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— Sustainability —
"Sustainability" means
we benefit from resources without compromising the
ability of future generations to benefit from them.
The Natural Step © Framework for Sustainability can help us understand
that concept even further, providing insight for achieiving balance in our
resource use.
Refer to: System Principles | System
Conditions | Life
Requirements Checklist
| System
Principles |
1. Nothing
disappears.
CONCEPT: All
the matter that was on earth millions
of years ago is still here. Anything
we create stays here. You can't destroy
matter or energy only change its
composition or form. You never really
throw anything "away," you
just put it somewhere else.
EXAMPLES: Burn
fossil fuels and they turn into visible
and invisible gas. Some of those
gases are useful, except in excess
(carbon dioxide). Others are neutral
(water vapor), but some are toxic
(sulphur dioxide). |
2. Everything
spreads.
CONCEPT: Matter
and energy like to break up into
smaller units. Everything tends to
disperse. Nature is extremely efficient,
if it takes less energy to come apart
than stay together, matter will disaggregate
into its smallest pieces and be diluted.
EXAMPLES: Organic
matter decays, soil erodes, dye in
water disperses and dioxin can be
found throughout the Arctic. |
3. There
is value in order.
CONCEPT: We
actually consume the order, structure
and concentration of something, not
all of its molecules. Molecules have
higher value to humans when they
are consolidated into "stuff."
EXAMPLE: Think
of a tree as it turns into sawdust. |
4. Plants
create structure and order from the sun's
energy.
CONCEPT: Nature
operates cyclically, things are designed
to come apart to become building
blocks for new matter. But in nature,
only the sun and photosynthesis can
reconsolidate living material through
energy.
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| System
Conditions |
1. Balance
lithosphere extraction with reabsorption
capabilities
CONCEPT: You
can't have a sustainable life system
if you consistently put substances
from the earth's crust into the biosphere
and atmosphere faster than nature
can dilute, reabsorb, neutralize
or disperse them. Nature's surface
systems are not set up to accept
large amounts of these "new" substances.
SMART
RESPONSE: Fossil
fuels, plutonium, lead, mercury,
asbestos. Too much or too free can
cause problems. |
2. Balance
substance production and accumulation with
reabsorption capabilities.
CONCEPT: Some
human made substances are spreading
all over the place. We can't stop
them and nature can't absorb, dilute,
neutralize or break them down before
they do harm.
EXAMPLES: Dioxin,
DDT, nuclear waste, PCB, freon, chlorofluorocarbons,
pesticides, etc.
SMART
RESPONSE: Reduce
dependence on persistent human made
compounds. |
3. Maintain
quality and quantity of biodiversity & resource
productivity.
CONCEPT: Using
resources aggressively depletes the
ability of the land or resource to
renew itself. Its ability to convert
wastes to resources is diminished.
Habitat dependent species decline
when those habitats decline.
EXAMPLES: Developments
in winter range. Using more groundwater
than is being replaced.
SMART
RESPONSE: Use
resources with less waste. Maintain
balance between consumption and renewal.
Maintain spectrum of biodiversity. |
4. Meet
needs of all humans fairly and efficiently.
CONCEPT: Sustainability
means we use resources more efficiently
and generate less waste. Fairness
is necessary for social and economic
stability. More population puts more
pressure on resources; it's going
to get harder.
EXAMPLES: To
have 5% of civilization use 30% of
the resources isn't fair. Some nations
can't feed themselves because of
land converted from family farms
to monoculture agribusiness. |
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