WWF, the global conservation organization, has just released the 2008 version of their Living Planet Report (as I was anticipating), and things are not looking good for planet Earth - or those of us who reside here.
The report, prduced in conjunction with the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) and the Global Footprint Network (GFN), is released every two years and is recognized as probably the most authoritative report on the state of the world’s ecosystems. It could be viewed as biennial bank statement for natural resources.
According to the report, our global footprint now exceeds the world’s capacity to regenerate by about 30 per cent. This has increased from 25% in the 2006 report.
Furthermore, our global footprint is expected to keep increasing unless we do something about it. The report says that if our demands on the planet continue at the same rate, by the mid-2030s we will need the equivalent of two planets to maintain our lifestyles.
WWF International Director-General James Leape said “Most of us are propping up our current lifestyles, and our economic growth, by drawing - and increasingly overdrawing - on the ecological capital of other parts of the world,”
“If our demands on the planet continue to increase at the same rate, by the mid-2030s we would need the equivalent of two planets to maintain our lifestyles” he continued.
World Economical Crisis vs World Ecological Crisis
The 2008 report draws comparisons between the world economic crisis and the “world ecological crisis”.
It says:
The recent downturn in the global economy is a stark reminder of the consequences of living beyond our means. But the current financial recession pales in comparison to the looming ecological credit crunch.
Whether we live on the edge of the forest or in the heart of the city, our livelihoods and indeed our lives depend on the services provided by the Earth’s natural systems.
The report continues to say that we are consuming the resources that underpin those services much too fast – faster than they can be replenished.
Just as reckless spending is causing recession, so reckless consumption is depleting the world’s natural capital to a point where we are endangering our future prosperity.
ZSL co-editor Jonathan Loh said “We are acting ecologically in the same way as financial institutions have been behaving economically - seeking immediate gratification without due regard for the consequences,”
“The consequences of a global ecological crisis are even graver than the current economic meltdown.”
The report also says that in the past 35 years, Earth’s wildlife populations have declined by a third”
5 Countries with the Highest Footprints
The five countries with the highest footprints per person were:
- United Arab Emirates
- the United States of America
- Kuwait
- Denmark
- Australia
5 Countries with the Lowest Footprints
These countries were found to have the lowest footprints per person:
- Bangladesh
- Congo
- Haiti
- Afghanistan
- Malawi
Reckless Lifestyles at the Expense of Others
The report says that more than three quarters of the world’s population live in nations that have outstripped their country’s biocapacity. It says:
Most of us are propping up our current lifestyles, and our economic growth, by drawing (and increasingly overdrawing) upon the ecological capital of other parts of the world.
Water Footprints
For the first time the Living Planet Report also includes new measures of global, national and individual water footprints.
It finds that globally, each person consumes about 1.24 million liters of water per year.
But the actual figures vary significantly between countries. The nation with the highest water consumption per capita was United States, with 2.48 million liters of water consumed per year (about the size of an Olympic swimming pool). The nation with the lowest water consumption was Yemen, with 619,000 liters per person.
The Good News…
Despite the apparent gloom and doom, there is a light at the end of the tunnel.
WWF believes that it’s not too late for us to do something about the looming “ecological credit crunch”.
In order to tackle climate change, the WWF refers to its own “WWF Climate Solutions Model” which outlines a model for achieving reductions in carbon emissions of 60 to 80 per cent by 2050.
The report offers some more advice for dealing with the issue:
Success requires that we manage resources on nature’s terms and at nature’s scale. This means that decisions in each sector, such as agriculture or fisheries, must be taken with an eye to broader ecological consequences. It also means that we must find ways to manage across our own boundaries – across property lines and political borders – to take care of the ecosystem as a whole
Download the Report
The report should be available on the Living Planet Report section of the WWF website very soon.
Alternatively, you can download the report here [PDF File 4.35 MB].
