Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Box 9.1
The ecological footprint of Greater London
The data and trends below provide a picture of the capital's environment, to help
assess the sustainability of London. This is part of the London State of the Environment
Report for 2010. The environment is important for London. It enables the city to
function as it does by providing key ecosystem services - water, air, land and natural
resources.
What is an ecological footprint?
The ecological footprint measures the area of land needed to both:
•
provide all the resources and services consumed;
•
absorb all the waste produced.
The data on London's ecological footprint has been sourced by using the Resource
and Energy Analysis Programme (REAP) model. This model was produced by the
Stockholm Environment Institute. The calculation uses expenditure data - the higher
cost of living in London may impact on the final footprint. This means that London's
footprint may be potentially lower than reported below.
Trends on London's footprint
London's ecological footprint is 4.54 global hectares (gha) per person (2006). This
is slightly lower than the UK average of 4.64 gha per person.
Although London's footprint is lower than the UK average, the high consumption
of resources means it is just under twice the size of the global average footprint of
2.6 gha per person (Global Footprint Network). When divided equally between the
world population, it is 2.5 times bigger than the bio-capacity of the land (1.8 gha
per person), which is the area of land available to supply natural resources.
The total ecological footprint for London in global hectares is over 34 million. This
amounts to an area over 200 times the city itself.
The affluent City of London, Kensington and Chelsea, Westminster and Richmond
upon Thames have the highest footprints in London - they are all over 5 gha per
person.
The less affluent Barking and Dagenham, Tower Hamlets and Newham have the
lowest ecological footprints in London, along with Hackney, Southwark and Brent.
The main contributors to the ecological footprint in London are:
•
Housing - mainly electricity and fuel use.
•
Food - fruit and vegetables, and catering services.
London's ecological footprint is higher than the UK average for housing, food and
private services.
The capital's footprint is lower than the UK average for transport. This could be
due to the higher cost of living in London, compared with the rest of the UK, plus
the high use of public transport in London, and so the fewer miles that people drive.
The percentage of the ecological footprint made up by consumer items, public
services and capital investments is the same for London and the UK.
Source: adapted from Environment Agency, available at:
www.environmentagency.gov.uk/
