Measuring Changes in Consumption and Production Patterns
Division for Sustainable Development,
Department of Economic and Social Affairs
United Nations
April 1998
FOREWORD
Indicators are essential tools for policy making, and since the
publication of the Brundlandt report in 1987, policy makers and analysts
have been trying to capture the concept of sustainable development in
statistics. National policy makers around the world are trying to
identify a set of indicators that would "indicate" the nation's
prosperity, well-being and sustainability. Traditionally, the primary
indicator for welfare and well-being is gross domestic product, in spite
of general recognition that it has serious flaws.
The United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) has
established an international work program on indicators for sustainable
development. An important element of this program is the identification
of a core set of indicators for "changing consumption and production
patterns" (Chapter 4 of Agenda 21). The set proposed in this report is
provisional because it needs national testing, evaluation and further
discussion, including discussion about what additional information should
be available to policy makers and the general public concerning progress
towards sustainability.
One of the challenges in indicator identification and development
is to combine scientific analysis and public understanding. Policy making
for sustainable development is a dynamic process that depends on
stakeholder and public participation and support. Indicators for
sustainable consumption and production need to be analytically robust but
also simple, understandable and attractive to the general public. GDP has
great communicative value, and it is this value that should be
incorporated in a set of indicators for consumption and production
patterns.
It is crucial that policy makers have key information about the
environmental and social conditions of the nation, in addition to
economic performance indicators. The set of indicators presented in this
paper is only a first step. The Division for Sustainable Development
looks forward to working with existing and new partners in the upcoming
years to improve "measuring changes in consumption and production
patterns".
Kenneth G. Ruffing
Officer-in-Charge
Division for Sustainable Development
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
A variety of people have contributed to this activity of identifying
a core set of indicators for changing consumption and production patterns
(Chapter 4, Agenda 21). They certainly include the participants of our
consultative round in 1997 and the workshop held in New York on 2-3 March
1998. The insights and suggestions of these over 75 people were
instrumental in the whole process. It would be too much to mention you
all here, but my many thanks go out to you, listed in the Annex 4 of the
report. In addition, special thanks to Dianne Dillon-Ridgley for
continuous encouragement and very able chairing of the workshop, and to
Hillary Hillier and Bas de Leeuw for co-chairing the fruitful working
group sessions.
Several colleagues, past and present, at the Division for
Sustainable Development have supported the activity with suggestions,
feed-back and co-operation. They include Joke Waller-Hunter, Ken Ruffing,
Lowell Flanders, Ralph Chipman, Mary Pat Silveira, Jan Rotmans, Birgitte
Bryld, Monica Luxem and Johan Kuylenstierna. Many special words of
appreciation to Catherine Rubbens who has been the mainstay in delivering
the core-set of indicators and this report. Many thanks to Lars Mortensen
who was there when we needed him, and finally, the Danish Environmental
Protection Agency for their financial support.
Erik Brandsma
New York, April 1998
TABLE OF CONTENTS
FOREWORD
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
TABLE OF CONTENTS
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Page
1 OBJECTIVES AND CONTEXT 1
1.1 Introduction 1
1.2 Agenda 21 and the International Work Programme on
Changing Consumption and Production Patterns 3
1.3 The Work Programme on Indicators of Sustainable
Development 5
1.4 Indicators for changing consumption and production
patterns 6
2 KEY ELEMENTS RELATING TO CHANGING CONSUMPTION AND
PRODUCTION PATTERNS 7
2.1 Introduction 7
2.2 Other factors relating to consumption and production
patterns 9
2.3 Policy strategies and target 11
2.4 Trends and developments in policy making 14
2.5 Indicators for key resources and associated
environmental issues 16
2.5.1 Energy 17
2.5.2 Materials, material flows and waste 19
2.5.3 Water 22
2.5.4 Land 25
2.6 Indicators for consumption clusters 27
2.6.1 Mobility 28
2.6.2 Consumer goods and services 31
2.6.3 Buildings and housekeeping 35
2.6.4 Food 38
2.6.5 Recreation 40
3 INDICATORS FOR MEASURING CHANGES IN CONSUMPTION
AND PRODUCTION PATTERNS 43
3.1 Approaches to indicator classification and use 43
3.2 A core set of indicators for changing consumption
and production patterns 45
3.2.1 Selection of a core set of indicators 45
3.2.2 The provisional core set of indicators
for changing consumption and production
patterns 46
TABLE 1: Core Set of Indicators for Changing Consumption and
Production Patterns 49
TABLE 2: Core Set Indicators in the Driving Force - State -
Response framework 50
REFERENCES 51
LIST OF ANNEXES 56
ANNEX 1 Sample methodology sheet
ANNEX 2 Some issues linked to changing consumption and
production patterns
ANNEX 3 CSD Working List of indicators of Sustainable
Development
ANNEX 4 List of participants of the consultative round and the
Workshop
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
"Measuring Changes in Consumption and Production Patterns" is the
outcome of consultations and a Workshop with policy makers and other
experts working on changing consumption and production patterns and
indicators of sustainable development. The objective of this process,
facilitated by the Division for Sustainable Development, United Nations
Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DSD/DESA), was to identify a
core set of indicators for changing consumption and production patterns.
Since the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992, discussions on
chapter 4 of Agenda 21, "Changing Consumption and Production Patterns",
have focused on trends in consumption and production patterns and ways
to influence these trends so that they become more sustainable. The issue
covers various resource and policy sectors and has direct linkages with
other important sustainable development issues, such as trade, finance,
education, and technology transfer.
Changes in consumption and production patterns result from the
choices and activities of a wide variety of actors including business and
industry, households, and governments. The challenges faced by policy
makers concerned with changing consumption and production patterns are
to optimize resource use, to minimize negative environmental and social
impacts of consumption and production patterns, and to stimulate and
facilitate trends towards more sustainable patterns.
The availability and use of indicators for monitoring trends in
consumption and production have become increasingly important in this
policy making process. Indicators are essential for monitoring changes
in the volume and intensity of resource use and the environmental effects
thereof, and provide information about possible policies and other
measures for changing consumption and production patterns.
This report distinguishes between two broad categories of
indicators:"key resources" and "consumption clusters". It proposes
various indicators for the "key resources", energy, materials, water, and
land; and for the "consumption clusters", mobility, consumer goods and
services, buildings and housekeeping, food, and recreation.
The distinction between key resources and consumption clusters is
drawn, because it highlights the need for two different types of
indicators: I) indicators of resource use and environmental impacts, and
ii) indicators that reflect consumer and producer choices.
This report proposes a provisional core set of 17 indicators for
changing for changing consumption and production patterns, covering all
key resources and consumption clusters.
Core Set Indicators
For Key Resources:
- Energy (Annual energy consumption per capita, Intensity of energy use,
Share of renewable energy in total energy consumption, Energy prices)
- Materials (Total material requirement, intensity of material use)
- Water (Intensity of water use)
- Land (Intensity of land use)
For Consumption Clusters:
- Mobility (Distance traveled per capita by mode of transport, Number of
road vehicles)
- Consumer goods and services (Retail sales of selected goods per capita,
Market share of more sustainably produced goods and services)
- Buildings and house-keeping (Residential energy and water use per
household, Average household size)
- Food (Market share of more sustainably produced food)
- Recreation (Spending on recreation as share of disposable income,
Time spent on leisure, paid and unpaid work, and traveling)
The selection of the core set indicators is based on the consultative
process and on the use of selection criteria reflecting the consumption-
production perspective and experience with indicator selection, definition,
and use.
The selection of indicators also reflects a number of key issues that
have been identified in the discussions on sustainable consumption and
production, including eco-efficiency; cost internalisation; trends and
developments in policy making; responsibilities of key actors; and the
analysis of unsustainable consumption patterns and lifestyles.
In the selection process of the core set indicators, an effort has also
been made to avoid overlap with other chapters of Agenda 21.
Governments from industrialized and developing countries and economies in
transition can select, test, and use indicators voluntarily, based on national
characteristics, needs, and priorities.
The core set of 17 indicators is a starting point for the further
development of the indicators for consumption and production patterns.
More work is needed for the development of operational definitions and
methodological descriptions of the indicators. Furthermore, the policy
relevance and data availability for the indicators will become clearer
through testing of the indicators at the national level. The core set is
therefore provisional, should evolve over time in a dynamic process, and
should reflect changes in priorities related to policy making on
sustainable consumption and production patterns.
1 OBJECTIVES AND CONTEXT
1.1 Introduction
This report is the outcome of a year long process of consultations
with key actors concerned with -Changing Consumption and Production
Patterns~, as well as with indicator experts, on indicators that could
best reflect the main issues and concerns related to changing consumption
and production patterns. The process of consultations was concluded with
a Workshop on Indicators for Changing Consumption and Production
Patterns, hosted by the Division for Sustainable Development of the
Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DSD/DESA) in New York on 2-3
March 1998.
The objective of the Workshop was to identify a provisional core set
of indicators to measure changes in consumption and production patterns.
Some forty experts from developed and developing countries, and economies
in transition, participated in the Workshop, representing Governments,
international organizations, the research and business communities and
NGOs (ANNEX 4).
As the result of the workshop and previous consultations, this
report forms the starting point for work on measuring changes in
consumption and production patterns for policy development and
implementation. The report identifies a provisional core set of
indicators as a tool for policy makers in formulating policies and
monitoring the effectiveness of policy implementation for changing
consumption and production patterns.
The first chapter of the report includes a brief introduction to the
objectives, context and process that have resulted in the selection of
the provisional core set of indicators. The International Work Programme
on Changing Consumption and Production Patterns, in which this activity
is being undertaken, and the Work Programme on Indicators of Sustainable
Development (WPISD) of the CSD, are also briefly reviewed.
The second chapter outlines key elements relating to changing
consumption and production patterns. It includes comments on other
factors relating to consumption and production patterns, policy
strategies and targets, and trends and developments in policy making. It
also reflects the discussions during the Workshop about possible
indicators for changing consumption and production patterns.
Finally, the third chapter of this report contains information on
approaches to indicator classification and use, selection criteria and
the provisional core set of indicators for changing consumption and
production patterns, including 17 indicators.
The primary intended users of the indicators are policy makers in
governments at the national level. However, many other partners, such as
local governments, NGOs, research institutes, business and industry, and
international organizations, have contributed to the process and will
have an interest in the findings and conclusions of this process.
The framework used to organize and present the indicators is the
Driving Force-State-Response (DSR) framework of the WPISD. The indicators
proposed are national in scope and intended for use primarily at the
national level. However, the problems addressed are of local, national,
transboundary and global nature.
The criteria used for selecting the provisional core set of
indicators are the usefulness of the indicators for measuring changes in
consumption and production patterns as well as the other criteria used
in the WPISD.
The next steps will develop more precise definitions and
methodological description, and examine measurability and data
availability for the proposed indicators, and an assessment of compliance
with the Bellagio principles 1/. Some of the indicators proposed can be
used immediately, since methodologies and data are readily available.
These indicators are already commonly used in a considerable number of
countries, and widely accepted agreement exists with regard to their
definition. However, some other indicators proposed in the provisional
core set of indicators need to be elaborated further. More work is needed
for finding precise and workable definitions for those indicators, and
for developing methodologies for data collection.
The provisional core set of indicators for changing consumption and
production patterns will serve as an input to the WPISD. Similar to the
CSD indicators of sustainable development, the indicators for changing
consumption and production patterns will require the development of
methodological descriptions and testing by organizations and/or
governments. If this can be done, the provisional core set of indicators
for changing consumption and production patterns will be included in the
revision of the CSD indicators of sustainable development in 1999-2000.
This report and the provisional core set indicators is also an
element of the CSD International Work Programme on Consumption and
Production Patterns and will be submitted to the Commission on
Sustainable Development at its seventh session in 1999, during which
chapter 4 of Agenda 21, "Changing Consumption and Production Patterns"
will be reviewed comprehensively.
1.2 Agenda 21 and the International Work Programme on Changing
Consumption and Production Patterns
Chapter 4 of Agenda 21, "Changing Consumption and Production
Patterns" states that "the major cause of the continued degradation of
the global environment is the unsustainable pattern of consumption and
production, particularly in industrialized countries".
Chapter 4, noting that consumption levels are very high in certain
parts of the world, concludes: "This results in excessive demands and
unsustainable life-styles among the richer segments, which place immense
stress on the environment. The poorer segments, meanwhile, are unable to
meet food, health care, shelter, and educational needs".
Chapter 4 concludes, "Changing consumption patterns will require a
multi pronged strategy focusing on demand, meeting the basic needs for
the poor, and reducing wastage and the use of finite resources in the
production process".
Agenda 21 calls on developed countries to take the lead in promoting
and achieving more sustainable consumption patterns. As developing
nations follow development trajectories similar to those of the
industrialized countries, it is essential that the latter demonstrate
that resource-efficient, low-pollution production and consumption
patterns are feasible and attractive. Furthermore, their efforts to move
toward more sustainable consumption and production patterns should not
hinder the development efforts of developing countries.
The broad policy objectives and related activities proposed in
chapter 4 of Agenda 21, are presented in Box 1.
--
Box 1 - Policy objectives and activities of chapter 4 of Agenda 21
In order to develop national policies and strategies encouraging
changes in unsustainable consumption patterns, chapter 4 of Agenda 21
proposes the following broad objectives, to be aimed at by governments
and other appropriate organizations:
- To promote efficiency in production processes and reduce wasteful
consumption in the process of economic growth, taking into account the
development needs of developing countries;
- To develop a domestic policy framework that will encourage a shift to
more sustainable patterns of production and consumption; and
- To reinforce both values that encourage sustainable production and
consumption patterns and policies that encourage the transfer of
environmentally sound technologies to developing countries.
Chapter 4 recommends five major activities for reaching these
objectives: (i) encouraging greater efficiency in the use of energy and
resources; (ii) minimizing the generation of wastes; (iii) assisting
individuals and households to make environmentally sound purchasing
decisions; (iv) exercising leadership through government purchasing;
and (v) moving towards environmentally sound pricing.
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In line with Agenda 21, the International Work Programme on
Changing Consumption and Production Patterns, adopted by the Commission on
Sustainable Development at its third session 2/, includes the
following five elements:
i) Identifying the policy implications of projected trends in
consumption and production patterns;
ii) Assessing the impact on developing countries, especially the
least developed countries and small island developing States, of changes
in consumption and production in developed countries;
iii) Evaluating the effectiveness of policy measures intended to
change consumption and production patterns, such as command-and-control,
economic and social instruments, and government procurement policies and
guidelines;
iv) Eliciting time-bound voluntary commitment from countries to
make measurable progress on those sustainable development goals that
have an especially high priority at the national level; and
v) Revising the United Nations Guidelines for Consumer Protection.
The need for indicators for sustainable consumption and production
patterns is clearly noted in chapter 4 of Agenda 21: "Consideration
should also be given to the present concepts of economic growth and the
need for new concepts of wealth and prosperity which allow higher
standards of living through changed life-styles and are less dependent
on the Earth's finite resources and more in harmony with the Earth's
carrying capacity. This should be reflected in the evolution of new
systems of national accounts and other indicators of sustainable
development".
The CSD, at its 5th session called on the Secretariat and
governments to "Develop core indicators to monitor critical trends in
consumption and production patterns, with industrialized countries taking
the lead". This request is also included in the Programme for the Further
Implementation of Agenda 21, adopted by the General Assembly at its
Nineteenth Special Session on 23-27 June 1997.
1.3 The Work Programme on Indicators of Sustainable Development
Chapter 40 of Agenda 21, "Information for Decision-making", calls
for the development of indicators for sustainable development, and
requests countries and international governmental and non-governmental
organizations to develop the concept of indicators of sustainable
development in order to identify such indicators (para 40.6).
In promoting the implementation of chapter 40 of Agenda 21, the Work
Programme on Indicators of Sustainable Development (WPISD) was
established at the third session of the CSD (1995) 3/. The overall
objective of the Work Programme is to provide decision-makers at the
national level with indicators of sustainable development. The aim is to
agree on a workable set of indicators by the year 2000, through a process
of feed-back and revision of the indicators. Indicators, as applied in
national policies, may also be used for national reports to the
Commission on Sustainable Development and other intergovernmental
bodies.
Through collaboration among a large number of governments,
intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations, a preliminary
working list of 134 indicators of sustainable development has been
identified and included in the Work Programme.
Several lead agencies developed methodology sheets for the
indicators, including information on their policy relevance,
methodological description and definitions, data availability, and the
agencies involved in the development of each indicator 4/. An example
of a methodology sheet, for the indicator "Annual energy consumption",
is presented in ANNEX 1.
At its fourth Session, the Commission invited governments to
test, develop, and use the indicators of sustainable development. The
working list of indicators is currently being tested in 22 countries 5/.
The WPISD recognizes that additional indicators may be needed to
measure progress on some topics of Agenda 21. The indicators in the
programme are intended as a "core list" to which other indicators, or
sets of indicators covering particular aspects of sustainable
development, may be added.
1.4 Indicators for changing consumption and production patterns
As a basis for decisions to promote changes in consumption and
production patterns, information on conditions and trends of concern
should be available to decision makers at all levels. Economic, social
and environmental data concerning production and consumption patterns is
available, in varying amounts and quality, in countries and organizations
worldwide. However, the data is often at a level of detail that does not
provide the decision-maker with aggregated information on the overall
picture and the main issues of concern. Therefore, more aggregated
information, as defined by a common set of core indicators for changing
consumption and production patterns, is needed to facilitate decision-
making for encouraging sustainable consumption and production patterns
worldwide.
A set of 8 indicators for changing consumption and production
patterns is included in the WPISD (see ANNEX 3). However, it was
recognized that for this issue few suitable indicators exist, and that
further indicators might be needed to address the issue of changing
consumption and production patterns.
An Expert workshop on Methodologies for Indicators of Sustainable
Development 6/, held in Glen Cove, New York, 5-8 February 1996,
recognized the need to further identify and develop indicators
addressing the key issues for changing consumption and production
patterns.
A background paper entitled "Measuring Changes in Consumption and
Production Patterns" was prepared on the basis of a literature review of
recent developments with respect to both consumption and production and
indicator classification and design.
This paper was sent to policy makers and other experts in NGOs,
business and industry, international organizations, and the academic
community. In this "consultative round", the experts were asked to
comment on the paper, including the proposed indicators, and to indicate
what they consider the key indicators for changing consumption and
production patterns.
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Box 2 - Objectives of the process
- To identify a provisional core set of indicators to monitor
changes in consumption and production patterns;
- To initiate discussion and testing of the provisional set of
indicators;
- To facilitate reporting to the CSD on progress in policy
making for changing consumption and production patterns, and
to contribute to the revision of Chapter 4 in 1999;
- To support the efforts of major groups to change consumption
and production patterns;
- To contribute to the further development the Work Programme on
Indicators of Sustainable Development of the Commission on
Sustainable Development, and the revision of its indicators in
1999-2000;
- To contribute to the process of consistent national reporting
on changing consumption and production patterns.
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A revised background paper, based on results of the consultative
round, and made available for the Workshop in March 1998, provided the
basis for a Workshop discussion among policy makers and other interested
partners on the identification of a core set of indicators for changing
consumption and production patterns. The objectives of the above process
are presented in Box 2.
2 KEY ELEMENTS RELATING TO CHANGING CONSUMPTION AND
PRODUCTION PATTERNS
2.1 Introduction
The Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992 recognized the causal
link between current consumption patterns and lifestyles, particularly
in industrialized countries, and major environmental problems.
There was concern over the climate change threat due to accumulation
of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, ozone depletion caused by CFC
emissions, and acidification due to sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxides.
Biochemical cycles are threatened by excessive use of nitrogenous
fertilizers and the accumulation of toxic heavy metals, radioactive
wastes and long-lived halogenated chemicals in soils and sediments.
Other consumption and production related environmental problems are
the depletion of fish stocks, forests, and water resources, the loss of
agricultural land due to soil erosion and desertification, and extinction
of plant and animal species.
The Rio Conference also noted the contrast between lifestyles in
industrialized countries and those in poorer countries, and the
inequitable distribution, both among and within countries, of the use of
the world~s natural resources and the generation of emissions and solid
waste.
At the Rio Conference, questions were raised as to how consumption
patterns and lifestyles in industrialized countries affect current and
future consumption and production options in developing countries. There
was also concern about whether the consumption patterns of the
industrialized countries could be reproduced on a worldwide scale. It
was generally agreed that responsibilities for improving environmental
management were different for people driven by poverty to
unsustainable consumption patterns as opposed to people whose wealth led to
unsustainable consumption patterns. Concerns were also expressed
regarding global dominance and dissemination of Western lifestyles
around the globe, and the potentially far-reaching environmental
consequences of such dissemination.
As the consumption and production issue encompasses a broad range
of concepts, resource and policy sectors, and related issues (see ANNEX 2),
it is difficult to find an overall and broadly accepted interpretation of all
the elements covered by the topic.
Since the Rio Conference, efforts have been made by various
countries (including Norway, the Republic of Korea, Netherlands,
Brazil and Australia), international organizations (such as UNEP and OECD),
major groups (business and industry, NGOs and the academic community)
to clarify concepts, to strengthen our understanding of sustainable
consumption and production, and to determine the responsibilities of
various actors for changing consumption and production patterns.
The following working definition of sustainable consumption,
which was adopted at the January 1994 "Oslo Symposium", is often used as a
starting point: "the use of services and related products which respond
to basic needs and bring a better quality of life while minimizing the
use of natural resources and toxic materials as well as the emissions of
waste and pollutants over the life cycle of the service or product so as
not to jeopardize the needs of future generations".
In the consultative round and the Workshop, many experts recognized
that focusing on changing consumption patterns, while taking into account
production processes, had the following added value:
- It promotes examination of consumer behavior that impedes
sustainable development and ways to change such behavior;
- Consideration of consumption and production patterns together
facilitates identification of the most effective and efficient
policy instruments for addressing unsustainable patterns. It enables
policy makers to examine simultaneously economic instruments and
behavior-related social policies, such as information dissemination
and eco-labeling;
- The sustainable consumption and production approach encourages all
actors to optimize energy and material use, taking into account the
impact of the use and disposal of products as well as resource
extraction and production;
- The focus on changing consumption and production patterns encourages
consideration of distributional aspects of these patterns, and
encourages industrialized countries to take the lead in moving
toward sustainable consumption and production patterns.
A core set of indicators for monitoring changes in consumption and
production patterns, such as the set proposed in this paper, should
reflect these factors, distinguishing the topic from other approaches to
sustainable development.
Many policy measures, indicators and descriptions outlined in this
paper will be particularly relevant for industrialized countries, since
these countries are expected to take the lead in changing consumption and
production patterns. However, the indicators should also be useful for
developing countries and economies in transition, enabling them to track
trends and shifts in consumption and production patterns and identify
ways to change undesirable trends.
2.2 Other factors relating to consumption and production patterns
There are many factors and indicators of sustainable development
that are related to consumption and production patterns. Many of these
factors influence consumption and production patterns, many are
influenced by these patterns, and for most of them, the causality works
in both directions.
An example of a factor that influences consumption and production
patterns is poverty. Low-income families are often driven to unproductive
and environmentally-fragile areas, which they can only exploit in
unsustainable ways in order to survive. They lack access to the capital,
tools, services and training needed for sustainable agriculture in arid
and semi-arid areas, in rainforests or in other areas with poor soils.
For the large majority of poor people in the world, the only
affordable source of energy is fuelwood, which they must gather from
public or common land in unsustainable ways, contributing to
deforestation, erosion, land degradation and domestic air pollution.
Lack of access to education, sanitation, safe water and other public
services further exacerbates poverty, leading to unsustainable production
and consumption activities. The gendered nature of poverty, and other
aspects of gendered activities and authority, are also important in
determining consumption and production patterns and possibilities for
changing them.
The Work Programme on Indicators of Sustainable Development (WPISD)
contains, under combating poverty (chapter 3), a number of indicators of
poverty, including indicators for the poverty rate, the poverty gap, the
Gini index of income inequality and gender wage inequality. Under health
(chapter 6) and education (chapter 36), there are indicators for
sanitation, access to safe drinking water, school enrolment, gender
inequality in education and other social factors.
Other issues relating poverty to sustainable consumption and
production, especially in rural areas of developing countries, are
covered under fragile ecosystems (chapters 12 and 13), sustainable
agriculture (chapter 14), deforestation (chapter 11) and elsewhere.
Consumption and production patterns are also affected by movements
of people, goods, capital and information. Rural-urban migration and
international migration change the consumption patterns of the people
involved, and often of their communities of origin. The consumption
patterns of different areas and countries are also linked through trade
and investment, especially direct investment by enterprises, which brings
technology with it. Advertising, television, movies and other mass media,
as well as tourism and other foreign travel also transmit consumption and
production patterns around the world, particularly from developed to
developing countries. All of these flows have been increasing rapidly in
recent years as part of the process of globalization. Indicators relating
to these factors are contained in the WPISD under international
cooperation (chapter 2), demographics (chapter 5), technology transfer
(chapter 34) and elsewhere.
Apart from being influenced by the above factors, consumption and
production patterns in turn have an effect on a wide variety of issues.
They affect the quality and availability of natural resources such as
fresh water (chapter 18), land (chapters 10-14), and forests (chapter
11). They also influence health (chapter 6), the development of human
settlements (chapter 7), and lead to the generation of waste (chapters
19-22).
The present report, while recognizing the effect of a wide range of
factors and indicators on consumption and production patterns, will not
try to cover the broad scope of the issue. Similarly, the report does not
attempt to reflect the entire range of social, health, and environmental
impacts of consumption and production patterns. In particular, those
issues that are adequately covered under other chapters of Agenda 21, and
for which indicators were already selected in the WPISD process, have not
been repeated in the provisional core set of indicators for chapter 4.
2.3 Policy strategies and targets
An essential element of a strategy for achieving more sustainable
consumption and production patterns is "eco-efficiency", pioneered by the
World Business Council for Sustainable Development. The OECD defines eco-
efficiency as: "A management strategy based on quantitative input-output
measures which seeks to maximize the productivity of energy and material
inputs in order to reduce resource consumption and pollution/waste per
unit of output, and to generate cost savings and competitive
advantage" 7/.
Eco-efficiency strategies could also cover the maximization of the
productivity of other resources, such as land and water.
At the OECD Rosendal Workshop 8/ hosted by Norway, encouraging
eco-efficiency was generally supported as a pragmatic strategy with
potential political and economic appeal. Various efforts have been made
to tie the eco-efficiency concept to specific targets. The
"Factor 10 Club", a group from the academic and business community, argues
that "a political commitment to a tenfold increase in the average resource
productivity" in the industrialized countries is a prerequisite for achieving
long-term sustainability. They suggest that the industrialized countries
should aim at achieving a 50 per cent reduction in the global levels of non-
renewable material flows over the next 30-50 years 9/.
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Box 3 - Eco-efficiency
Increasing eco-efficiency means reducing resource use per unit of
product or service or reducing resource use per unit of GDP. It does
not necessarily imply a reduction of per capita resource use. The
question remains, therefore, whether increasing eco-efficiency can
lead to a reduction of per capita or total resource use.
A strategy for increasing eco-efficiency should include several
sub-strategies, including industrial ecology, integrated life-cycle
management (minimizing environmental impacts from "cradle to grave"),
reduced energy-use, good house-keeping, dematerialization, and eco-design
(See "OECD Workshop on Sustainable Production and Consumption:
Clarifying the Concepts", Rosendal, Norway, 2-4 July 1995, Final Report).
Eco-efficiency emphasizes both environmental efficiency and
economic efficiency (the "double dividend").
Some NGOs argue that a "sufficiency" strategy is needed to
complement an eco-efficiency strategy. They argue that governments
should not only set limits for various types of pollution and stimulate
more resource-efficient patterns of consumption and production
(eco-efficiency), but that they should also set limits to the total
amount of natural resources consumed.
In a recent book on Factor Four 10/, numerous examples are given
of possibilities of many-fold increases in resource productivity,
allowing more sustainable provision of the same service to the consumer
without reducing utility or level of satisfaction.
Targets for increasing resource productivity are also noted in the
Programme for the Further Implementation of Agenda 21 11/ "Action in
this area should focus on promoting international and national programmes
for energy and material efficiency with timetables for their
implementation, as appropriate. In this regard, attention should be given
to studies that propose to improve the efficiency of resource use,
including consideration of a tenfold improvement in resource productivity
in industrialized countries in the long term and a possible factor-four
increase in industrialized countries in the next two to three decades.
Further research is required to study the feasibility of these goals and
the practical measures needed for their implementation. Industrialized
countries will have a special responsibility, and must take the lead in
this regard."
However, the OECD states in a recent publication 12/ that the
concept of eco-efficiency does not offer a sufficiently comprehensive
framework for determining which consumption trends are unsustainable and
how changing those trends can best be managed.
The OECD argues that "These qualifications to the value of eco-
efficiency as a guiding framework for policy to change consumption and
production patterns have two implications. First, a strategy of promoting
eco-efficiency must be linked to explicit environmental quality
objectives that identify any ecological constraints to consumption.
Second, such a strategy must be transparently tied to policies to
influence the other factors that determine consumption patterns and
levels, including welfare and life-style considerations."
Examples of concepts relating to ecological limits to consumption
are environmental space, ecological rucksacks and footprints, and
carrying capacity.
In traditional environmental policy making, targets for emission
reductions are normally based on the capacity of the environment to
absorb emissions to water, air, and soil, or to its capacity for
providing non-renewable and renewable resources.
The environmental space concept was developed and applied by NGOs
and research organizations (e.g. "Sustainable Netherlands and Europe" by
Friends of the Earth and the Wuppertal Institute) to provide some
quantitative approximation of the environmental impact of different
consumption and production patterns (see Box 4).
-
Box 4 - Environmental space
Environmental space is a normative concept with a physical and
socio-economic dimension. In "physical" terms, environmental space is
a measure of the capacity of the biosphere to support human activities.
It can be defined as the quantity of energy, water, land, non-renewable
raw materials and wood that can be used in a sustainable and equitable
fashion. The environment is considered both as a waste-sink, absorbing
emissions to water, atmosphere, and soil; and a source of services
provided by non-renewable and renewable resources.
The "socio-economic" dimension of environmental space is based
on equity principles, such as the idea that all people have a right
to an equal level of resource use (intragenerational equity); and that
future generations have a right to an equivalent supply of resources
(intergenerational equity).
Some attempts were made to quantify the environmental space
concept. For example, in the "Sustainable Europe" study, carried out
by the Wuppertal Institute for Friends of the Earth International, the
availability of environmental space per capita in the year 2050 was
calculated for major resources, including total primary energy,
timber, cement, iron, aluminum and chlorine. Assumptions were made
with regard to the physical availability of these resources, the
environmental effects of their exploitation, as well as the global,
continental, and regional population in 2050. The calculations also
included value judgements concerning the degree of environmental
degradation or the risk the society would be willing to accept, and
the obligations towards future generations ("Towards Sustainable
Europe", Wuppertal Institute, January 1995). -
Policy strategies and targets, whether they aim at emission
reductions, productivity improvements, or limits to resource use, can
affect both the selection of policy instruments for achieving sustainable
consumption and production, and the selection of indicators for
monitoring changes in consumption and production patterns.
In line with the eco-efficiency and resource productivity
approaches, indicators should cover both levels of consumption and
intensity of use of key resources such as energy, materials, water, and
land. Indicators should reflect the use of these resources in a variety
of sectors including consumer goods, recreation, transportation, or food
production.
Increasing eco-efficiency, interpreted more broadly, can also be
achieved by changes in lifestyles. Transportation, for example, could be
achieved more efficiently if passengers shifted from private car use
towards mass transit or car-pooling. An indicator such as the share of
public transportation in total passenger miles, may be appropriate for
monitoring such a shift.
2.4 Trends and developments in policy making
The core set of indicators is intended to provide a basis for
monitoring the effectiveness of policies. Therefore, some recent trends
in policy making for more sustainable consumption and production are
briefly reviewed in this section.
In various areas such as energy, transport, waste generation,
and water, demand-side measures aimed at reducing consumption have been
implemented in various countries. Complementing more traditional
approaches to environmental policy making, where the main objective
was to minimize the environmental damage resulting from resource use,
current policy approaches are increasingly directed at changing consumer
demand and satisfying demand with less resource input and waste output.
One reason for the interest in this approach is that increases
in the volume of consumption often overwhelm emission reductions through
efficiency improvements (e.g. in the energy and transport sectors).
Another reason is that wastes associated with consumption now
tend to exceed waste emissions from manufacturing processes. The
effectiveness of policy making could therefore be enhanced by targeting
consumers of gasoline, for example, in parallel with car producers.
Another key development underlying the selection of policy
instruments for changing consumption and production patterns is a
growing recognition of the need to internalize environmental costs.
External costs (or externalities) arise when costs such as environmental
degradation are not reflected in the prices of goods and services.
Such external costs should be added to production costs, through taxes for
example, and reflected in market prices, thus discouraging consumption
of environmentally damaging goods and services.
Other factors such as the absence of well-defined property
rights, environmentally harmful subsidies, and inefficient public
investments are increasingly recognized as promoting unsustainable
consumption and production patterns.
There are many examples of cost internalization measures,
including reduction or elimination of agricultural fertilizer and pesticide
subsidies. There are fewer success stories in the energy, transport,
and water sectors. Substantial energy savings and reductions in
environmental damage could be achieved by an increase in energy prices. As
long as consumers do not pay the full costs of their energy use and its
associated infrastructure, goods, and services, the development of
more sustainable alternatives will be hindered.
Subsidized transport can be destructive to the environment and
costly to the economy. When the use of private automobiles is
subsidized directly or indirectly and when petrol is insufficiently taxed,
private transportation soon crowds out public transportation and settlement
patterns become more automobile dependent.
At present, the policy implementation process is largely
characterized by self-regulation by consumers and the private sector.
Governments determine policy targets, while other actors are
responsible for the implementation of instruments for complying with these
targets in accordance with their financial and institutional capacity. An
example of such a policy instrument is a voluntary agreement between
government agencies and private enterprises.
In designing policies for changing consumer behavior, there is
a need for greater understanding of the motivations behind the behavior.
Many policies used to change consumer behavior are found to be
inadequate. Travel habits, for example, are constrained by a wide
socio-cultural web of institutions and infrastructure, and measures targeted
only at modifying individual behavior are not likely to succeed.
With regard to the transport sector, further social science
research and analysis should be carried out to determine whether a
"saturation" level exists for the travel activities of individuals, how
telecommunications influence individuals' real and perceived travel
options, and where the pressure points and "learning moments" are that
enable policies to change behavior 13/.
2.5 Indicators for key resources and associated environmental issues
The considerations of eco-efficiency and for delinking consumer
satisfaction from resource use discussed in section 2.3 provide a basis
for selecting indicators for monitoring changes in consumption and
production patterns.
Consideration must be given, on the one hand, to the resources
that should be used more sustainably ("Key Resources" - 2.5), and on the
other hand, to the consumer "needs" or functions that should be satisfied
through the use of these resources ("Consumption Clusters" - 2.6).
Policy makers concerned with policy development, implementation, and
evaluation in the area of consumption and production patterns therefore
need two categories of indicators: on the one hand, indicators that
monitor trends in resource use and environmental impacts, and on the
other hand indicators that reflect consumer behavior.
In this section, the use of key resources, including energy,
materials, water and land, are considered in more detail. For each
resource, indicators are suggested for monitoring use of those resources
and for reflecting environmental effects caused by the use of the
resources. Consumption clusters, including mobility, consumer goods and
services, housing, food and recreation are discussed in section 2.6.
Where possible, mention is made of the type of policy target or
strategy the indicator can monitor. If the indicator is part of the WPISD
core set (see 1.3, 3.1, and ANNEX 3), the appropriate chapter of Agenda
21 is indicated. Links with other chapters covered by the WPISD are
highlighted where appropriate.
Some of the indicators mentioned were selected by the Workshop for
the core set on the basis of clearly defined selection criteria (3.2.1).
The core set indicators are presented in an indicator framework (the
Driving Force-State-Response framework), in section 3.2.2. For
convenience, the core set indicators are already marked in bold in the
following sections. Where possible, comments are also made with regard
to short term, medium term, and long term data availability for the
development of the core indicators.
The indicators proposed here should be considered as the key
indicators covering the main elements of chapter 4 of Agenda 21, which
can be the basis for a broader "hierarchy" of more detailed
indicators.
2.5.1 Energy
While world energy production and consumption has continued to grow,
annual growth rates have decreased, and the world~s energy intensity
(i.e. energy use per unit of production or GNP) has declined,
particularly in OECD countries.
The main environmental concern associated with growing energy
consumption, mostly of fossil fuels, is the continuing rise of
atmospheric CO2 concentrations contributing to global warming. The
industrialized countries today account for about 70 per cent of carbon
dioxide emissions 14/. Industry accounts for a large part of global
energy use (43% in 1992). Renewable energy sources provide a small
proportion of total energy supply.
Five energy-intensive subsectors, accounting for roughly 45% of
all industrial energy consumption, are iron and steel, chemicals,
petroleum refining, pulp and paper, and cement. Other sectors which make a
major contribution to energy consumption are agriculture, construction, and
transport 15/. Recently, some new initiatives were undertaken by
industry to develop indicators reflecting companies~ contribution to
global warming (Box 5).
Box 5 - Global Warming Indicator
Recently, a tool has been developed by the British Imperial College
and the insurance company National Provident Institution to help
investors assess companies' contribution to climate change and their
resulting exposure to financial risk. A "global warming indicator"
enables companies to measure their output of carbon dioxide from fossil
fuel consumption for making and transporting products or heating offices.
The indicator's sponsors hope that the indicator will become an
internationally accepted reporting requirement in company accounts, to
identify companies least able to curb their emissions and therefore
susceptible to financial penalties. The indicator would also provide
shareholders with more adequate information about exposure to new
costs.
The indicator is being circulated to UK accountants and companies
for review. Once the indicator has been reviewed by some of its
potential users, it will be available for any business to try out,
initially on a voluntary basis (Financial Times, 17 November 1997).
In developing countries, however, the lack of access to
commercial energy often still is a severe constraint on social and economic
development. Poverty and distance from supplies leave communities
dependent on animal or human energy for labor and fuel-wood or animal
dung for cooking and heating. Wood still provides up to 50 per cent of
national energy needs in a number of Asian and sub-Saharan African
countries 16/. In the last two decades, rapid expansion of the energy
sector in developing countries has been accompanied by a decline in
urban air quality, as well as serious land and water degradation from
mineral exploitation and fuelwood harvesting 17/. Industrialized countries
have taken the lead in pursuing energy-use reduction strategies.
Policy challenges are:
- Improving energy-efficiency in the production of goods and services,
including within the energy sector itself;
- Increasing the share of energy from renewable resources;
- Reducing negative environmental impacts from energy use, including
greenhouse gas emissions; and
- Promoting access to commercial energy to facilitate economic
development in poor and rural communities.
Key indicators are:
Indicator Comments Annual energy - Indicator for chapter 4 in the WPISD.
consumption per - Increased energy consumption, particularly
capita (toe) in industrialized countries, is a major
contributor
to global warming. However, the effects on global
warming depend on the energy source. Therefore, the
indicator can be broken down by source (e.g. coal,
hydro, nuclear, fossil fuels, other renewables).
- In developing countries, the lowest-income
countries are often also those with the lowest per
capita energy consumption, and social indicators such
as infant mortality and life expectancy (included in
the WPISD under chapter 6) improve with increased per
capita income and energy consumption.
- Focus is on primary energy.
- Could be broken down by income groups.
- Data should be available in the short term. -
Intensity of energy - Monitors energy use per unit of production/service.
use (toe/unit of - Selected sectors will include agriculture,
production for food processing, transport, and several other
selected sectors) manufacturing and service sectors.
- Can be used for measuring fulfilment of targets
requiring Factor 4 or 10 energy productivity
increases.
- The WPISD includes the indicator Energy use in
agriculture under chapter 14.
- Data should be available in the short term. Share of renewable - Indicator for chapter 4 in the WPISD,
energy in total formulated as Share of consumption of
energy consumption renewable energy resources.
(%) - Monitors the use of renewable energy sources.
- Has an important communicative value.
- Nuclear energy should not be considered as a
renewable energy source. Fuelwood should be included
in "renewables".
- Data should be available in the short term. Emissions of - Chapter 9 of the WPISD includes the indicator
greenhouse gasses Emissions of greenhouse gasses (annual emission
(annual emission levels of carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous
levels in gigagrams oxide).
of CO2 equivalents) - For monitoring the contribution of fossil
fuels to global warming. The indicator can also be
broken down by sector (e.g. industry, transport,
agriculture, and construction), in order to identify
priority policy targets.
- An indicator of CO2 emissions per unit of primary
energy can be used for approximating decarbonization. -
Energy prices - In combination with disposable income,
(US$ per unit of reflects the "affordability" of energy,
energy) for monitoring the extent to which energy becomes more
or less costly over time.
- The indicator also reflects the margins for price
increases to influence consumption.
- It is difficult to develop an indicator or
meaningful proxy for monitoring the internalization
of external costs, such as an indicator of energy
price as percentage of full cost or share of energy
tax over total energy price. Problems are
data-availability and comparability among countries.
- Data should be available in the short term.
2.5.2 Materials, material flows and waste
Despite rising levels of consumption of materials such as minerals,
metals, chemical products, fertilizers, and industrial and construction
materials, there is no short-term prospect of scarcity. Proven reserves
of the majority of important metals and minerals, for example, have risen
since 1970 18/.
Materials intensity (materials required for constant economic
output) has fallen in industrialized countries at nearly 2 per cent per
year since 1971, mainly due to more efficient technologies and structural
economic changes.
Though information about material flows is weak for most countries,
the intensity of use of relatively unprocessed commodities (e.g. lumber,
concrete, and iron) seems to have declined, with a shift towards
materials with a higher value-added (aluminum, plastics, and composites).
Moreover, the number of materials in circulation has increased
dramatically. For example, an estimated 90,000 chemicals are now in
commercial use.
The health and ecological effects of this large quantity and variety
of materials are an increasing concern 19/. Once released into the
environment, chemicals may combine with other chemicals to form new
compounds, or degrade to other, potentially more harmful ones. Many
pollutants, for example heavy metals, are persistent in the environment
and can be stored in living tissue, accumulating in the food chain to
highly toxic concentrations 20/. The consequences of releases of
persistent or bioaccumulative toxic materials, heavy metals and
persistent organic pollutants (POPs) are subject to increasing
attention.
The volume of municipal wastes in OECD countries has grown from
347 million tonnes in 1980 to 484 million tonnes in 1995 21/. Changing
consumer behavior (e.g. the shift to highly packaged convenience food),
economic growth, and the increase of single-person households are chiefly
responsible for this trend.
The amount of waste generated per capita in the OECD was 410
kg/capita in 1980 and 510 kg/capita in 1995. Figures show that about
1/2 - 2/3 of this amount is generated at the household level 22/.
The per capita municipal waste generation in industrialized
countries is about five times higher than that in developing countries,
although the latter is expected to double in volume in the current
decade 23/. With a few exceptions, OECD countries are now showing
significant improvements in waste recycling, in spite of the relative
weakness of markets for recycled products and the lack of reprocessing
facilities.
In recent years, discussions about materials have focused on
material flows and "throughputs". Various research institutes,
including the Wuppertal Institute and the World Resources Institute, consider
the total material flow as a measure of environmental disturbance. The
reduction of material flows is therefore seen as a means for reducing
the pressure of human activities on the global environment.
Efforts have also been made to distinguish material flows on
the basis of criteria such as the spatial area affected by the flow and
the potential for environmental harm 24/.
Several measures for assessing the economic intensity of
material flows have been developed. One such measure is the material input
per unit service (MIPS), the material inputs necessary for the production,
distribution, use, redistribution and disposal of a given good,
considered with respect to the service provided to the end-user.
Another is the cost per unit service (COPS). Both were developed by the
Wuppertal Institute.
The World Resources Institute (WRI) developed, in cooperation
with the Wuppertal Institute and several other organizations 25/, a
refinement of the MIPS, entitled the "Total Material Requirement
(TMR)" of an industrial economy. The TMR measures the total use of natural
resources that national economic activity requires.
Measures such as the GDP do not include the movement or processing
of large quantities of materials that have no economic value. National
economic accounts fail to capture many activities with environmental
consequences, in part because the natural resources involved do not
become commodities that are bought and sold. In the countries studied by
the WRI (Germany, Japan, the Netherlands and the United States), the
"hidden material flows" associated with extractive activities, harvesting
of crops, construction and dredging make up 55 to 75 per cent of the TMR.
Policy challenges are:
- To decrease intensities of material use in production and
consumption;
- To reduce the negative environmental and health effects of
resource use; and
- To progressively dematerialize consumption - defined as a
reduction of anthropogenic material flows, or as a reduction in per
capita use of materials.
Important indicators are:
-
Indicator Comment -
Intensity of - Indicator for chapter 4 in the WPISD.
material use - Monitors material use per unit of
(tons/m3 per production/service (for selected sectors).
unit of - Can be used for measuring achievement of
production) efficiency targets (e.g. Factor 4 or 10).
- While interpreting this indicator, it should be
noted that the mix of materials changes over time,
so that the volume and impacts of these materials do
not necessarily stay the same.
- Data should be available in the short/medium term. -
Production of - For assessing fulfilment of targets for the
heavy metals, reduction of the spread of dangerous and
toxic chemicals, environmentally harmful substances.
and persistent - Monitors possible future health effects due to
organic pollutants POPs, toxic chemicals, and heavy metals.
(metric tons) - Agenda 21 includes two chapters concerned with
these issues: chapter 19 (environmentally sound
management of toxic chemicals), and chapter 20
(environmentally sound management of hazardous
wastes). -
Generation of - For determining which sectors are major
solid waste by contributors to solid waste generation, and for
sector (industry, monitoring compliance with solid waste reduction
agriculture, targets.
energy sector, - Chapter 21 of the WPISD includes other important
households) (tons indicators for monitoring waste volume and shifts
per capita per in recycling and reuse of waste. Examples are:
annum) Waste recycling and reuse, Generation of industrial and
municipal solid waste, and Household waste disposed
per capita.
- An alternative indicator for recycling and reuse
of waste is Material input flows avoided through
material recycling and reuse. Total Material - Monitors total material input moved including
Requirement (TMR); the hidden or indirect material flows required for
annual flows per a national economy.
capita (metric - The TMR is an indicator for the "macro" level, and
tons per capita) can therefore be calculated at the national level.
- The TMR includes metals and industrial minerals,
construction minerals, infrastructure excavation,
renewables, and erosion. A considerable share of the
TMR is occupied by fossil fuels in some countries.
- TMR includes longer term investments in
infrastructure and buildings, and therefore goes
beyond "consumption". Special attention should be
paid to the way such investments are treated.
- Data should be available in the medium term. -
2.5.3 Water
Worldwide water use is increasing steadily, and has nearly doubled
since 1960. Annual withdrawals reached a level of 4,138 km3 in 1990. Per
capita availability of freshwater worldwide fell from 17,000 m3 in 1950
to 7,300 m3 in 1995, primarily as a result of population growth 26/.
In developing countries, 70 to 90 per cent of water use is for
agriculture, against 39 per cent in developed countries. Water use for
industry and domestic consumption are considerably higher in high-income
countries 27/.
There is heavy overuse of groundwater in a number of regions,
with water being pumped out faster than nature replenishes the stock.
Overpumping of groundwater has lowered water levels by tens of meters
in some places, making it increasingly difficult and expensive to pump
more water. Overuse of groundwater can have a serious effect on river
flows, and can result in sinking land above aquifers and lead to intrusion
of salt water into aquifers near coasts 28/.
Rivers, lakes, oceans, and underground aquifers are used as
waste-sinks. Water pollution originates from various sources, including
untreated sewage, chemical discharges, petroleum leaks and spills,
dumping in old mines and pits, and agricultural chemicals 29/. In many
areas, waste discharge has outstripped nature~s capacity to break down
wastes into less harmful elements, adversely affecting water quality
and posing risks to human health.
One billion people in developing countries still lack access to
adequate water supply, while 1.7 billion people lack adequate
sanitation facilities 30/.
Finally, water resources also host fish resources (Box 6), the
supply of which crucially depends on water quality and quantity.
-
Box 6 - The role of Fish in the world's food supply
Marine and inland fish resources are an important component of the
world's food supply. About 950 million people, mostly in developing
countries, rely on fish for their primary source of protein. The
marine catch (representing about 78 per cent of the total) rose nearly
five-fold between 1950 and 1989. It has dropped slightly since then,
but the total catch has continued to rise thanks to expanded aquaculture
production. According to a recent study, about 35 per cent of the world's
major fisheries now have declining yields, about 25 per cent are at high
levels of exploitation, and 40 per cent still have a potential for
yield increase.
The main concerns in the fisheries sector are fish depletion and
species extinction because of over exploitation, inappropriate fishing
methods, water pollution and the construction of dams. Aquaculture can
also cause environmental problems, such as salinization, pollution of
ground and surface water, and mangrove depletion. --
Policy challenges are:
- An integrated approach to water policy making, including quality
issues (i.e. to reduce pollution of water resources, contributing
to a solution of the water scarcity problem) and quantity issues
(so that the lack of water does not become a major constraint on
development);
- To improve the efficiency of water use in the agricultural sector
(particularly through improved irrigation techniques and
management), industry, and households;
- To allocate water more rationally among users; and
- To avoid depletion of fish stocks.
Key indicators are:
-
Indicator Comment -
Annual withdrawals - Indicator for chapter 18 in the WPISD.
of ground and
surface water (as %
of available water
supply) 31/ -
Water availability - Currently, no internationally agreed definition of
per capita (m3 per water availability exists.
year) - Water availability per capita can vary from one
region to another, and is therefore of less relevance
at the national level. The significance of the
indicator would be increased, if disaggregated by
regions, such as watersheds.
- Indicator can be related to indicators for water
demand per capita and for water supply per capita. -
Intensity of - Monitors efficiency of water use for selected
water use sectors (e.g. several industrial and services
(m3 per unit of sectors).
production) - In using the above indicator of annual withdrawals
of ground and surface water as percentage of
available water supply (particularly if disaggregated
locally), one can decide if the intensity of water
use of particular sectors is sustainable, and
identify priority sectors for water conservation
(given country-specific characteristics such as
financial coping capability 32/).
- Indicator for residential water use per household
is included under buildings and housekeeping.
- Can be used for measuring achievement of targets
requiring quantified water productivity increases.
- Data should be available in the short term. -
Sectoral - Indicator for determining major contributors
contribution to to water pollution.
water pollution
(nutrients)
(industry,
agriculture,
households)
(per capita) -
Access to safe - Indicator for chapter 6 in the WPISD.
drinking water - Approximation of the potential for health effects
(% of population) due to polluted drinking water. -
Stock of marine - Indicator for chapter 17 in the WPISD.
species relative
to stock for
maximum
sustainable yield
(%) -
2.5.4 Land
Land resources contribute not only to agricultural and forest
production, but also to renewable energy and biodiversity stocks and
water resources. Both the quantity and quality of land resources are
important as a measure of the ability of land resources to fulfil
economic, social and ecological functions 33/.
One of the important functions of land is to ensure food security,
a function that is threatened by shifts in land use towards urbanization,
infrastructure, and the provision of non-food products and services (e.g.
recreation, paper, fibers, biomass energy); and by unsustainable
agricultural practices. Land is an increasingly scarce resource,
fulfilling a large variety and an increasing number of vital and
competing functions.
At present, slightly less than 1.5 billion ha of arable land is
in use, currently about 0.28 ha per capita 34/. Each year, an estimated
0.5 to 1 percent of arable land is lost due to desertification, erosion,
or salinization and once degraded, soil is often impossible to
rehabilitate.
Demand for food production has led to a steady increase in
cropland. By the early 1990's, almost 40 per cent of the Earth's land
surface had been converted to cropland and permanent pasture, largely
at the expense of forests and natural grassland. The most dramatic changes
are occurring in developing countries, where it is estimated that from
1960 to 1990, one fifth of all natural tropical forest was cleared for
cultivation.
Agricultural practices can cause a wide variety of environmental
problems, depending on geographical factors, soil type, and the scale or
intensity of the activity. Intensified agriculture can result in
pesticide and fertilizer contamination, soil erosion, soil and water
pollution, and biodiversity loss.
Conversion of land from forest to agriculture is expected to
continue: recent estimates suggest that nearly two thirds of tropical
deforestation - some 12 million hectares per year - is due to farmers
clearing land for agriculture 35/. Deforestation is a major threat,
since forests are not only an important source of goods and services,
but also valuable as regulators of global climate, as repositories of
species, and as protectors of soil and water resources.
In 1990, forests and other wooded land covered 5.1 billion ha,
about 40 per cent of the earth's land area. Between 1980 and 1990, the
world's forest and other wooded land area declined by 2 per cent - or 100
million hectares 36/.
-
Box 7 - Ecological Footprint
In order to illustrate the unequal worldwide consumption of
the goods and services deriving from land resources, Rees and
Wackernagel (1994) developed the concept of the "Ecological
Footprint". The latter can be defined as the area of land
required by a given group of people (household, city, or country)
to provide the goods and services it consumes, and to assimilate
its waste products, wherever that land may be located.
For example, it was reported by researchers that the
aggregate consumption of wood, paper, fibre, and food by the
inhabitants of 29 cities in the Baltic Sea drainage basin
appropriated an ecosystem area 200 times larger than the cities
themselves. In another study, it was estimated that London's
ecological footprint for food, forest products, and carbon
assimilation occupied 120 times the surface area of the city
proper (Rees, "Reducing the Ecological Footprint of Consumption",
1995).
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Policy challenges are:
- To maximize the productive uses of land, including provision of
renewable and non-renewable resources, urban space, industrial
estates, infrastructure, critical natural ecosystems and recreation,
with multiple uses where possible;
- To halt and reverse land degradation due to erosion,
desertification, salinization, deforestation, and other causes;
- To reduce environmental damage due to intensified agricultural
practices; and
- To establish stronger links between land use planning policies
and other policies.
Possible indicators are:
-
Indicator Comment -
Land use (per - Monitors land use (including forestry,
capita and as agriculture, settlements, infrastructure, recreation),
% of total land and changes in land use patterns.
area) - Strong links exist with the transport sector, in
particular in the area of spatial planning for
transportation infrastructure in urban areas (see
2.6.1).
- Data should be available in the short term. -
Land use change - Indicator for chapter 10 in the WPISD.
(% change of - The above indicator, if measured at different time
each category intervals, will provide similar information.
of land use to
another land
use per unit
of time) -
Changes in land - Indicator for chapter 10 in the WPISD.
conditions (the - Changes are disaggregated by type and geographic
extent and location, and in the condition, suitability, and
magnitude of nature of the land resource.
improvement and - Strong links exist with the transport sector, in
deterioration in particular in relation to increases in fragmented areas
land condition and impervious surfaces (see 2.6.1).
changes) -
2.6 Indicators for consumption clusters
In order to develop and implement the most effective policies for
making consumption and production patterns more sustainable, policy
makers need to know why and how consumers and producers make choices and
decisions. Understanding these decision making processes will indicate
the most effective leverage points for policy design. In combination
with information on resource use, data on how consumers and producers
fulfil needs and functions is essential.
Consumers can find various ways to fulfil their needs. The need for
mobility or access, for example, can be satisfied by taking a bus, a
train, private car, bicycle, or by walking. The demand for communication
can be satisfied, in some cases, by taking these modes of transportation
(thereby also satisfying the demand for mobility), but also by means of
a telephone call, or by sending a message through electronic mail.
As mentioned in section 2.4, policy makers have become more
interested in the motivations behind consumer behavior, such as saving
time, saving money, following fashion trends, or enjoying life. These
motivations, however, are difficult to measure. Several "consumption
clusters" are considered here, with consumer "needs" and functions as a
basis. The clusters selected include mobility, consumer goods and
services, buildings and housekeeping, food, and recreation.
While comments are made for each cluster with regard to
possible motivations behind current consumption trends, the focus is on
measurable aspects of these trends and on the potential for changing to more
sustainable consumption patterns ("lifestyles"), without reducing the
satisfaction or quality of life of the consumer.
The indicators listed under the consumption clusters reflect
current consumption patterns, their main direct or indirect effects on
resource use and the environment, and indications of shifts in these
patterns towards more sustainable ones.
Sometimes, more sustainable consumption patterns can be
achieved through a shift to communal activities or from buying products to
services (e.g. the use of public transport instead of private cars, or
the use of a laundry service instead of buying a washing-machine).
Alternatively, a consumer can choose a good or service produced or
provided in a more sustainable manner than a competing product or
service on the basis of an eco-label. A recent UN report, "Unlocking Trade
Opportunities", illustrates this with case studies, in particular
where developing country producers have been able to benefit from new export
opportunities 37/. Consumers, producers, and the retail sector can
also enhance sustainable consumption by extending product life, and
reducing resource waste through increased use of product repair and exchange
services 38/.
2.6.1 Mobility
Motor vehicle stocks increased by about 50 per cent in OECD
countries over the period 1980-1995, while the worldwide increase has
amounted to 57 per cent. The number of passenger cars in use increased
by about 47 per cent in OECD countries, and road traffic volumes (of
motor vehicles) increased by about 84 per cent over the same period of
time 39/. Vehicle stocks have also increased in many developing
countries. In China, for example, the number of passenger vehicles
almost tripled between 1988 and 1994, and the number of trucks increased by
76 per cent over the same period 40/. Between 1960 and 1990, world wide
air transport increased ten-fold, and the sector is still rapidly
growing 41/. Current trends also show that the energy intensity in the
transportation sector is increasing, especially due to increasing use
of planes, high-speed trains, and larger and heavier vehicles.
Energy consumption and CO2 emissions are among the most serious
of the many traffic-induced environmental problems. The sector also
contributes substantially to other types of air pollution, particularly
nitrogen oxides, sulphur dioxide, volatile organic compounds, small
particles and smog. The extent to which the transportation sector
contributes to air pollution depends on the size, type, and efficiency
of the vehicles used. The sector can also have important effects on the
quality of life, for example, through the generation of noise,
congestion and accidents. As was mentioned in section 2.5.4, increased
traffic and transport infrastructure can also strongly affect land
quality and land use, e.g. through the fragmentation of land and
increases in impervious land surfaces.
In the transport sector, energy efficiency gains are being
offset by volume increases. Technological developments, such as catalyc
converters or improved energy efficiency, have are not been sufficient
to reduce environmental damage arising from transportation.
Land use planning, combined with regulatory, social, and
pricing measures, including transport prices that also reflect environmental
and social costs, are necessary to move toward more sustainable
transportation systems.
The car represents more than merely a means of transport. For
some, car ownership reflects social status, for others, a sense of freedom
or privacy. Motivations behind the choice of taking the car rather than
using public transport are also more complex than simply the need for
mobility, or the price of gasoline as compared to the price of a bus-
or train-ticket. More knowledge about the complex reasons underlying
transport behavior is needed for policy making in the transportation
sector.
In the era of the "information super highway", new means of
communication and an improved communication and information
infrastructure can affect the use of transportation. Activities such
as teleworking, teleconferencing, teleselling and teleshopping, for
example, can reduce the need for mobility. Rapid developments in this
area may well benefit policy making targeted at reducing the environmental
impacts of mobility. However, increased communication also appears to
stimulate increased travel for business and leisure. The identification
of the consequences of information technologies deserves increasing
attention.
Another important aspect of transportation that is important
for changing consumption and production patterns (particularly of food and
consumer goods) is freight transport. The shipment of products or
commodities over very long distances for processing, assembly, and
distribution is not efficient from an environmental perspective.
Further work in this area is needed to address the key freight issues for
policy makers (e.g. the price of gasoline).
Policy challenges are:
- To shift towards more energy and material efficient technologies and
practices in the transport sector through spatial planning, urban
design, and by enhancing the capacity of existing infrastructure;
- To reduce the need for travel and transport; and
- To increase understanding of the motivations behind choices of means
of transportation.
Agenda 21 has no chapter on transport. As a result, the WPISD only
includes one indicator directly related to the sector (Per capita
consumption of fossil fuel by motor vehicle transport, under chapter 7).
Therefore, discussions on indicators for chapter 4 provide an
opportunity to consider indicators for transport, in particular those
that concern travel behavior. In selecting additional indicators for the
transport sector, attention should be given to the considerable work that
was already carried out in this area, both at the national level and
through international organizations.
The most important mobility related indicators for decision makers
are concerned with travel mode (including fuel-efficiency, size, and
environmental impact of types of vehicles), distance traveled,
frequency of travel, and the time individuals spend traveling.
Important indicators are:
-
Indicator Comment -
Number of road - Monitors the total number of vehicles, and
vehicles (total motorization.
and per capita) - The indicator should be broken down into types of
vehicles, and into categories reflecting
fuel-efficiency of vehicles (gas-mileage). Vehicles
could also be classified on the basis of atmospheric
emissions generated.
- OECD indicator for the integration of environmental
concerns into transport policies.
- Data should be available in the short term. -
Distance - Monitors the use of different modes of transport
traveled per (foot, bicycle, train, boat, car, bus, plane).
capita by mode - More detailed indicators for monitoring transport
of transport (km) are: Average distance from home to super-markets,
Average distance home-work, or Average distance
traveled from home to collect fuelwood. These
indicators should include indicators for frequency of
travel and voluntary trips as opposed to necessary
trips.
- Data should be available in the short/medium term. -
Atmospheric - Indicator used by the OECD.
emissions of - For monitoring compliance with CO2, NOx, and VOC
pollutants from reduction objectives.
the transport
sector (tonnes
per unit of
GDP or per capita) -
Freight traffic - Monitors freight volume and reflects environmental
by mode of impact.
transport - Total volume and changes in freight traffic by
(tonne-km per mode of transport are directly linked to energy price,
capita) geography, and infrastructure. However, international
freight traffic may be difficult to address at the
national level under the umbrella of "changing
consumption and production patterns". -
Per capita - Indicator for chapter 7 in the WPISD.
consumption of
fossil fuel by
motor vehicle
transport
(liters) -
Fuel price - Indicates extent of cost internalization in the
taxation (by transport sector.
fuel type) (% of - Other policy indicators relating to mobility are:
fuel price) Subsidies for public transport, and Ratio of public to
private public transport in urban areas. -
Number of - Monitors the potential for electronic communication.
computers per However, while computer use can in theory replace
1000 inhabitants travel, empirical evidence confirming this is currently
and/or lacking. Further work on the impacts of factors such
connections to as telecommuting and electronic commerce is needed.
the internet -
2.6.2 Consumer goods and services
Consumers need and want goods and services for eating, cleaning,
dressing, home decorating, leisure activities and for numerous other
purposes. The choice of replacing an old product by a new one can be made
because the old product cannot be repaired or reused, for reasons of
aesthetics or fashion, for convenience, or because the product is
considered obsolete from a technical standpoint. Consumer goods and
services, and trends in their production, delivery, design, durability,
and disposal are a major factor in sustainable development in both the
developed and developing world.
Goods purchased by consumers range from tools and appliances,
clothing and footwear, and toiletries, to cosmetics, books, and
furniture. In 1993, world wide production of shoes amounted to about 4
billion pairs, that of bed linen to about 700 million units, and that of
washing powders and detergents to 13 million metric tons. In the same
year, the worldwide production of hardware was estimated at about
750.000 metric tons, that of sewing machines at 15 million units, and
that of washing machines for household use to about 45 million units 42/.
Production volumes of most consumer goods are increasing. The annual
growth in the world production of refrigerators for household use, for
example, was 3.4 percent from 1984-1993, and of fabrics 2.8 per cent.
Consumers directly and indirectly contribute to environmental
effects throughout a product~s life-cycle. Direct energy consumption
is particularly high for products for lighting, heating and cooling
homes, and for cooking and storing food. In many OECD countries, the number
of products using electricity in the household is still rising, and
consumers increasingly buy both second pieces of equipment (e.g. a
second television set) and new types of products they did not own before
(e.g. micro-wave ovens) 43/.
Another consumer good involving direct consumer impacts on the
environment in the use and disposal phases, and indirectly in the
production phase, is paper. The pulp and paper industry is not only the
major worldwide consumer of wood (the industry uses roughly one third of
the global industrial wood harvest - excluding fuelwood), but it ranks
third in terms of financial turnover and in the top 10 industries that
emit greenhouse gasses (carbon dioxide and methane). Moreover, when
paper is bleached with chlorine gas, highly toxic dioxins can be released
into the environment (Box 8).
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Box 8 - Distribution of Paper Use
Paper use reflects economic development. Current paper
consumption (1993) in developed countries is 152 kg per person per
year, and in developing countries only 12 kg per person per year. The
amount of paper used reflects demand for paper for reading and writing,
especially in developing countries. More than a billion adults are still
illiterate and over 100 million children worldwide receive no primary
education. The demand for pulpwood for paper is expected to double
in the next 50 years (WBCSD, "A Changing Future for Paper," 1996).
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Media and advertising have an important impact on the purchase
of goods and services 44/. Advertising in particular strongly affects
motivations underlying consumption trends and therefore plays an
important role in shaping consumption and production patterns.
Several studies indicate that consumption and production patterns
can be made more sustainable by substituting certain services for goods
with the same function fulfilled (e.g. clean clothes or a cut lawn) with
less environmental impact and increased quality of life 45/. According
to recent analyses by the business community, customers~ long-term
loyalty seems to be geared towards a service offered rather than to the
provision of a product 46/.
In some cases, purchasing services can be environmentally
preferable compared to the purchase of corresponding products. Reduced
environmental impacts have been documented for services like dining in a
restaurant, providing floor-covering, employing a decorating firm, or
using a laundry service, as opposed to eating at home, or buying carpeting,
do-it-yourself equipment or a washing machine.
Policy challenges are:
- To reduce energy and material inputs relative to the service
provided to the consumer, thereby minimizing negative
environmental impacts resulting from production, distribution,
use, and disposal;
- To extend the length of product life and to optimize product
design for durability, repair, remanufacturing, and recycling;
- To encourage reuse, repair, remanufacturing, and recycling of
products by promoting repair and exchange centers, or the sorting
and composting of waste;
- To stimulate the production and consumption of environmentally
preferable consumer goods, e.g. through the use of eco-labels;
- To encourage shifts from goods to services with clear
environmental, social, and economic benefits; and
- To increase understanding about the factors that influence
purchase and disposal of consumer goods, and about the role of
media and advertising in shaping consumption patterns.
The most important information that policy makers concerned
with more sustainable goods and services need is data and indicators on
trends in sales of selected consumer goods and in shifts towards more
sustainable behavior of consumers and producers, the average length of
product life, and the role of marketing and advertising.
Possible indicators are:
Indicator Comment Retail sales of - Monitors retail sales of electronics,
of selected home-appliances, and clothing.
goods per - Interesting areas for further research are more
capita (total detailed studies on indicators of material throughput
expenditure or and the energy intensity of selected durable and
in physical non-durable consumer goods.
terms) - Depending on the product category, the indicator can
be expressed in terms of total expenditure or in
physical terms (volume).
- Short term/medium term data-availability. Average length - Monitors durability of selected consumer goods.
of product life - More work is needed on this type of indicator.
for major Product lifetime can be an ambiguous indicator, in part
consumer because new products can be better than older products
durables (e.g. from an environmental perspective (more efficient and
refrigerator, cleaner). Also, the lifetime of a product can be
washing-machine, influenced by fashion, which is hard to distinguish
TV, car) empirically from the -technical lifetime~ of the product.
- Attention should be given to the environmental
effects of the product throughout its life-cycle.
- Alternative indicators are: Actual product lifetime
as compared to technical lifetime, Guarantee period of
a product, and Frequency of model change. -
Market share of - Monitors social and environmental interest and
more sustainably awareness of consumers and producers.
produced goods - Indicator needs further development. It might cover
and services (%) the following groups of goods and services:
1. Environmentally friendly (or preferable) products,
including eco-labelled products;
2. Reused and recycled products;
3. Services replacing products while generating
positive environmental effects. -
Per capita - Reflects potential for less paper-intensive
paper communication.
consumption 47/ - Relates to water pollution and waste volume.
- Might be supplemented by indicator of paper
recycling.
- Indicator reflects development. -
Advertising - Indicator of role of media and advertising in shaping
indicator consumption and production patterns.
(to be determined)- The role of advertising in influencing lifestyles,
both in industrialized and in developing countries,
requires more attention for assessing the impact of
advertising in stimulating more or less sustainable
consumption, and for analysing the opportunities that
advertising gives as a tool in policy making. Private final - For measuring trends in private consumption levels.
consumption - Increasing/decreasing expenditure on certain product
expenditure groups indicate changes in consumption patterns.
(index and by - This indicator is of relevance for other consumption
product group) clusters as well. -
Public final - Indicator of the level of public consumption.
consumption - May be compared to total consumption (public and
(total) private). -
2.6.3 Buildings and housekeeping
Housekeeping, i.e. the use and management of commercial and
residential buildings, requires energy for heating, cooling, lighting,
food storage and preparation, washing and other functions. It also
involves a significant consumption of water and of construction
materials. Choices with regard to the type of materials and the
quantities of energy and water used can be made on the basis of cost-
considerations, the availability of and information about alternatives,
and incentives to use them. Similar choices and considerations intervene
when a new building is constructed.
The outcomes of these choices and decisions can be measured by
tracking trends in commercial and residential energy use, in the
production and use of energy and water saving devices, and in the use
of environmentally friendly materials.
Approximately 36 per cent of world primary energy is consumed
by commercial and residential buildings, while levels of use are
substantially higher in industrialized countries. In both residential
and commercial buildings, the growth rate of energy use in developing
countries (respectively 5.7 and 6.7 per cent per year) has surpassed
that in industrialized countries (respectively 1.4 and 2.6 per cent per
year) in recent years 48/. Energy use in residential buildings is about
twice that of commercial buildings worldwide, though the energy demand in
commercial buildings has grown more rapidly than demand in residential
buildings for the past two decades 49/.
In industrialized countries, population increase, decreasing
household size, and an increased demand for various residential services
such as air conditioning, appliances, and space and water heating have
contributed to an increase in energy use in residential buildings.
In developing countries, higher incomes, urbanization and
population growth, and the shift away from traditional fuels are major
factors leading to higher demand for commercial energy in the residential
sector 50/. Some of the above factors, in combination with an increase
in the demand for services such as electric heating, computers, and
other office equipment have contributed to growth in energy use in
commercial buildings, both in industrialized and developing countries.
The technical potential for energy efficiency improvement in
residential and commercial buildings is considerable (estimates for
the United States range from 27 to 48%, for some European countries
between 42 and 76%, and for some developing countries from 31 to 56
per cent) 51/.
One way of enhancing energy-efficiency in residential and commercial
buildings is the use of more efficient technologies and practices for
buildings, including proper orientation, adequate insulation levels,
high-quality windows, and building management and control systems 52/.
In developing countries, ample room exists for efficiency improvements
in connection with electricity use, e.g. for lighting and refrigeration.
Examples from the noncommercial sector are the improvement of the
efficiency of traditional appliances such as wood or kerosene stoves 53/.
Energy consumption in residential and commercial buildings also
depends on consumer behavior, including, thermostat settings, frequency
of use of appliances and equipment, use of lighting, and use of windows
and outside doors. Consumers can sometimes also decide to switch to
alternative energy sources, such as solar photovoltaics, wind power, or
ethanol fuel. The use of solar-cookers is an example from the alternative
energy sector in developing countries. Consumer education as to ways to
conserve energy and reduce energy bills can assist in reducing energy
consumption.
The residential and commercial sectors are modest users of water,
accounting for roughly 10% of current global consumption (see 2.5.3). In
many OECD countries, the magnitude of household water use has remained
stable since the end of the 1980s. However, demand is rising in some
countries, in particular in countries experiencing rapid urbanization.
In most cases, personal hygiene requires the highest amount of water.
Important issues are an improved assessment of water use and water
consumption needs, and better housekeeping involving the correction of
inefficiencies in water delivery and use. Improvements in water using
appliances can also contribute to water conservation.
The housing sector uses building materials and generates waste.
Much progress can still be made in diminishing the use of environmentally
unfriendly and unhealthy materials and products (e.g. paints, stains,
and adhesives containing VOCs), and the generation of waste, for example
through the use of more durable and long-lasting materials (e.g.
ceramic floors), in order to minimize future replacement.
Measures aimed at increased use of collective facilities (e.g.
collective laundries) can also contribute to resource conservation.
House-keeping measures for the avoidance of waste are also important.
Even though this section has mainly focused on resource consumption
in residential and commercial buildings, the choices households and
commercial entities face prior to occupying a building are also of
interest to policy makers.
For example, households and companies need to select an appropriate
location. The location of a building relative to transportation
facilities and to energy distribution and communication grids can have
an important effect on the types and amount of resources consumed. The
extent to which shops, means of public transportation, schools, and
other important facilities are accessible in turn determines a whole range
of other choices, including those related to mobility. The increased
integration of environment and sustainability in spatial planning and
decision making provides many opportunities for policy makers in
developing more sustainable housing.
Decisions are also taken with respect to purchasing or renting
an existing house or building or constructing a new one. Financial and
other considerations play a role here. Control over architecture, design,
and decoration increases when the decision to construct a new building is
made. Considering the life-span of a house, decisions made at the
drawing board on design and material use have large impacts on the degree of
sustainability of housing facilities.
Policy challenges are:
- To increase understanding of the motivations underlying housing and
house-keeping choices;
- To enhance the efficiency of energy and water use in housing by
using more efficient technologies and practices for buildings, by
improving housekeeping, and by increasing, where possible, the use
of renewable energy sources;
- To integrate environmental considerations in architecture and the
design of homes and appliances; and
- To increase the use of low-emission, less toxic and durable
materials and products, and to minimize waste by using recyclable
materials.
Key indicators are:
-
Indicator Comment -
Residential energy - Monitors total water and energy use in
and water use per households due to consumer behavior, housing
household (toe equipment, and housing design and construction.
and liters) - Closely linked to indicators for intensity of
water use (See section on Water - 2.5.3) and
energy consumption (See section on Energy - 2.5.1).
- Chapter 18 of the WPISD includes the indicator
Domestic consumption of water per capita.
- In developing countries, particularly in rural
areas, where there is inadequate access to clean
water and commercial energy, it may be desirable to
increase residential water and commercial energy
consumption.
- Data should be available in the short term. -
Average household - Monitors the number of persons per household.
size (number of - Data should be available in the short/medium
term.
persons) -
Use of recycled - Monitors trends in more sustainable
construction.
materials in - Close links exist with sections 2.5.2
(Materials)
construction (%) and 2.6.2 (Consumer goods and services). -
2.6.4 Food
Apart from the fact that food fulfils basic nutritional needs,
the consumption of food is intertwined with cultural habits and values,
and culinary tastes and preferences. The choice of where one eats, for
example at home or in a restaurant, is determined by similar motivations,
together with time-availability for unpaid work and financial
considerations. If the consumer prepares food at home, preparation-time,
taste, availability, food price and quality, household-size, and health
become important factors for selecting food-products.
Food consumption patterns contribute to environmental problems
through energy and chemical use, intensified land use, and waste
generated in the food production processing industry.
Food consumption patterns such as high consumption of meat and
dairy products, elaborately packaged products, intensively grown produce,
or frozen foods have environmental consequences, and may contribute to
problems such as acidification, water pollution, climate change, and
waste generation. Moreover, as was already mentioned in section 2.6.1,
transport of food products over long distances can have significant
environmental impacts.
Dietary preferences tend to change with increasing income in
favor of meat and dairy products, which require much more land than grains
and vegetables. Land in developing countries is now increasingly being
used for growing grain feed, fodder and forage for livestock in order to
export meat to industrialized countries.
Most consumers in industrialized countries can now enjoy a wide
variety of food from all over the world at all times of the year, and
the demand for semi- or fully prepared meals has risen 54/. Food
processing can contribute to environmental problems. For example, energy use
for fish processing increases when the fish is frozen. Frozen food
generally has a high energy requirement for freezing and for keeping frozen
until it is consumed.
An increasing number of consumers are interested in food produced
with more environmentally friendly agricultural practices allowing for
a reduced use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides (e.g. integrated
pest management). Though it may not be possible to extend the area used
for organic agriculture and other more environmentally sustainable
practices substantially, the potential for extending such practices could
be assessed. Developing countries can benefit from shifts towards an
increased demand for organic agriculture by increasing their exports of
organic agricultural commodities such as coffee and fruit 55/.
Policy challenges are:
- To increase understanding of the underlying reasons for trends
in food consumption;
- To shift demand toward more resource-efficient foods;
- To encourage the consumption of food grown with a minimum of
environmentally harmful fertilizers or pesticides;
- To stimulate the market for more sustainably produced foods, in
particular from developing countries; and
- To minimize waste generation resulting from food consumption.
Key indicators are:
-
Indicator Comment -
Daily caloric - Monitors the average caloric intake per capita.
supply per - Indicator can be specified for specific groups
capita in the society with different per capita incomes.
(Calories/ - The WPISD includes two indicators for chapter 6
capita/ (promoting human health), that are of relevance for
day) food consumption: Proportion of potentially hazardous
chemicals monitored in food, and Nutritional status of
children. -
Market share - Monitors social and environmental interest and
of more awareness of consumers and producers.
sustainably - Alternative indicators suggested during the Workshop
produced food on indicators for chapter 4 were: Share of resource
(%) intensive food production, and Share of food from
resource intensive production.
- Indicator needs further development. The indicator
might follow a sliding scale of more sustainably produced
food, and might be measured through labels and product
information. It should be a rough estimate of market
share without requiring agreement on a precise definition
of sustainably produced food. It can therefore include
organically produced food and food produced with more
environmental, social, and economic benefits than its
shelf counterparts.
- The WPISD includes two indicators for chapter 14
(promoting sustainable agriculture and rural
development): Use of agricultural pesticides, and Use of
fertilizers. -
2.6.5 Recreation
Leisure and recreation involve different types of activities,
including travel, staying in hotels and resorts, skiing, sailing,
fishing, reading, watching TV, camping, and motor touring. The trends in
the types of activities undertaken depend on factors such as available
income, time, cultural background, and personal preferences.
The determining factors driving consumer choice and behavior in
leisure activities are rarely included in policy analyses. In order to
measure trends and track effectiveness of policy implementation, data on
what portion of the day is taken up by work, un-paid work, and leisure
is important.
In addition, the percentage of disposable income spent on leisure
goods and services also gives policy makers a reading of the perceived
need for leisure, and the importance attached to leisure as part of a
consumer's day.
Leisure activities have differing degrees of environmental impacts.
These impacts can either be caused directly by the activity itself (e.g.
jet-skiing, hiking, golf, skiing), or more indirectly by the need for
travel to remote destinations.
Certain types of recreation activities have a potentially positive
effect on the environment, and tend to improve the broader social and
economic aspects of sustainable development. Eco-tourism, hiking, and
wildlife safaris, for example, have increased the demand for nature
conservation and enhanced environmental planning and management, often
providing income for local populations. The largest and most serious
negative environmental impacts are due to growth in air and car travel
to holiday destinations, and the growth in mass tourism causing water
pollution and land degradation, particularly in coastal zones.
Some trends in developed countries indicate that an increased
per capita disposable income combined with limited time available for
leisure can lead to farther and faster travel to leisure destinations.
Travel and tourism has become the world~s largest industry,
accounting for over 10 percent of world economic activity and providing
direct or indirect employment to over 250 million people. It is one of
the fastest growing economic sectors, with international tourist
arrivals growing by 5 per cent each year. In 1996, the World Tourism
Organization estimated that international arrivals worldwide reached almost
600 million. It is estimated that this figure will increase by over 50% by
2010 56/.
At present, 15 of the top 20 countries in terms of tourist
revenues are developed countries (representing 60 per cent of the total
market). The five leading tourism destinations in developing countries in
terms of numbers of international arrivals are the Caribbean, China,
Malaysia, Mexico, and Turkey, with about 11 per cent of the income share 57/.
Two broad types of tourism can be distinguished: mass tourism,
which makes up the bulk of today's industry and is characterized by package
arrangements, and alternative tourism, including trekking, hiking,
diving, and bird and animal watching.
Though alternative tourism is growing at 5 to 10 percent per
year, the World Tourism Organization estimates that the maximum share of
alternative tourism achievable is 10 percent 58/. Even though
alternative tourism activities, and in particular the sub-set "eco-
tourism", are generally less harmful for the environment than mass
tourism, the goal of sustainable tourism applies to both categories.
Eco-tourism may not only be more sustainable than mass tourism,
but can also provide revenues for maintaining areas of particular
environmental importance. Carefully managed tourism to habitats with
unusual wild animals or plants or other special characteristics can be
crucial to providing the financial resources for preserving those
habitats.
Policy challenges are:
- To understand the factors and motivations determining the time
and money spent on various leisure activities;
- To minimize resource degradation and pollution from leisure and
recreation activities by improving resource management and
spatial planning, and providing adequate facilities and consumer
information;
- To encourage recreation activities that are less harmful for the
environment; and
- To develop eco-tourism and nature-based tourism, which can provide
financial support for local populations and the conservation of
natural resources and biodiversity.
As in the case of the transport sector, it should be noted that
Agenda 21 has no separate chapter on tourism and/or recreation.
Therefore, the WPISD only includes one indicator that could be related
to the effects of recreation on the environment, i.e. Protected area as
percent of total area (chapter 15, conservation of biological diversity).
Tourism is, however, one of the 15 programme areas of the Programme of
Action for the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing
States.
Policy making on this issue needs additional analysis and should
address in particular aspects of resource intensity for selected
recreation activities. Currently, it seems most important for policy
making to have information on time and spending on recreational and other
activities. This information would help to determine where to apply
measures most effectively.
Important indicators are:
-
Indicator Comment -
Contribution of - Indicator for the dependence of the economy
tourism/ on revenues from tourism/recreation, and possibly
recreation to of the vulnerability of both the economy and the
the economy environment to fluctuations in tourism/recreation
(revenues from activities.
tourism/
recreation as
percentage of GDP) -
Time spent on - Monitors time-allocation and distribution,
leisure, paid and and reflects lifestyles.
unpaid work, and - See also 2.6.1 (Mobility).
traveling (hours - The policy application of this indicator needs
per capita per further development.
day) Interesting areas for research are the relationship
between time spent on particular activities and
lifestyles, consumer satisfaction, as well as the
distribution of work.
- Short term/medium term data-availability. -
Spending on - Monitors the demand for recreation activities.
recreation as - Short term/medium term data-availability.
percentage of
disposable
income (%) -
Land used for - Is included in the land use indicator (2.5.4).
recreation
purposes as
share of total
land area -
Site stress - The indicator or index could include, for selected
indicator/index important recreation and tourism sites, indicators of
site stress (e.g. Number of visitors per year/peak
month), use intensity (e.g. Persons per hectare, Type
of activity, Frequency of activity).
- The World Tourism Organization is currently
developing such an Index. -
Share of - Monitors trends in demand for alternative
tourism.
alternative - Social and economic aspects of tourism should not
tourism over be overlooked.
total tourism (%) -
3 INDICATORS FOR MEASURING CHANGES IN CONSUMPTION AND PRODUCTION
PATTERNS
3.1 Approaches to indicator classification and use
The most commonly used framework for developing environmental
indicators, the Pressure-State-Response (PSR) framework, was developed
by the OECD in the early 1990's. In reaction to an increasing interest
in the measurement of environmental damage and in evaluating the
effectiveness of environmental policy measures, the OECD Council approved
a Recommendation on Environmental Indicators and Information, instructing
the OECD Environment Policy Committee to (...) -further develop core sets
of reliable, readable, measurable and policy-relevant environmental
indicators~ (...). In 1993, the OECD Group on the State of the
Environment conducted a series of Workshops, developed a common
conceptual framework, and defined a core set of indicators, using the
Pressure-State-Response (PSR) framework.
The PSR framework is based on the idea that human activities exert
pressure on the environment (represented by pressure indicators), thereby
changing the quality of the environment and the quantity of natural
resources (represented by state indicators). Society responds to these
changes through environmental, economic and sectoral policies
(represented by response indicators). Policy responses affect individual
and collective actions (I) to mitigate, adapt to or prevent human-induced
negative impacts on the environment, (ii) to halt or reverse
environmental damage already inflicted, and (iii) to preserve and
conserve natural resources 59/.
In establishing the Work Programme on Indicators of Sustainable
Development (WPISD), the Commission on Sustainable Development has
adopted the PSR framework developed by the OECD, while going beyond
environmental aspects, and identifying three further dimensions of
sustainable development, namely social, economic, and institutional
aspects.
In this expanded version of the framework, called the -Driving
Force-State-Response~ (DSR) framework, the concept of pressure has been
replaced by that of "driving forces", in order to accommodate the
inclusion of social, economic, and institutional aspects of sustainable
development. The term "driving force" indicates an impact on sustainable
development, which can either be positive or negative. Indicators in the
"state" category gives an indication of the state of sustainable
development, and response indicators indicate societal responses to
changes in sustainable development.
Other frameworks have been developed and used, for example, by
the United Nations Statistical Division, UNEP and the European Environment
Agency. However, these frameworks are very similar to the PSR and the
DSR frameworks, and indicators developed and used in these and other
contexts could easily be placed within the DSR framework.
The recently initiated work on "Sustainable Consumption
Indicators" of the OECD is structured around the following major themes
deriving from the PSR framework: environmentally significant consumption
trends and patterns; interaction between consumption trends and patterns and
the environment and natural resources; and economic and policy aspects.
This is very much in line with the DSR framework and the key resources and
consumption clusters outlined in this paper. The DSR framework allows for
the presentation of all aspects of sustainable development, and it is
simple and easy to understand and use. Furthermore, the use of the DSR
framework facilitates incorporation into the set of indicators of
sustainable development of the WPISD, and is in line with frameworks used
by other organizations and governments.
Research, development and experience in the scientific community,
governments and organizations may result in the development of more
advanced analytical frameworks that more accurately reflect the complex
dynamics of changing consumption and production patterns. In the longer
term, the use of such frameworks should be carefully reviewed.
3.2 A core set of indicators for changing consumption and production
patterns
3.2.1 Selection of a core set of indicators
Two sets of indicator selection criteria were used for the selection
of the provisional core set of indicators. A first set of criteria is
based on key considerations from the consumption-production perspective,
and the second set comprises criteria used for the selection of
indicators for the CSD Work Programme on Indicators of Sustainable
Development. Both sets are outlined in Box 9.
With regard to the second set of selection criteria, it should be
noted that it is not yet feasible, at this stage, to fully comply with
the "Bellagio principles" 60/, or to provide information on the data
availability and quality.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Box 9 - Consumption-Production Selection Criteria
The core-set of indicators for measuring changes in consumption and
production patterns should:
- Include all key resources and consumption clusters (representing various
types of end-use) that are susceptible to policy intervention and relate
to critical environmental trends;
- Reflect both total consumption and use intensity;
- Include indicators that simultaneously cover various key resources and
consumption clusters, while also allowing for (crosscutting) indicators
that do not fit into any of these categories;
- Reflect chapter 4, and in particular the "added value" of the
production-consumption approach;
- Reflect concepts which are widely used in sustainable development
policy analysis (e.g. eco-efficiency);
- Include indicators for monitoring progress towards short term and long
term targets and objectives (e.g. quantified targets for emission
reduction, and targets for resource productivity - e.g. Factor 4 or 10);
- Take into account the institutional capacities and programmes of major
institutions and actors; and,
- Be consistent with and complementary to a possible wider framework of
indicators and indices.
Indicator Selection Criteria
The indicators selected for the core set should be:
- Primarily national in scale or scope (countries may also wish to use
the indicators at state or provincial levels);
- Relevant to the main objective of assessing progress towards
sustainable development;
- Understandable, i.e. simple, clear and unambiguous;
- Realizable within the capacities of national governments, given their
logistic, time, technical and other constraints;
- Conceptually well founded;
- Limited in number, remaining open-ended and adaptable to future
developments;
- Broad in coverage of Agenda 21, and all aspects of sustainable
development (in this context, focused on the key issues of chapter 4
of agenda 21);
- Representative of international consensus, to the extent possible; and
- Dependent on data that are readily available or available at a
reasonable cost-benefit ratio, adequately documented, of known quality
and updated at regular intervals. -
3.2.2 The provisional core set of indicators for changing
consumption and production patterns
This section introduces the provisional core set of indicators
for changing consumption and production patterns. Following the arguments
in section 3.1, The Driving Force-State-Response framework is used for
categorizing and presenting the core set of indicators. It should be
noted that the social-economic-environmental-institutional
classification used in the context of the CSD Work Programme on Indicators of
Sustainable Development (WPISD) is not reflected here. According to
the WPISD, indicators for chapter 4 of Agenda 21 are all categorized in
the economic category. The indicators proposed here are all relevant to
the economic category, but many are also relevant to the environmental,
social and institutional categories.
The core set does not include all the indicators selected for
chapter 4 under the WPISD framework, and has a minimum of overlap with
indicators selected for other chapters of Agenda 21. Attention has
also been paid towards establishing, to the extent possible, a balance
among Driving force, State, and Response indicators.
As in the WPISD framework, the core set is intended to allow
governments to choose which indicators to use at the national level.
Therefore, the consumption-production related environmental concerns
reflected by the indicators do not necessarily need to be of equal
importance in each county. The selection of core indicators focuses on
those key resources and consumption clusters that have significant
environmental impacts and seem particularly susceptible to public
policy intervention.
The core set of indicators for changing consumption and
production patterns will be an input to the WPISD and the revision of its
indicators for sustainable development in 1999-2000. In the near future, the
definitions and methodological descriptions of the core set indicators
for chapter 4 will be described and summarized in the form of
methodology sheets (see ANNEX 1). In addition, national Governments may
embark, in cooperation with international organizations, on a first round of
testing of the core set or parts of the core set.
The indicators selected for the core set should be of relevance
for industrialized and developing countries, and for countries with
economies in transition. The core set of indicators has a particular relevance
for policy makers in developed countries, since these countries are to
take the lead in making consumption and production patterns more
sustainable (Agenda 21, chapter 4).
The indicators may help policy makers in industrialized
countries choose appropriate policy measures aimed at eco-efficiency
improvements and the achievement of more sustainable consumption practices and
lifestyles. For developing countries and economies in transition, the
indicators could be used to monitor the development of consumption and
production patterns, while promoting the development process. The
suggested indicators can in most cases be applied at a global,
regional, national, and local scale, depending on the objective for which they
are used.
Furthermore, the core set of indicators is provisional, and
should evolve over time in a dynamic process, reflecting changes in
priorities related to sustainable consumption and production patterns.
The provisional core set of indicators for changing consumption
and production patterns is outlined in Table 1. Table 2 presents the same
indicators in the Driving Force - State - Response Framework. Box 10
summarizes the areas for further research identified in the process.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Box 10 - Some key areas for further work
For energy, additional work is needed to define the most
appropriate combination of indicators to monitor trends in
affordability of energy, i.e. the extent to which energy becomes
cheaper or more expensive over time. Indicators for energy prices
could be related to indicators for disposable income. Affordability of
energy could be calculated for different income groups and uses. If
appropriate, use could be made of elasticity indicators of energy demand.
Some areas related to mobility and transport need more attention.
It would be interesting, for example, to draw on national experience for
selecting a group of key indicators for the sector, particularly because
this work has not yet been undertaken in the context of Agenda 21 and
the WPISD. Indicators for trends in mobility and transport related to
the ~electronic age~ and ~information super highway~ (e.g. telecommuting,
teleshopping) merit attention in the near future.
In the area of consumer goods and services, indicators for the length
of product life (both from a technical and fashion standpoint), and
indicators for more sustainably produced products and services need to be
defined further. More efforts could also be undertaken to identify
policy-relevant indicators for the role of media and advertising on
consumption and production patterns.
Some additional indicators could also be developed for recreation and
tourism, in particular for monitoring trends in consumption patterns and
in the way individuals spend their time.
Finally, more work on indicators reflecting social and human
development aspects of production patterns is needed. -
Since only some of the work suggested in Box 10 will be carried
out by the CSD Secretariat, other actors are invited to explore these
issues further, in order to contribute to a continuous improvement of the
current provisional core set of indicators for changing consumption
and production patterns.
Table 1 Core Set of Indicators for Changing Consumption and
Production Patterns
KEY RESOURCES ENERGY
1. Annual energy Monitors energy consumption.
consumption per capita
2. Intensity of energy Monitors energy use per unit of
use production/service (for selected sectors).
3. Share of renewable Monitors the development of renewable energy
energy in total energy sources.
consumption
4. Energy prices Monitors energy prices in relation to GDP and
disposable income.
MATERIALS
5. Total material Monitors total material throughput, including
requirement hidden or indirect material flows required for
a national economy.
6. Intensity of Monitors material use per unit of
material use production/service (for selected sectors).
WATER
7. Intensity of water use Monitors water use per unit of
production/service for selected sectors.
LAND
8. Land use Monitors land use (forestry, agriculture,
settlements, infrastructure, and recreation). -
CONSUMPTION CLUSTERS -
MOBILITY
9. Distance travelled Monitors the use of different modes of
per capita by mode transport (foot, bicycle, train, boat, car,
of transport bus, plane).
10. Number of road Monitors the total number of vehicles
vehicles (possibly by type and fuel efficiency).
CONSUMER GOODS AND SERVICES
11. Retail sales of Monitors retail sales of goods (e.g.
selected goods per capita electronics, home-appliances, clothing).
12. Market share of Monitors social and environmental interest of
more sustainably consumers and producers.
produced goods and
services
BUILDINGS AND HOUSEKEEPING
13. Residential energy Monitors total water and energy use in
and water use per households due to consumer behaviour and
household housing design and construction.
14. Average household Monitors the number of persons per household.
size
FOOD
15. Market share of more Monitors social and environmental interest of
sustainably produced consumers and producers.
food
RECREATION
16 Spending on recreation Monitors the demand for recreation activities.
as share of disposable
income
17. Time spent on Monitors time-allocation and distribution,
leisure, paid and and reflects lifestyles.
unpaid work, and
travelling -
Table 2 Core Set Indicators in the Driving Force - State -
Response framework
-
CATEGORY: KEY RESOURCES -
ISSUE CHAPTER 4 OF AGENDA 21: Energy
DRIVING FORCE INDICATORS
-Annual energy consumption per capita
STATE INDICATORS
-Intensity of energy use
-Share of renewable energy in total energy consumption
RESPONSE INDICATORS
-Energy prices -
ISSUE CHAPTER 4 OF AGENDA 21: Materials
DRIVING FORCE INDICATORS
-Total material requirement (TMR)
STATE INDICATORS
-Intensity of material use ISSUE CHAPTER 4 OF AGENDA 21: Water
DRIVING FORCE INDICATORS
-Intensity of water use ISSUE CHAPTER 4 OF AGENDA 21: Land
STATE INDICATORS
-Land use CATEGORY: CONSUMPTION CLUSTERS ISSUE CHAPTER 4 OF AGENDA 21: Mobility
DRIVING FORCE INDICATORS
- Distance travelled per capita by mode of transport
- Number of road vehicles ISSUE CHAPTER 4 OF AGENDA 21: Consumer goods and services
DRIVING FORCE INDICATORS
-Retail sales of selected goods per capita
RESPONSE INDICATORS
-Market share of more sustainably produced goods and services
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
ISSUE CHAPTER 4 OF AGENDA 21: Buildings and housekeeping
DRIVING FORCE INDICATORS
-Residential energy and water use per household
STATE INDICATORS
-Average household size
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
ISSUE CHAPTER 4 OF AGENDA 21: Food
RESPONSE INDICATORS
-Market share of more sustainably produced food
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
ISSUE CHAPTER 4 OF AGENDA 21: Recreation
DRIVING FORCE INDICATORS
-Spending on recreation as share of disposable income
-Time spent on leisure, paid and unpaid work, and travelling
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
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ANNEXES
ANNEX 1 Sample methodology sheet
ANNEX 2 Some issues linked to changing consumption and
production patterns
ANNEX 3 CSD Working List of indicators of Sustainable
Development
ANNEX 4 List of participants of the consultative round
and the Workshop
ANNEX 1
Sample Methodology Sheet
(from "Indicators of Sustainable Development: Framework and Methodologies")
-
ANNUAL ENERGY CONSUMPTION
Economic - Chapter 4 - Driving Force -
1. Indicator
(a) Name: Annual energy consumption per capita.
(b) Brief Definition: The amount of energy - liquid, solid, gaseous or
electricity - used by an individual in a given year in a given
geographical area.
(c) Unit of Measurement: Gigajoules.
2. Placement in Framework
(a) Agenda 21: Chapter 4: Changing Consumption Patterns.
(b) Type of Indicator: Driving Force.
3. Significance (Policy Relevance)
(a) Purpose: The purpose of this indicator is to measure energy
consumption.
(b) Relevance to Sustainable/Unsustainable Development: Energy
use is a key aspect of consumption and production. Traditionally energy has
been regarded as the engine of economic progress. However, its
production, use, and byproducts have resulted in major impacts on the
environment. The decoupling of energy use from development represents
a major challenge of sustainable development. The long term aim is for
development and prosperity to continue through gains in energy
efficiency rather than increased production.
(c) Linkages to Other Indicators: This indicator is closely linked
with many other economic and environmental indicators, such as population
growth, transport fuel consumption, environmentally adjusted domestic
product, proven energy reserves, consumption of renewable to non-
renewable energy resources, land use change, energy use in
agriculture, emissions of greenhouse gases, production of ozone depleting
substances, generation of waste, etc.
(d) Targets: Not available.
(e) International Conventions and Agreements: Not available.
4. Methodological Description and Underlying Definitions
(a) Underlying Definitions and Concepts: The elements comprising
this indicator are production, population and consumption data. The data on
production refer to the first stage of production. For example, for
hard coal the data refer to mine production; for crude petroleum and
natural gas, to production at oil and gas wells and processing plants; for
electricity to the gross production of generating plants. The data on
consumption refer to "apparent consumption" and are derived from the
formula which takes into account production, imports, exports, and
stock changes.
(b) Measurement Methods: This indicator is computed by calculating
the ratio of consumption of energy in a specific area/country/region to
the population in that area/country/region.
(c) The Indicator in the DSR Framework: This indicator represents
a major Driving Force within the economy.
(d) Limitations of the Indicator: Since this indicator is
calculated by the aggregation of different consumption data within an
area/country/region it may not accurately measure variations in the
rates of consumption within that area/country/region. This can lead to
invalid calculations and interpretations, and mis-allocation of
resources.
The indicator is not as sensitive a measure of energy intensity
and efficiency as some others, for example environmentally adjusted
domestic product.
(e) Alternative Indicator Definitions: Disaggregation of the
indicator into sectoral components such as agriculture or manufacturing, would
permit assessment of energy requirements per unit of output. On the
other hand, total energy consumption, provides a more direct measure
of production patterns and the implications for the environment, while
energy consumption as per unit of Gross Domestic Product provides a
better reflection of energy efficiency.
5. Assessment of the Availability of Data from National and
International Sources
Energy commodity data for production and consumption, and population
data are regularly available for most countries at the national level; and
for some countries, at the sub-national level. Both types of data are
compiled by and available from national statistical offices and
country publications.
6. Agencies Involved in Development of Indicator
(a) Lead Agency: The lead agency is the United Nations Statistical
Division, department of Economics and Social Information and Policy
Analysis (DESIPA). The contact point is the Director, Statistics
Division, DESIPA; fax no. (1 212) 963 9851.
(b) Other Organizations: Other organizations involved in the
indicator development include: national statistical offices, the International
Energy Agency, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and
Development ( OECD), and Eurostat.
7. Further Information
United Nations. Energy Statistics Yearbook.
ANNEX 2 Some issues linked to changing consumption and
production patterns
Trade and the Environment
The trade-environment "debate" can be subdivided into 2 categories:
(a) the impact of trade on the environment, and (b) the impact of
environmental protection measures on trade. In relation to changing
consumption and production patterns, there may be possible conflicts
between trade policies and policies aimed at changing current consumption
and production patterns - and the consequences thereof for
developing countries (e.g. effects of policies such as eco-labeling
initiatives, voluntary industry agreements, or policies aimed at
dematerialization), and the possible advantages for developing countries
of fair trade and trade in environmentally friendly products for Western
consumer markets.
Technology
Technological factors are of particular importance in changing
production patterns. Technology covers a large range of issues,
including R&D, cleaner production processes, dematerialization of
consumption, eco-efficiency and resource productivity improvements,
and technology transfer to developing countries. Policies aimed at
promoting these technological changes, and helping small enterprises
cover the costs of adopting cleaner and more efficient technologies are
receiving increasing attention.
Health
Causal links between consumption and production patterns in
areas such as water use, agricultural land use, energy use,
transportation and industrial practices, and their relation to outdoor
and indoor air quality, water and soil quality, and food quality are
subject of much research. However, more analyses are needed in order to
determine the effects of consumption and production patterns and the
resulting environmental changes on the frequency and severity of health
problems such as hormone disruption, lung and cardiovascular diseases,
tropical diseases, cancer, poisoning, and reproductive and immunological
disorders. Health considerations are already an important driving
force for changes in consumption patterns in a considerable number of
countries (e.g. increasing interest in "organic" food), and could very
well become an even more important consideration in the future.
Human Settlements
Metropolitan areas, cities, and towns tend to drive consumption
and production patterns; not only because of the density of
consumption-related activities taking place in cities (ranging from
transportation, water and energy use, and waste generation), and because
cities provide an important leverage point for achieving change, but also
because cities are often characterized by a large population exerting
pressure on a relatively small land-area.
Employment
Since unemployment is a major problem in many countries, the
"jobs-versus-environment debate receives considerable attention. Some
claim that changes in consumption and production patterns will lead
to employment creation, since they will trigger investment in more
efficient equipment and services, raising overall economic productivity.
In addition, policies such as "ecological tax reform", support for
technological innovation, and more environmentally friendly procurement
policies would generate new jobs. Others, however, believe that the costs
incurred by the changes would slow down overall economic growth and
employment creation. These negative effects on employment would be
reinforced by the "migration" of resource-inefficient enterprises to
countries without eco-efficiency policies. -
ANNEX 3
CSD Working List of Indicators of Sustainable Development
(as of September 1996)
-
CATEGORY: SOCIAL -
CHAPTERS OF AGENDA 21: Chapter 3: Combating poverty
DRIVING FORCE INDICATORS
-Unemployment rate
STATE INDICATORS
-Head count index of poverty
-Poverty gap index
-Squared poverty gap index
-Gini index of income inequality
-Ratio of average female wage to male wage CHAPTERS OF AGENDA 21: Chapter 5: Demographic dynamics and
sustainability
DRIVING FORCE INDICATORS
-Population growth rate
-Net migration rate
-Total fertility rate
STATE INDICATORS
-Population density CHAPTERS OF AGENDA 21: Chapter 36: Promoting education, public
awareness
and training
DRIVING FORCE INDICATORS
-Rate of change of school-age population
-Primary school enrolment ratio (gross and net)
-Secondary school enrolment ratio (gross and net)
-Adult literacy rate
STATE INDICATORS
-Children reaching grade 5 of primary education
-School life expectancy
-Difference between male and female school enrolment ratios
-Women per hundred men in the labour force
RESPONSE INDICATORS
-GDP spent on education -
CHAPTERS OF AGENDA 21: Chapter 6: Protecting and promoting human health
STATE INDICATORS
-Basic sanitation: Percent of population with adequate excreta disposal
facilities
-Access to safe drinking water
-Life expectancy at birth
-Adequate birth weight
-Infant mortality rate
-Maternal mortality rate
-Nutritional status of children
RESPONSE INDICATORS
-Immunization against infectious childhood diseases
-Contraceptive prevalence
-Proportion of potentially hazardous chemicals monitored in food
-National health expenditure devoted to local health care
-Total national health expenditure related to GNP -
CHAPTERS OF AGENDA 21: Chapter 7: Promoting sustainable human
settlement development
DRIVING FORCE INDICATORS
-Rate of growth of urban population
-Per capita consumption of fossil fuel by motor vehicle transport
-Human and economic loss due to natural disasters
STATE INDICATORS
-Percent of population in urban areas
-Area and population of urban formal and informal settlements
-Floor area per person
-House price to income ratio
RESPONSE INDICATORS
-Infrastructure expenditure per capita -
CATEGORY: ECONOMIC -
CHAPTERS OF AGENDA 21: Chapter 2: International cooperation to
accelerate sustainable development in countries and related domestic
policies
DRIVING FORCE INDICATORS
-GDP per capita
-Net investment share in GDP
-Sum of exports and imports as a percent of GDP
STATE INDICATORS
-Environmentally adjusted Net Domestic Product
-Share of manufactured goods in total merchandise exports -
CHAPTERS OF AGENDA 21: Chapter 4: Changing consumption patterns
DRIVING FORCE INDICATORS
-Annual energy consumption
-Share of natural-resource intensive industries in manufacturing
value-added
STATE INDICATORS
-Proven mineral reserves
-Proven fossil fuel energy reserves
-Lifetime of proven energy reserves
-Intensity of material use
-Share of manufacturing value-added in GDP
-Share of consumption of renewable energy resources -
CHAPTERS OF AGENDA 21: Chapter 33: Financial resources and mechanisms
DRIVING FORCE INDICATORS
-Net resources transfer / GNP
-Total ODA given or received as a percentage of GNP
STATE INDICATORS
-Debt / GNP
-Debt service / export
RESPONSE INDICATORS
-Environmental protection expenditures as a percent of GDP
-Amount of new or additional funding for sustainable development CHAPTERS OF AGENDA 21: Chapter 34: Transfer of environmentally sound
technology, cooperation and capacity-building
DRIVING FORCE INDICATORS
-Capital goods imports
-Foreign direct investments
STATE INDICATORS
-Share of environmentally sound capital goods imports
RESPONSE INDICATORS
-Technical cooperation grants CATEGORY: ENVIRONMENTAL CHAPTERS OF AGENDA 21: Chapter 18: Protection of the quality and supply
of freshwater resources
DRIVING FORCE INDICATORS
-Annual withdrawals of ground and surface water
-Domestic consumption of water per capita
STATE INDICATORS
-Groundwater reserves
-Concentration of faecal coliform in freshwater
-Biochemical oxygen demand in water bodies
RESPONSE INDICATORS
-Waste-water treatment coverage
-Density of hydrological networks -
CHAPTERS OF AGENDA 21: Chapter 17: Protection of the oceans, all
kinds of seas and coastal areas
DRIVING FORCE INDICATORS
-Population growth in coastal areas
-Discharges of oil into coastal waters
-Releases of nitrogen and phosphorus to coastal waters
STATE INDICATORS
-Maximum sustained yield for fisheries
-Algae index -
CHAPTERS OF AGENDA 21: Chapter 10: Integrated approach to the
planning and management of land resources
DRIVING FORCE INDICATORS
-Land use change
STATE INDICATORS
-Changes in land condition
RESPONSE INDICATORS
-Decentralized local-level natural resource management -
CHAPTERS OF AGENDA 21: Chapter 12: Managing fragile ecosystems:
combating desertification and drought
DRIVING FORCE INDICATORS
-Population living below poverty line in dryland areas
STATE INDICATORS
-National monthly rainfall index
-Satellite derived vegetation index
-Land affected by desertification -
CHAPTERS OF AGENDA 21: Chapter 13: Managing fragile ecosystems:
sustainable mountain development
DRIVING FORCE INDICATORS
-Population change in mountain areas
STATE INDICATORS
-Sustainable use of natural resources in mountain areas
-Welfare of mountain populations -
CHAPTERS OF AGENDA 21: Chapter 14: Promoting sustainable agriculture
and rural development
DRIVING FORCE INDICATORS
-Use of agricultural pesticides
-Use of fertilizers
-Irrigation percent of arable land
-Energy use in agriculture
STATE INDICATORS
-Arable land per capita
-Area affected by salinization and waterlogging
RESPONSE INDICATORS
-Agricultural education -
CHAPTERS OF AGENDA 21: Chapter 11: Combating deforestation
DRIVING FORCE INDICATORS
-Wood harvesting intensity
STATE INDICATORS
-Forest area change
RESPONSE INDICATORS
-Managed forest area ratio
-Protected forest area as a percent of total forest area -
CHAPTERS OF AGENDA 21: Chapter 15: Conservation of biological diversity
STATE INDICATORS
-Threatened species as a percent of total native species
RESPONSE INDICATORS
-Protected area as a percent of total area -
CHAPTERS OF AGENDA 21: Chapter 16: Environmentally sound management
of biotechnology
RESPONSE INDICATORS
-R & D expenditure for biotechnology
-Existence of national biosafety regulations or guidelines -
CHAPTERS OF AGENDA 21: Chapter 9: Protection of the atmosphere
DRIVING FORCE INDICATORS
-Emissions of greenhouse gasses
-Emissions of sulphur oxides
-Emissions on nitrogen oxides
-Consumption of ozone depleting substances
STATE INDICATORS
-Ambient concentrations of pollutants in urban areas
RESPONSE INDICATORS
-Expenditure on air pollution abatement CHAPTERS OF AGENDA 21: Chapter 21: Environmentally sound management
of solid wastes and sewage-related issues
DRIVING FORCE INDICATORS
-Generation of industrial and municipal solid waste
-Household waste disposed per capita
RESPONSE INDICATORS
-Expenditure on waste management
-Waste recycling and reuse
-Municipal waste disposal CHAPTERS OF AGENDA 21: Chapter 19: Environmentally sound management
of toxic chemicals
STATE INDICATORS
-Chemically induced acute poisonings
RESPONSE INDICATORS
-Number of chemicals banned or severely restricted CHAPTERS OF AGENDA 21: Chapter 20: Environmentally sound management
of hazardous wastes
DRIVING FORCE INDICATORS
-Generation of hazardous wastes
-Imports and exports of hazardous wastes
STATE INDICATORS
-Area of land contaminated by hazardous wastes
RESPONSE INDICATORS
-Expenditure on hazardous waste treatment -
CHAPTERS OF AGENDA 21: Chapter 22: Safe and environmentally sound
management of radioactive wastes
DRIVING FORCE INDICATORS
-Generation of radioactive wastes -
CATEGORY: INSTITUTIONAL -
CHAPTERS OF AGENDA 21: Chapter 8: Integrating environment and
development in decision-making
RESPONSE INDICATORS
-Sustainable development strategies
-Programme of integrated environmental and economic accounting
-Mandated Environmental Impact Assessment
-National councils for sustainable development -
CHAPTERS OF AGENDA 21: Chapter 35: Science for sustainable
development
STATE INDICATORS
-Potential scientists and engineers per million population
RESPONSE INDICATORS
-Scientists and engineers engaged in R & D per million population
-Expenditure on R & D as a percent of GDP -
CHAPTERS OF AGENDA 21: Chapter 37: National mechanisms and
international cooperation for capacity-building in developing countries -
CHAPTERS OF AGENDA 21: Chapter 38: International institutional
arrangements -
CHAPTERS OF AGENDA 21: Chapter 39: International legal instruments
and mechanisms
RESPONSE INDICATORS
-Ratification of global agreements
-Implementation of ratified global agreements -
CHAPTERS OF AGENDA 21: Chapter 40: Information for decision-making
STATE INDICATORS
-Main telephone lines per 100 inhabitants
-Access to information
RESPONSE INDICATORS
-Programmes for national environmental statistics -
CHAPTERS OF AGENDA 21: Chapter 23-32: Strengthening the role of major
groups
RESPONSE INDICATORS
-Representation of major groups in national councils for sustainable
development
-Representatives of ethnic minorities and indigenous people in
national councils for sustainable development
-Contribution of NGOs to sustainable development -
ANNEX 4
List of participants of the Consultative Round and the Workshop
Participants to the Consultative Round:
- Helene Bank, Norwegian NGO Forum for Environment and
Development, Norway
- Manus van Brakel, Milieudefensie, Amsterdam, Netherlands
- Rae Kwon Chung, Permanent Mission of the Republic of Korea, New
York, USA
- Robert Donkers, European Commission, Brussels, Belgium
- Jeremy Eppel, OECD, Paris, France
- Claude Fussler, Dow Europe, Horgen, Switzerland
- David Gershon, Global Action Plan, Woodstock, USA
- Yannick Glemarec, UNDP, Beijing, China
- Paul Hofseth, Ministry of Environment, Oslo, Norway
- R. Hull, European Commission, Brussels, Belgium
- Sitanon Jesdapipat, Thai Environment Institute, Bangkok, Thailand
- Pavel Kasyanov, Ministry of Environmental Protection and
Natural Resources, Moscow, Russia
- Jaeyun Ko, Ministry of Environment, Seoul, Korea
- Marie Kranendonk-Schwartz, ANPED, Utrecht, Netherlands
- Ritu Kumar, UNIDO, Vienna, Austria
- Ing Hoc Lim, Ministry of Environment, Pnom Penh, Cambodia
- Alex Mc Gillavry, New Economics Foundation, London, UK
- Bedrich Moldan, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
- Chris Morrey and Andrew Randall, Department of the Environment,
London, UK
- Bruce Nordman, Berkeley National Laboratory, California, USA
- Hans Opschoor, ISS, The Hague, Netherlands
- Kirit Parikh, Indira Ghandi Institute of Development Research,
Bombay, India
- Istvan Pomazi, Chief Adviser Ministry for Environment and
Regional Policy, Hungary
- Mark Radka, Industry Programme Officer, UNEP (Regional Office
for Asia/Pacific), Bangkok, Thailand
- Jan Rotmans, International Centre for Integrative Studies
(ICIS), Maastricht, Netherlands
- Bob Slater, Environment Canada, Ottawa, Canada
- Joachim H. Spangenberg, Wuppertal Institute for Climate,
Kolomb, Germany
- Walter Stahel, Institut de la Duree, Geneva, Switzerland
- Patricia I. Va'squez, Fundacio'n Ambiente y Recursos Naturales
(FARN), and Industry Secretariat, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Rosa Anna Weiss, Federal Ministry of Environment, Vienna, Austria
- Czeslaw Wieckowski, Director, Environmental Policy Department,
Ministry of Environmental Protection, Natural Resources, and Forestry,
Warsaw, Poland
- Keimpe Wierenga, European Environment Agency, Copenhagen, Denmark
Workshop participants:
1. Mr. Peter Bartelmus
Chief, Environment, Energy and Industry Statistics Branch
Statistics Division
Department of Economic and Social Affairs
United Nations
2, UN Plaza, room DC2-1650
New York, N.Y. 10017
United States
Tel: (1-212) 963 4581
Fax: (1-212) 963 0623
E-mail: bartelmus@un.org
2. Ms. Marie-Paule Benassi
Responsible, Sustainable Development Indicators
Environment Unit
Statistical Office of the European Communities
European Commission
Batiment Jean Monnet
L-2920 Luxembourg
Tel: (352) 4301 32297
Fax: (352) 4301 37316
E-mail: mariepaule.benassi@eurostat.cec.be
3. Ms. Ilze Blignaut
Environmental Officer, Department of Environmental Affairs and
Tourism
Private Bag X 447
Pretoria 0001
South Africa
Tel: (27 12) 310 3437
Fax: (27 12) 322 6287
E-mail: bog_ib@ozone.pwv.gov.za
4. H.E. Carlston B. Boucher
Ambassador / Permanent Representative
Permanent Mission of Barbados to the United Nations
800 2nd Avenue, 2nd Floor
New York, NY 10017
United States
Tel: (1-212) 867 8431
Fax: (1-212) 986 1030
E-mail: cboucher@undp.org
5. Mr. Rae Kwon Chung
Counsellor
Permanent Mission of the Republic of Korea to the United Nations
866 United Nations Plaza, Suite 300
New York, NY 10017
United States
Tel: (1-212) 715 2229
Fax: (1-212) 371 8873
E-mail: n.a.
6. Mr. Peter Dearden
Environmental Economist
Department for International Development
94, Victoria Street
London SW1E 5JL
United Kingdom
Tel: (44 171) 917 0076
Fax: (44 171) 917 0679
E-mail: p-dearden@dfid.gtnet.gov.uk
7. Ms. Dianne Dillon-Ridgley (CHAIR)
Consultant
United States President~s Council on Sustainable Development
2204 MacBride Dr.
52246-1722 Iowa City, Iowa
United States
Tel: (1-202) 408 5296
Fax: (1-202) 408 6839
E-mail: ddr@igc.org
8. Mr. Mats Ekenger
Head of Section
Ministry of the Environment
SE - 10333 Stockholm
Sweden
Tel: (+46 8) 405 22 43
Fax: (+46 8) 10 38 07
E-mail: mats.ekenger@environment.ministry.se
9. Ms. Sakiko Fukuda-Parr
Director
Human Development Report Office
United Nations Development Programme
Room 612, 304 East 45th Street
New York, NY 10017
United States
Tel: (1-212) 906 3600
Fax: (1-212) 906 3677
E-mail: sakiko.fukuda.parr@undp.org
10. Ms. Patty Goodwin
Board Member of the Global Action Plan United States
Broadstreet Productions
920 Broadway
12th Floor
New York, NY 10 001
United States
Tel: (1-212) 780 5700
Fax: (1-212) 780 5710
Email: pgoodwin@broadstreet.com
11. Mr. Theodore Heintz
U.S. Interagency Working Group on Sustainable Development Indicators
Assistant Director, Office of Policy Analysis
U.S. Department of the Interior
1849 C Street N-W
Washington DC 20240
United States
Tel: (1-202) 208 4939
Fax: (1-202) 208 5602
E-mail: theintz@ios.doi.gov
12. Ms. Hilary Hillier
Head of Environmental Statistics
Department of Environment, Transport and Regions
Floor 5/D12 Ashdown House
123 Victoria St.
London SW1E 6DE
United Kingdom
Tel: (44-171) 890 64 40
Fax: (44-171) 890 44 21
E-mail: hilary.hillier@nfp-gb.eionet.eu.int
13. Mr. Paul Hofseth
Special Advisor
Ministry of Environment of Norway
Myntgaten 2, P.O.Box 8013 DEP
N-0030 Oslo
Norway
Tel: (47) 22 245960
Fax: (47) 22 249561
E-mail: paul.hofseth@md.dep.no
14. Ms. Outi Honkatukia
Administrator
Country Studies and Environment Division
Directorate for Food, Agriculture and Fisheries
Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development
2 Rue Andre Pascal
75775 Paris Cedex 16
France
Tel: (33-1) 4524 7964
Fax: (33-1) 4524 1890
E-mail: outi.honkatukia@oecd.org
15. Mr. Eivind Hovden
Associate Expert
Program for Research and Documentation for a Sustainable Society
(PROSUS)
Sognsveien 70
0855 Oslo
Norway
Tel: (47) 22 18 1070
Fax: (47) 22 18 2077
E-mail: eivind@prosus.nfr.no
16. Ms. Annette Hugo
Assistant Director, Sustainable Development
Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism
Private Bag X 447
Pretoria 0001
South Africa
Tel: (27 12) 310 3446
Fax: (27 12) 322 6287
E-mail: omd_ah@ozone.pwv.gov.za
17. Ms. Maria Elena Hurtado
Director of global Policy and Campaigns
Consumers International
24 Highbury Crescent
London N5 IRX
United Kingdom
Tel: (44-171) 226 6663 ext.205
Fax: (44-171) 354 0607
E-mail: mhurtado@consint.org
18. Ms. Anne Kerr
Manager, Indicators and Assessment Office
Ecosystem Science Directorate
Environment Canada
9th Floor Place Vincent Massey
351 St. Joseph Boulevard
Hull, Quebec K1A OH3
Canada
Tel: (819) 994 9570
Fax: (819) 994 5738
E-mail anne.kerr@ec.gc.ca
19. Mr. Kotaro Kodawaki
Principal Strategic Planning Manager
Strategic Environmental Planning Division
Environment Agency, Prime Minister~s Office
1-2-2 Kasumigaseki, 1 Chome, Chiyoda
Tokyo, Japan
Tel: (81) 3580 1704
Fax: (81) 3581 5951
E-mail: kotaro_kadowaki@eanet.go.jp
20. Mr. Bas de Leeuw
Sustainable Consumption and Cleaner Production Officer
UNEP Industry and Environment
United Nations Environment Programme
39-43 Quai Andre Citroen
75739 Paris Cedex 15
France
Tel: (33) 1 44 37 30 09
Fax: (33) 1 44 37 14 74
E-mail: bas.leeuw@unep.fr
21. Dr. Bedrich Moldan
Professor / Director
Charles University Environmental Center
Petrska 3
117 00 Praha 1
Czech Republic
Tel: (42-2) 2315334
Fax: (42 -2) 2315324
E-mail: bedrich.moldan@ruk.cuni.cz
22. Mr. Bruce Nordman
Research Associate
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
University of California
Berkeley CA 94720 USA
United States
Tel: (1-510) 486 7089
Fax: (1-510) 486 4673
E-mail: bnordman@LBL.gov
23. Dr. Luiz Ramalho
Head of Section "Protection of the Environment and Natural
Resources"
Carl Duisberg Foundation
Lu"tzswufer 6-9
D-10785 Berlin
Federal Republic of Germany
Tel: (49 30) 25482 (0) - 100
Fax: (49 30) 25482 - 103
E-mail: ckamlage@e11.cdg.de
24. Mr. James M. Riordan
Director, National Office of Pollution Prevention
Environment Canada
351 St. Joseph Boulevard
Hull, Quebec K1A OH3
Canada
Tel: (819) 953 33 53
Fax: (819) 953 79 70
E-mail: james.riordan@ec.gc.ca
25. Ms. Barbara Schaefer
Economist
Federal Environmental Agency
FG I 4.2 - Department of Global Environmental Issues, Environment
and Development
P.O. Box 33 00 22
D-14191 Berlin
Germany
Tel: (49) 30 8903 2149
Fax: (49) 30 8903 2920
E-mail: barbara.schaefer@uba.de
26. Ms. Carola Schmidt
Second Secretary
Permanent Mission of Germany to the United Nations
600 3rd Ave, 41st floor
New York, N.Y. 10016
Tel: (1-212) 856 62 87
Fax: (1-212) 856 62 80
E-mail: n.a.
27. Mr. Manfred Schneider
Councellor
Federal Ministry for Environment, Youth and Family
Stubenbastei 5
A-1010 Vienna
Austria
Tel: (43) 1 51522 1608
Fax: (43) 1 51522 7624
E-mail: manfreds@bmu.gv.at
28. Mr. Mahito Sei
Environmental Researcher
Strategic Environmental Planning Division
Planning and Coordination Bureau
Environment Agency, Prime Minister~s Office
1-2-2 Kasumigaseki, Chiyoda
Tokyo, Japan
Tel: (81) 3580 1704
Fax: (81) 3581 5951
E-mail: masato_sei@eanet.go.jp
29. Mr. Joachim H. Spangenberg
Program Director, Sustainable Societies Program
Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment, and Energy
Doeppersberg 19
D 42 103 Wuppertal
Germany
Tel: (49) 202 2492 128
Fax: (49) 202 2492 138
E-mail: j.spangenberg@wupperinst.org
30. Ms. Julie Thompson
Department of Public Information
United Nations
Room S-1070 B
New York, NY 10017
United States
Tel: (1-212) 963 4295
Fax: (1-212) 963 6601
E-mail: Thompson2@un.org
31. Mr. Chris Tompkins
Department of Environment, Transport, and Regions (DETR)
Environment Protection International
Floor 4, Ashdown House
123 Victoria Street
London SW1E 6DE
United Kingdom
Tel: (44) 171 276 89 42
Fax: (44) 171 276 88 61
E-mail: ctompkins@epint.demon.co.uk
32. Ms. Anna Varkonyi
Commission on Sustainable Development
in Hungary
300 Winston Dr #1812
Cliffside Park, N.J. 07010
United States
Tel: (201) 224 21 61
E-mail: herald@compuserve.com
33. Mr. Herman Verheij
Directorate of International Environmental Affairs
Ministry of Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment
Rijnstraat 8, P.O.Box 30945
2500 LG The Hague
Netherlands
Tel: (31-70) 339 48 70
Fax: (31-70) 339 13 06
Email: h.t. verheij@dimz.dgm.minvrom.nl
34. Mr. Jan Verschooten
Deputy Commissioner
Bureau Federal du Plan
Avenue des Arts 47-49
B-1000 Bruxelles
Belgium
Tel: (32-2) 507 7311
Fax: (32-2) 507 7373
E-mail: jav@plan.be
35. Ms. Minna Wilkki
Administrator
European Commission (DG XI.1)
Rue de La loi 200 (BU-5, 3/63)
B-1049 Brussels
Tel: (32) 2 299 5573
Fax: (32) 2 299 0895
E-mail: minna.wilkki@dg11.cec.be
DIVISION FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
UNITED NATIONS DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL AFFAIRS
Division for Sustainable Development (DSD)
Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA)
United Nations
2, UN Plaza, DC 2 Building
New York, N.Y. 10017
United States
36. Mr. Kenneth G. Ruffing,
Officer-in-Charge
Room DC2210
Tel: (212) 963-0902
Fax: (212) 963-4260
E-mail: ruffing@un.org
37. Mr. Lowell Flanders
Assistant Director
Institutions, National Information and Major Groups Branch
Room DC2242
Tel: (212) 963-8809
Fax: (212) 963-1267
E-mail: flanders@un.org
38. Mr. Ralph Chipman
Senior Sustainable Development Officer
Socio-Economic Policies, Finance and Technology Branch
Room DC2214
Tel: (212) 963-5504
Fax: (212) 963-4260
E-mail: chipman@un.org
39. Mr. Erik Brandsma
Task Manager, Changing Consumption and Production Patterns
Socio-Economic Policies, Finance and Technology Branch
Room DC2286
Tel: (212) 963-0013
Fax: (212) 963-4260
E-mail: brandsma@un.org
40. Mr. Lars F. Mortensen
Consultant
Room DC2260
Tel: (212) 963-2137
Fax: (212) 963-4260
E-mail: mortensenl@un.org
41. Ms. Catherine Rubbens
Associate Expert, Socio-Economic Policies, Finance and Technology
Branch
Room DC2288
Tel: (212) 963-5243
Fax: (212) 963-4260
E-mail: rubbens@un.org
42. Ms. Birgitte Bryld
Associate Expert, Institutions, National Information and Major
Groups Branch
Room DC2254
Tel: (212) 963-8400
Fax: (212) 963-1267
E-mail: bryld@un.org
NOTES:
1/ See Peter Hardi's contribution in: Moldan and Billharz,
"Sustainability Indicators - Report of the Project on Indicators of
Sustainable Development", 1997.
2/ Commission on Sustainable Development, Fourth session, (18
April - 3 May 1996), "Changing Consumption and Production Patterns", Report
of the Secretary-General, E/CN.17/1996/5.
3/ In the "menu" (or core set) of indicators as included in the
WPISD, indicators are grouped in categories covering the social, economic,
environmental, and institutional aspects of sustainable development, and
placed within a Driving Force-State-Response Framework. The indicators are
also related to chapters of Agenda 21. More information about the WPISD is
available on the internet (http://www.un.org/esa/sustdev/isd.htm).
4/ For more information about the indicator framework used,
reference is made to paragraph 3.1 of this paper.
5/ The process was launched at a Workshop in Ghent, Belgium (20-22
November 1996): "Launching the Testing of Indicators of Sustainable
Development". This Workshop was followed by a regional consultative meeting on
Environmentally Sound and Sustainable Development Indicators in Bangkok,
Thailand (26-29 November 1996), and two regional Workshops on Indicators for
Sustainable Development: for Latin America and the Caribbean Region (San
Jose', Costa Rica, 10-12 March 1997), and for Africa (Accra, Ghana, 3-6 June
1997). The fourth International Workshop on Indicators, hosted by the
Government of the Czech Republic (Prague, 19-21 January 1998), brought
countries involved in the national testing of indicators of sustainable
development together, and allowed for exchange of experience and for the
development of recommendations for improving the testing process.
6/ Report of Expert Workshop on Methodologies for Indicators of
Sustainable Development, (5-8 February 1996), Glen Cove, Long Island, New
York.
7/ Sustainable Consumption and Production, OECD, 1997. The term
eco-efficiency was coined by the Business Council for Sustainable Development
(BCSD) in "Changing Course", its report to the United Nations Conference
on Environment and Development in Rio and discussed further at the OECD
Workshop on Sustainable Consumption and Production in Rosendal, Norway, on
2-4 July 1995.
8/ Sustainable Consumption and Production: Clarifying the
Concepts, OECD, 1995.
9/ The Carnoules Declaration, Factor 10 Club, Wuppertal Institute,
1994.
10/ Factor Four - Doubling Wealth, Halving Resource Use, von
Weizsa"cker, Lovins, and Lovins, Earthscan Publications, 1997.
11/ Programme for the Further implementation of Agenda 21, adopted
by the Special Session of the General Assembly. See United Nations,
General Assembly, Nineteenth special session, Overall Review and
Appraisal of the Implementation of Agenda 21, A/S - 19/29, 27 June 1997.
12/ Sustainable Consumption and Production, OECD, 1997, op.cit.
13/ Sustainable Consumption and Production, OECD, 1997, op.cit.
14/ Critical Trends - Global Change and Sustainable Development,
UNDPCSD, DSD, 1997.
15/ Potentials and Policy Implications of Energy and Material
Efficiency Improvement, United Nations, 1997.
16/ Critical Trends - Global Change and Sustainable Development,
UNDPCSD, DSD, 1997, op.cit.
17/ World Resources 1994 - 1995, A guide to the Global Environment,
World Resources Institute, 1994.
18/ Critical Trends - Global Change and Sustainable Development,
UNDPCSD, DSD, 1997, op.cit.
19/ Critical Trends - Global Change and Sustainable Development,
UNDPCSD, DSD, 1997, op.cit.
20/ The Best of Both Worlds - Lifestyles in the 21th Century,
Ministry of Housing, Physical Planning, and the Environment, Netherlands,
1993.
21/ OECD Environmental Data Compendium 1997 - Organization for
Economic Cooperation and Development, Paris, France.
22/ Calculations based on OECD Environmental data, Compendium 1997.
23/ Changing Consumption Patterns in Human Settlements: Waste
Management, UNCHS (Habitat) Settlement Infrastructure and Environment
Programme (SIEP), 1997.
24/ Resource Flows - the material basis of industrial economies,
World Resources Institute, et. al, 1997.
25/ I.e. the Netherlands Ministry of Housing, Physical Planning,
and the Environment, and the National Institute for Environmental
Studies, Japan.
26/ Critical Trends - Global Change and Sustainable Development,
UNDPCSD, DSD, 1997, op.cit.
27/ Commission on Sustainable Development, E/CN.17/1996/5/Add.1.
28/ Comprehensive Assessment of the Freshwater Resources of the
World, World Meteorological Organization, et. al., 1997.
29/ Comprehensive Assessment of the Freshwater Resources of the
World, WMO, et. al., 1997, op.cit.
30/ Commission on Sustainable Development, E/CN.17/1996/5/Add.1.
31/ One participant of the consultative round proposed the
following indicators, in order to indicate that ground and surface water use
have different replenishment times: (I) surface water/total quantity of water
use as a percentage of annual precipitation, or (ii) annual aquifer
withdrawal as a percentage of replenishment.
32/ See the Withdrawal/Availability ratios and the discussion with
regard to water stressed countries in the "Comprehensive Assessment of the
Freshwater Resources of the World", 1997.
33/ The environment, space and living quality - time for
sustainability, Margaretha de Boer, 1995.
34/ Sustainable Consumption - A global perspective, Friends of the
Earth Netherlands, 1996.
35/ Critical Trends - Global Change and Sustainable Development,
UNDPCSD, DSD, 1997, op.cit.
36/ For underlying definitions, see World Resources (1996 - 1997),
World Resources Institute.
37/ International Institute for Sustainable Development, Unlocking
Trade Opportunities - Case Studies of Export Success from Developing
Countries, 1997.
38/ The best of both worlds - Sustainability and quality lifestyles
in the 21th Century, Ministry of Housing, Physical Planning, and the
Environment of the Netherlands, 1993.
39/ Calculations based on OECD Environmental data, Compendium 1997.
40/ China Statistical Yearbook, 1995.
41/ NCDO (Nationale Commissie voor Internationale Samenwerking en
Duurzame Ontwikkeling), "Creatieve Democratie - Kroniek van Duurzaam
Nederland", 1996.
42/ Industrial Commodity Statistics 1993 Yearbook, Production and
Consumption Statistics, United Nations, 1995.
43/ TNO, Trendanalyse Consumptie en Milieu, 1996.
44/ Many of the consumption trends discussed under other
consumption clusters, such as food, mobility, and recreation, are also
strongly affected by advertising.
45/ Factor Four - Doubling wealth, Halving Resource Use, op.cit,
and The Best of Both Worlds - Lifestyles in the 21th Century, op.cit.
46/ Driving Eco-innovation - A breakthrough discipline for
innovation and sustainability, Claude Fussler and Peter James, 1996.
47/ More details can be found in "A Changing Future for Paper",
World Business Council for Sustainable Development, 1996.
48/ In 1992, buildings in industrialized countries consumed 58 per
cent of total world buildings energy use, followed by developing countries
(22 per cent) and economies in transition (20 per cent).
49/ Potentials and Policy Implications of Energy and Material
Efficiency Improvement, UNDPCSD, DSD, 1997, op.cit.
50/ Potentials and Policy Implications of Energy and Material
Efficiency Improvement, UNDPCSD, DSD, 1997, op.cit.
51/ Potentials and Policy Implications of Energy and Material
Efficiency Improvement, UNDPCSD, DSD, 1997, op.cit.
52/ Potentials and Policy Implications of Energy and Material
Efficiency Improvement, op.cit.
53/ World Resources Institute, World Resources 1994-1995.
54/ The Best of Both Worlds - Sustainability and quality lifestyles
in the 21th Century, 1993, op.cit.
55/ Unlocking Trade Opportunities, 1997, op.cit.
56/ The Economist - A survey of travel and tourism, January 1998.
57/ Unlocking Trade Opportunities, 1997, op. cit.
58/ Unlocking Trade Opportunities, 1997, op. cit.
59/ Environmental Indicators, OECD Core Set, 1994.
60/ See Peter Hardi's contribution in: Moldan and Billharz,
"Sustainability Indicators - Report of the Project on Indicators of
Sustainable Development", 1997.
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