have permission to tend.
Harvesting is picking and storing for later.
The right to harvest a plant comes from having planted it.

Territorialization is the right to decide
who may enter or tread upon a piece of ground,
and to remove anyone who does not respect this.

The size of a territory
is the area of a circle of diameter V × H,
where H is one's height, from toe-tips to fingertips,
and V is a number set by the Village,
at least 1.5 and no greater than 5,
applying equally to all its residents.
Where territories are stacked in storeys,
the area may be multiplied by S,
the number of storeys.

A person is entitled to one territory.
It must be contiguous,
but need not be round.
A person may choose any location
not already claimed as another's territory,
and not designated a Sacred Space.
A Council at any level may declare
a Sacred Space within its jurisdiction.

Definition of a Building

Any affixment to land
of artificial products or substances
that cover the soil and deprive it of flora.

All architecture on Earth
must use the most advanced ecotechnology
available at the time of planning:
the art of providing for human needs
with as little impact on Nature as possible.

Every new building must meet these conditions:

1. Necessity – land is dis-animated only if the building
serves a genuine need.
2. Surface-Area Efficiency – it dis-animates no more land than its function requires,
or its function allows more land to be reforested.
3. Energy Efficiency – it uses natural heating and cooling,
shares climate control, and uses water efficiently.
4. Efficiency of Materials – it is built of the least damaging materials,
recycled and reused wherever possible.
5. Blending In – it blends with the ecosystem around it,
cuts no mature trees, and disturbs no sensitive area.
Build in the ecosystem, not on it.
6. Beauty – it aligns with the surrounding energy of the place,
draws on the building wisdom of the ancients,
and is pleasing to behold, pass by, and live in.
7. Green Roofing – it is small enough not to break the forest canopy,
or its unused roof is covered with soil and plants.
8. Shareability – it is open to be shared by as many as possible,
minimizing the need to build duplicates.

Building Space Allocation

Unnecessary duplication of facilities
strains the ecosystem,
so all facilities shall be shared to the extent reasonable,
and it is unlawful to use land surface
for a facility that is unnecessarily duplicative.
Facilities stacked in storeys upon others
use no extra land, and are not so restricted.

Location and Waiting Period

A building's location requires the approval
of both the Village Council and a Land Council.
Before building any permanent dwelling,
a person must first live on their territory
in a tent, yurt, or tipi for at least one season.

Footpaths

Footpaths are the paths most natural to humanity,
and most preferred by the planet.
They are made by walking, and need no machinery.
Wherever enough people walk, footpaths form.
If a path requires machinery to make,
it is by definition not a footpath.
Tools may be used to smooth existing footpaths.
A village is, by definition, compact enough to walk,
so the only pathways within a village are footpaths.

RoadRails

All new roads must combine several kinds of transit,
layered over the same space.
A RoadRail is an elevated railway
over a paved way for bicycles, scooters, and vehicles.
Every RoadRail shall be:
elevated; quiet; paved underneath;
fitted with chargers at every stop;
narrow enough for an unbroken tree canopy above it;
shaped to the contours of the land;
non-intrusive, felling no large mature trees,
crossing no old-growth forest,
and passing around villages, never through them;
consensual, approved by every steward
of the land it crosses;
and, where funds are short,
built in stages, the lower way first.
Wherever fenced, it must let small animals pass freely,
with living land-bridges for large animals
at every kilometer.

Automobile Roads

It is unlawful to build new stand-alone automobile roads.
Existing roads of two lanes or fewer may be maintained.
Highways of three or more undivided lanes
are scars upon the Earth,
unlawful to build or maintain,
and shall be dismantled or reduced to two lanes.

Air Travel

The purpose of air travel is to cross large bodies of water.
All new routes over dry land
shall be footpaths or RoadRails.
Existing air routes over land may continue
during the transition to surface travel,
but no new routes over land shall be established.
New airports may be built only beside the shoreline
of the water they are meant to cross.

Sustainable Management

As resources are finite,
a community may establish a Sustainable Management Authority,
elected by all who depend upon the resource,
to manage its use on behalf of them and their posterity.

Water

It is unlawful to irrigate in a way
that permanently depletes existing bodies of water.
Anyone who depends on a body of water
has a say in its use.

Energy

People may install renewable, non-disruptive energy devices
on, or within a stone's throw of, their own habitation.
Villages may build energy infrastructure for their own use,
and every village shall aim to be energy self-sufficient.
Existing long-distance grids may be maintained, but not expanded.
All power lines run along RoadRails,
and underground within a village.

Fossil Fuels

The purpose of fossil fuels
is to power civilization temporarily,
until clean, renewable energy matures.
Fossil fuels are not for economic growth.
Unsustainable, fossil-fuel-based growth
shall cease immediately and completely,
and shall not resume until it can be sustained.
Meanwhile, existing energy and farming networks
may continue, to keep society stable.

Planetization of Fossil Fuels

The planet's remaining fossil-fuel resources and infrastructure
are placed under the collective management of the human race,
on behalf of all people on Earth.
This is not an entitlement to use them,
but to an equal share of the benefit, if they are used.
All future revenue from fossil fuels
shall go to the research, development, and production
of clean, renewable energy.

Moratorium on Mining

No mineral may be mined
until it has been recovered from every accessible landfill,
and that supply is exhausted.
It is unlawful to open a new mine
for a mineral that can still be supplied by recycling.

Compulsory Recycling

All refuse shall be recycled;
there shall be no more dumps or landfills.

Responsibility for Recycling

Any company that sells non-biodegradable products
in an area without the means to recycle them
is responsible for collecting and recycling them.
If a product is too costly to recycle,
it shall not be manufactured in the first place.

Organic Waste

All non-hazardous organic waste
shall be returned to the soil,
unenclosed by any non-organic container.
Existing sewage systems may be maintained, but not expanded.

Suppression of Regeneration

It is unlawful to deliberately suppress
the natural regeneration of an ecosystem
for any reason other than genuine sustenance.
All land deprived of its natural forest,
and not serving a useful function for the community,
must be allowed to regenerate
into its natural mature forest.

Lawns

A lawn that people play on
needs no machine to keep it short,
because the playing does that job.
A lawn played on enough to justify mowing
needs no mowing, because of the playing.
If a lawn requires mowing,
it is not played on enough to justify it.