ECOLOGICAL FOOTPRINT Beyond Recycling 2010

NATURE??

SILICA BORON COPPER GOLD OIL LEAD COAL

NATURE??

LEATHER OIL COAL LATEX COTTON

NATURE??

OIL RUBBER BAUXITE ORE IRON

Its all from nature EVERYTHING we use comes from, and is returned to nature… …but how much can the Earth handle?

Definition: ecological footprint The amount of productive land needed to produce all of the things we use and all of the waste we create

What exactly is an ecological footprint? It is the IMPRINT we leave on the Earth when we use land for: -Food -Energy -Waste -Water -Transportation

What would be included in your ecological footprint?

So, how much land is there?? Earth 51 billion hectares

What is a hectare (ha)? Unit of measurement Commonly used for measuring land 100m x 100m 2.47 acres Approximately one official soccer field

Earth 51 billion hectares

PARTIAL LAND

PRODUCTIVE

Let’s Do the Math… 51 billion hectares LAND: 18% of that is productive land How many hectares of productive land? WATER: 5% of that is productive water How many hectares of productive water?

Not a whole lot of room! There are over 6 BILLION PEOPLE who live on the Earth That means there’s only 1.9 hectares available for each of us!!

- no car - no water - no electricity - live off the land - no car - no electricity - markets for food - well for water - two cars - 45 lights and 3 TVs - heated swimming pool - grocery stores - two plane trips a year - weekly garbage pickup Every lifestyle has a different footprint

Not all Footprints are the same… Every lifestyle has a different footprint, and on average, so does every country… Available 1.9 ha Canada 8.8 ha India 0.5 ha United States 10 HA

In Canada, our footprint is That means we are using more land than is available to sustain our lifestyles 8.8 hectares per person

Canada What if everyone lived as we do?

What if?

The planet mapped by footprint size