The Goal: Sustainable Development

The problems listed under the immediately preceeding Problem:Unsustainability article cannot continue indefinietly without affecting the health of the biosphere and the ability of the Earth (or individual regions) to support human life and current life-styles. In some instances, the biosphere is already badly degraded-- for example, the coalfield area of Europe, and at a global level, the resilience of the ozone layer in the atmosphere.

Sustainability is about reaching a state where global ecosystems are capable of absorbing human impact without deterioration. for example, in relation to anthropogenic (i.e. human-caused) green house gas emissions, the scientific consensus suggests that a reduction of 60% worldwide is necessary to avoid desstabilising climate and oceans.

Put more simply, sustainability is about maintaining the health of the biosphere and husbaning key resources of air, water, land and minerals.

There are two valid perspectives on the significance of sustainability. One perspective is human-centerd: we must be kind to the Earth so that the Earth s kind to us. The other is nature-centerd: we must respect the Earth because the Earth and its creatures have as much right to exist as we. The former is sometimes referred to as "pale green", while the latter is called "deep green". At one time these two orientations might have led to very different actions. Now, however, there is widespread recognition that homo sapiens is not separate from nature, but an integral part of the natural world, so that the two views almost become one: the health of the Biosphere and the health of humanity are indivisible.

Whereas sustainability is about the ecosphere, "sustainable development" is explicitly about the human condition, now and in the future. The current Secretary of State for the Environment, John Gummer, describes it prosaically as "not cheating on our children".

The definition popularized by the Brundtland Commission (Brundtland, 1987) was: Development that meets the needs of today without compromising the ability of future generations to satisfy their needs.

In this context the notion of "development" is broader than simply "economic growth" or gross national product. Rather it implies improvement to:
* the quality of life, health and nutritional status
* equity in access to resources and services
* per capita income
* perceived quality of the human environment

Sustainable development is therefore about maintaining and enhancing the quality of human life-- social, economic and environmental-- while living within the carrying capacity of supporting ecosystems and the resource base (Barton et al., 1995). Interpreting such a grand concept into practice is far from simple. It can be argued that in order for development to qualify as sustainable three criteria have to be satisfied:
* social: are human needs being met?
* environmental: are environmental limits respected?
* economic: is it viable?

To help explain what such criteria mean in practice, consider the case of a proposed out-of-town retail center. While it clearly satisfies the economic test, it is doubtful or equivocal in relation to the social need criterion because, while car users benefit from extra retailing choice, non-car users do not, and the traditional town center's viability and vitality may be threatened, further curtailing the options of those who rely on it or value it. In relation to environmental impact, the out-of-town center generates extra car travel and induces higher car dependence, increasing energy use and exacerbating pollution levels. So on this analysis the proposal is not a "sustainable development" and should be rejected. Conversely, the regeneration of the town center probably satisfies the social and environmental criteria. The town center's economic viability though may depend quite largely on refusal of the cheaper out-of-town option.

The environmental impacts may be more complex than the example above. For instance the location of housing development may affect energy use by at least 100%, and thus increase greenhouse emissions, pollute the air and denude fossil fuel reserves, while at the same time leading to the demand for extra road construction which might damage local habitats, increased noise levels and visual intrusion and require extra quarrying in sensitive landscapes.

 

Articles under this Sustainable Development topic have been lifted from Part IV- Planning for Sustainability by Hugh Barton, from the book: Investigating Town Planning- Creating Perspectives and Agendas, edited by Clara Greed.