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BEIJING, China, November 1, 2006 (Refocus
Weekly)
Global ecosystems are being degraded at a rate
unprecedented in history, and humans are depleting natural resources
faster than they can be renewed.
Humanity will be using two planets’ worth of natural resources by
2050 if those resources have not run out by that time, warns WWF
(World Wildlife Fund) in its latest ‘Living Planet Report’ on the
state of the natural world. Using data from 2003, it concludes that
the ‘Ecological Footprint’ (impact on the planet) has more than
tripled since 1961 and now exceeds the world’s ability to regenerate
by 25%.
“The largest component (of the footprint) is the demand placed on
the biosphere by emissions of CO2 from burning fossil fuels,” it
explains. “Many geologists expect that peak production of oil may
occur globally within the next two to three decades. Yet large
reserves of coal, oil sands, and other more expensive carbon fuels
exist which, without stringent controls, could lead to an emissions
increase through the coming century.”
The CO2 footprint from the use of fossil fuels, was the fastest
growing component of the global footprint, increasing more than
nine-fold from 1961 to 2003, and the report indicates that reliance
on fossil fuels to meet energy needs continues to grow and that
climate-changing emissions now comprise 48% of the global footprint.
A country’s Ecological Footprint is determined by including an
estimate of the area needed to absorb the CO2 released when fossil
fuels are burned. The 4% footprint of nuclear power is included by
estimating the footprint for the equivalent amount of energy from
fossil fuels while the area used for a country’s infrastructure,
including hydropower, is included as the built-up land footprint
component.
It cites a recent analysis that a 50-fold increase in wind power and
a 700-fold increase in solar power, combined with GHG reductions
from buildings and increased fuel economy for cars, among other
shifts, would be necessary just to maintain the world’s current rate
of emission increase by 2050. Those measures would not stabilize CO2
concentrations in the atmosphere, just maintain the current rate of
increase, it notes.
“Considerably stronger measures will be necessary to achieve the 50%
reduction included in this scenario,” it continues. “The challenge
is to increase energy supply whilst reducing CO2 emissions without
shifting the burden on to other parts of the biosphere.”
“All energy sources, be they fossil fuels or renewables, have an
Ecological Footprint,” it adds. “Changing the fuel mix can shift the
burden from one part of the biosphere to another. The main forms of
renewable energy in use today - hydropower, wind power, and biomass
- all reduce CO2 emissions when substituted for fossil fuels, but
increase demand on land.”
“There is growing recognition that ecological deficits have serious
implications for regions and nations,” it concludes. “As global and
local carrying capacities are reduced, tensions could mount around
the world ... Nations with the resources to do so may build virtual
fortresses around their countries, preserving resources for
themselves. Less fortunate nations … may initiate struggles for
access to food, clean water or energy.”
"We are in serious ecological overshoot, consuming resources faster
than the Earth can replace them," says James Leape of WWF. “The
consequences of this are predictable and dire."
“We have been exceeding the Earth’s ability to support our
lifestyles for the past 20 years, and we need to stop; we must
balance our consumption with the natural world’s capacity to
regenerate and absorb our wastes,” he adds. “If we do not, we risk
irreversible damage.”
The report measures biodiversity in 3,600 populations of 1,300
vertebrate species and listed United Arab Emirates, the United
States, Finland, Canada, Kuwait, Australia, Estonia, Sweden, New
Zealand and Norway as the top countries with the largest footprint
in hectares per person.
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