The economic justification for sustainable development
1) The
two main economic reasons that led to the concept of 'sustainable development'
were mounting evidence for resource depletion and climate change. The
internationally recognised definition of sustainable development (meeting the
needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to
meet their own needs) resulted from the publication of the 1987 report from the
World Commission on Environment and Development to the UN General Assembly. As
a direct result of this report the first Earth Summit in 1992 (held in
2) At
its simplest, sustainable development should provide methods for halting and
then reversing the human contribution to resource depletion and climate change,
for example the introduction of world-wide controls over the release of CFCs appears
to be reducing the so called 'Ozone Hole' over the Southern Hemisphere. The
basic toolkit at a local level in
a) Waste currently going to landfill should be reduced and, where possible, eliminated because the country is running out of suitable sites and natural systems cannot cope with some of the products that we currently deposit
b) Energy currently produced by burning fossil fuels (such as oil, gas and coal), which contribute to climate change, should be replaced by energy from renewable sources (such as solar, wind and wave power or burning crops grown for energy purposes, known as biomass)
c) Transport involving vehicles powered by fossil fuels (principally oil) contributes to the causes of climate change and, because renewable alternatives are at an early stage of development, needs to be reduced and eliminated, where possible
d) The diversity of other life in the locality and across the world should be maintained and supported because humans rely on the 'web of life' for our survival
3) Britain has signed up to international agreements on the reduction of carbon emissions (of which the Kyoto protocol is perhaps the best known) and waste sent to landfill, as a result of which Local Authorities must meet Government imposed targets or face financial penalties. On the positive side, carbon emission credits are legal tender and a pilot national trading scheme has just completed its first year. Because emission trading is favoured by the USA, many experts consider that carbon credits could become, in effect, an international currency within the decade, especially as oil production will have peaked within this time and the Americans acknowledge that they will find it difficult to move to the carbon free economy (which President Bush has declared will be achieved by 2040) without such a market.
4) Sustainable development is also pursued by some for non-economic reasons. Notably, nine of the major religions have come together (under the Chairmanship of the Duke of Edinburgh and with the administrative support of WWF) to make a commitment based on common principles of faith. There are also political goals that are clearly linked to the two main concerns. For example, where there is a break down of law and order there is evidence from across the globe that resource depletion increases and harmful emissions go unmonitored, let alone regulated. Measures that encourage walking and cycling, as an alternative to using motorised transport, can be linked to combating climate change and developing or maintaining a wide variety of local habitats (also known as encouraging biodiversity) can be linked to minimising depletion of biological resources. However, some social and environmental action can be just as potentially damaging to the climate and resources as poor economic development and therefore all policy needs to be evaluated in terms of the two main issues because they affect the local economy.
Paul Newman
June 2003
Front Page | Home Page for individuals | Business Services Index | Site contents & internal links | Email the Author