The Islamic perspective on the environmental impact of the petroleum industry in Malaysia

Abstract

The thesis examines the environmental pressure brought about by the petroleum industry in Malaysia from the Islamic perspective using the current state of the environment as its unit of analysis. In doing so, it explores the trend and magnitude of environmental pressures in the country with special reference to petroleum production and consumption. The study then examines the awareness and implementation of Islamic environmental approaches to reduce environmental pressures from the petroleum industry by observing the effectiveness of current environmental policies and regulations. Hence, the thrust and theme of the thesis lie in how to maintain the balance or minimize the trade-off between the petroleum activities and the environmental problems. It also observes various policy measures, practical actions and mechanisms put forward by the government, the industry and the society to overcome the problem of environmental pollutions with the main focus on Islamic environmentalism. In addition, the study identifies the personal opinion on the effectiveness of existing environmental legislations and government initiatives on environmental issues, particularly in the petroleum industry. As such, the study hypothesizes that: (1) the higher the level of petroleum production and consumption, the higher the degree of environmental degradation in Malaysia; (2) the greater the Islamic approach to environmental management, the lower the level of environmental problems in Malaysia and (3) the greater the implementation of Islamic approach to environmental management in the petroleum industry, the lower the level of pressure from petroleum activities in Malaysia. This research adapted and utilized Pressure State Response model (2010) as the framework of analysis. Methodologically, the study used a quantitative method of analysis such as Structural Equation Modeling to examine the correlation and magnitude of relationship between the chosen industry and environmental problem, and implementation of Islamic environmentalism and environmental problem. It equally used the descriptive statistical technique to evaluate the professionals’ personal opinions on the effectiveness of the current environmental policies in respect to the petroleum industry and their recommendations for practical actions. The path diagram of the study depicts that petroleum activities exerts pressure on the environment and Islamic environmentalism in turn responds to those pressure on the environment, representing the PSR model. All of the hypotheses of the study are supported in the statistical analysis and 100% level of confidence is indicated. The findings of the analysis show that in terms of predictive ability, pressure from petroleum activities and Islamic environmentalism combined explain 44.7% of the environmental problem in Malaysia. With respect to the awareness and implementation of Islamic environmental principles, the study indicates that the current environmental policy lacks the spiritual and holistic dimensions and it is significant to apply the concept of Islamic environmentalism into policy execution. In general, the core findings of the study suggest that if the production and consumption of the petroleum is reduced and Islamic environmental practices are implemented to increase public contribution in environmental preservation, the state of the environment in Malaysia will be improved to a desired level.