Anti-Anti-Anthropocentric Ethics

In his critique of anti-anthropocentric ethics, Richard Watson argues that anti-anthropocentrists or biocentrists contradict themselves by setting humans apart from the rest of nature while simultaneously advocating equality among all life forms. Watson believes that any environmental ethic should be based on a human interest in survival, and that this is possible because of the fact that what's good for the environment will promote our survival as a species as well.
While I agree with Watson in his claim that generally speaking, what is good for the environment is also good for humans as an individual species in the long run, I disagree with Watson's argument that biocentrists contradict themselves by striving for equality among species while concurrently placing humans above the rest of nature. It's not that simple.
Biocentrists do not necessarily believe that humans and other life forms should be treated as equals; this obviously wouldn't be feasible since other life forms don't possess our cognitive capacity and can't function in society in the same way that we do (e.g., animals can't vote). What I think all biocentrists have in common, however, is that they believe that all forms of life deserve moral consideration and should be treated with respect. It is possible to possess this view and recognize the differences between human beings and other organisms without placing human beings "above" the rest of nature.
Kenneth Goodpaster, for instance, is a biocentrist but acknowledges the fact that while possessing a life can make one morally considerable, it does not automatically make one of equal moral worth and deserving of the same rights as human beings. Although in a sense this does place human beings at a higher level than other forms of life, this position does not advocate the domination and destruction of nature by humans but rather encourages humans, as creatures who possess great power and are capable of significantly altering the planet, to respect other creatures and the environment in general. Considering the well-being of humans as well as that of other species is an attitude more likely to promote better treatment of the environment than the attitude that we should only focus on what is best for human survival.