Define Ecological Footprint
The ecological footprint helps scientists and businesses calculate the ecological impact of their consumption needs. Countries like the US, Japan and the UK use more global resources than their individual lands can provide. These nations are said to have an ecological deficit. On the other hand, countries like Mongolia, Gabon and Australia are in ecological reserve.
Other People Are Reading
-
Identification
-
The ecological footprint represents the amount of land and ocean required per year by a population for its resources, that will allow those resources to be renewed, and that can also absorb the waste generated.
Calculation
-
The concept of the ecological footprint can be used for individuals, communities, countries and other population groupings. The net consumption of the population in question is calculated; import is included and export is subtracted.
-
Limitations
-
The ecological footprint is perhaps the best current measure of humanity's impact on the environment, but it has a number of limitations. The ecological footprint only focuses on renewable resources, and it only partially addresses the use of fossil fuels.
Biocapacity
-
Humanity's ecological footprint is exceeding its biocapacity by over a third. The Redefining Progress website reports in its Footprint Analysis that mankind is exceeding its ecological limit by thirty-nine percent.
Unit of Measure
-
The unit of measure commonly used to express an ecological footprint is the global hectare. One global hectare is equal to approximately two and a half acres.
History
-
The term "ecological footprint" was conceived in 1990 by William Rees and Mathis Wackernagel at the University of British Columbia. Now, the ecological footprint is used by businesses and scientists to measure and monitor ecological reserves.
-
References
Resources
- Photo Credit Image Courtesy of the Global Footprint Network
