Upper Parramatta River Catchment Education Resource Kit, 2002

Information Sheet (environmental issues)

E2 - Ecologically Sustainable Development

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1. Description

Ecologically Sustainable Development (ESD)is generally defined as ‘development that improves the quality of life, both now and forever, in a way that maintains the ecological processes on which life depends’ (National Strategy for Ecologically Sustainable Development, 1992).

ESD is based upon the following ideals:

a) The precautionary principle - namely, that if there are threats of serious or irreversible damage, lack of full scientific certainty should not be used as a reason for postponing measures to prevent environmental degradation.

b) Inter-generational equity - namely, that the present generation should ensure that the health, diversity and productivity of the environment is maintained or enhanced for the benefit of future generations.

c) Conservation of biological diversity and ecological integrity.

d) Improved valuation and pricing of environmental resources. (Section 6(2) - Protection of

Environment Administration Act 1991).

Meeting these ideals poses a major challenge to people everywhere. It requires all levels of society, government, business and the general community, to change priorities to think and act in terms of ecological sustainability.

The ec

2. The Problem

ological consequences of ozone depletion, climate change, soil degradation, deforestation, loss of biodiversity, and air, water and land pollution threaten our common future. Sustainable living for all involves the efficient and equitable use of resources and the proper management of pollution and waste. It can only be achieved through the cooperation and support of people at the local, national and global level.

Individuals rarely think of the resources consumed in supplying consumer goods (TVs, CDs, soft drinks, etc). As an example consider the ‘life-cycle’ of the humble potato chip (including possible environmental impacts):

·Potatoes are grown on farms where the native vegetation has been removed (loss of biodiversity, rising water table, salinity).

·The field is ploughed and planted, exposing the soil surface to wind and rain, using a diesel powered tractor (soil erosion, greenhouse gas emissions).

·The tractor was produced at a factory powered by electricity. This electricity was produced by burning coal at a power station (greenhouse gases), which is situated next door to a 500 metre deep, 1 km long and 250 m wide open cut coal mine (saline water discharge into fresh water streams from the coal mine).

·The diesel powering the tractor was manufactured at an oil refinery after being pumped out of an oil well in the middle of the ocean (greenhouse gas, other gas emissions, oil spills into ocean). The diesel was brought to the farm in a tanker truck (greenhouse gas).

·The farmer used manufactured fertilisers. One of the raw materials for the fertiliser, phosphate ore, comes from an open cut mine in the Middle East. At the fertiliser factory, it is mixed with acid to make superphosphate (various gaseous emissions, discharge of liquid wastes). This is then taken by truck to the farm (greenhouse gas).

·With their former habitat gone, the number of animals which once lived in the area of the farm are now greatly reduced.

·Since there are few insect predators left in the area, the farmer has to regularly spray insecticides on the crop (killing off all insects in the area, including the beneficial ones). The insecticide comes from a chemical factory, where various chemicals are manufactured, mixed and stored (various air and liquid emissions). It is also transported to the farm by truck (greenhouse gases).

·The crop needs to be irrigated, so the farmer draws water from a nearby river. The farmer is one of many irrigators also using the river (large scale water usage leading to the loss of the river’s natural flow, fertiliser and pesticide runoff into the river, localised raising of the water table leading to salinity)

·The potatoes are harvested by tractor, again disturbing the ground surface (leading to erosion) and using diesel (greenhouse gases), washed (more water), packed and transported by refrigerated truck (greenhouse and ozone depleting gases) to the processing plant.

·At the factory the potatoes are skinned, cut, cooked and packed in plastic bags (producing solid, liquid and gaseous waste).The plastic bags are then packed in recycled cardboard boxes (diesel for trucks to collect paper for recycling, power for recycling plant, liquid waste from recycling plant, diesel for transport to box factory, power for box factory, transport to chip factory).

·The boxes of chips are then transported to the shop (greenhouse gases) where people buy them and throw the plastic chip packet (hopefully) in the bin! A garbage truck then picks up the contents of the bin and takes it to the tip (greenhouse gases).

This is (approximately) the life-cycle of a potato chip. Imagine the life cycle of a television set or a pair of joggers!

The amount of resources consumed in providing us with our present lifestyle is not sustainable in the long term, particularly as 20% of the worlds population is presently consuming 80% of the world’s resources.

2. Management Solutions

Sustainable development is not just an option but an imperative, in both environmental and economic terms. It requires a major shift in priorities for governments and people, involving the full integration of environmental and economic considerations into policies and decision making in every sphere of activity.

Stormwater Management in the Upper Parramatta River Catchment is based on ecologically

sustainable development (ESD) principles. Such principles are part of:

· each Council’s Charter in accordance with section 8(1) of the Local Government Act;

· the Corporate Environmental Policy of the Roads and Traffic Authority;

· the ESD Policy Statement and Environment Plan of Sydney Water Corporation; and

· the Catchment Management Strategy of the Upper Parramatta River Catchment Trust.

ESD requires the effective integration of environmental and economic considerations in the processes of decision-making.

3. What can you do?

All individuals have a role to play in achieving ecologically sustainable development. All aspects of modern life use resources and affect the natural world; growing, transporting, selling and storing food; building and use of housing; where we work and what we do there; how we spend our recreation time. We all need to think about how our actions affect the present day environment, and how this affects the state of the planet that future generations will inherit from us. Thinking about the consequences of our everyday choices on the next generations of our own families is a good starting point for everyone. Perhaps this will make everyone think about the implications of their lifestyles, and alter them accordingly.