The Challenge of Resource Depletion - Thanatia: The Destiny of the Earth's Mineral Resources - page 461

crust needs a length of time that humans cannot afford. Secondly, Man is unable
with his own tools to make a substantial difference as no technology, no matter how
far into the distant future can ultimately contravene the Second Law.
15.4.1.3 Long vs. short term thinking
The third difference between Economics and Thermodynamics is the timeframe
considered. When a raw material supply crisis occurs, the conventional economic
response is a steep price increase in the short term, investment and international
agreements in the medium and an avocation of research and technology with which
to resolve issues into the long term. But the concept of time, even the so-called
“long term” thinking of the economist, is much shorter than that considered by
practitioners of Biology, Geology or Thermodynamics.
The natural rhythms of biological and geological change with amplitudes mea-
sured in millions of years have been accelerated by Man. Fortunately, in a matter of
only a few centuries, the sun (the greatest source of the Solar System's energy), will
of its own accord, restore the natural cycles which have been consecutively damaged
in the building of civilisation. Mankind will always need food, defend itself from the
elements, reproduce, move and communicate. All of which demands the transfor-
mation of materials, energy, water and environment into artifacts. Such processes
entail an irreversible exergy loss. And if the 7-8 billion people alive today or in the
near future command more equity to reduce conflicts, this means yet further exergy
expenditures.
Therefore all physical activities are linked to irreversibility with the greater the
irreversibility, the faster the arrow of time shortens. On a finite planet, any activity,
however minor, is connected to entropic degradation through climate change, deple-
tion of non-renewable resources, or the alteration and displacement of the natural
environment. All are subject to the Second Law and, even though it may be di cult
to assess due to a lack of reliable data, one can be certain that the accounting of
such phenomena can be achieved using exergy. This is because exergy, although
di cult to calculate and not always easily interpretable, is not a mere indicator but
a physical property measurable in SI units, once a reference baseline for the planet
has been defined.
15.4.2 Understanding the complexity of the natural web
The fundamental ecological principle of connectedness first put forward by Com-
moner (1971) is that “everything is connected with everything else”. In this way,
access to natural resources such as land, water, energy and mineral resources are all
interrelated. Their loss, dissipation and degradation caused by development repre-
sent the darkest side of technological innovation. This is an irreversible course with
no net winner but with one net loser: Nature.