Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
sustainability of our society. By almost all criteria, the Australian environ-
ment continues to degrade. Given that the natural environment provides
the ecological and material basis for human existence, we may be compro-
mising the welfare of future generations.
It is noteworthy that the ESD objectives use a combination of economic,
social and ecological criteria. Climate change, energy, water and the health of
natural ecosystems loom as major environmental issues. Human health and
well-being, equity and peace, and labour force and work are significant
social issues impacting on sustainability. Land use, economic systems, trans-
port and urban design are major social and ecological issues. These will all
be addressed in the following chapters.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) has recognised the interrela-
tionships between the economic, social and environmental aspects of life.
Realising the need to go beyond Gross Domestic Product (GDP) as a
measure of human progress, it produced a suite of indicators in its 2002
publication
(ABS 2002). These suggest
progress in some areas of Australian life and regress in others.
Measuring Australia's Progress
While
'progress' is by no means synonymous with 'sustainability', it is useful to
examine these indicators to help us along the road to sustainability.
On almost every count, Australia is faring well economically. National
wealth grew during the 1990s and real wealth per person grew modestly, by 1
per cent a year. Real income per head grew more strongly. Incomes of the less
well off (though not the poorest) grew by 5 per cent in the three years to
1997-98, as did those of better-off groups.
Australia's natural environment
But how is Australia faring environmentally? According to
Australia State of
the Environment 2001
(Australian SoE Committee 2001), there are some
environmental good news stories. For instance, urban air quality has gener-
ally improved; sulphur dioxide emissions have decreased substantially; fewer
turtles are being caught as by-catch; there is better storm-water manage-
ment; another 17.6 million hectares of marine areas are now protected since
1996; biodiversity can be better protected thanks to passage of the
Environ-
mental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act
energy
efficiency in residences has improved; and domestic water use per capita
declined for most urban centres during the 1990s because of water pricing,
1999 (EPBC Act);
