Perilous
Times
Global Consumption of Natural Resources to Triple by 2050
From correspondents in the United Nations
From: AFP
May 13, 2011 5:51AM
GLOBAL consumption of natural resources could triple to 127
billion tonnes a year by 2050 unless consumer nations take drastic
steps, the United Nations warns.
A UN environment panel said the world cannot sustain the tearaway
rate of use of minerals, ores and fossil and plant fuels. It
called on governments to "decouple" economic growth from the rate
of natural resource consumption.
With the world population expected to hit 9.3 billion by 2050 and
developing nations becoming more prosperous, the report said: "The
prospect of much higher resource consumption levels is far beyond
what is likely sustainable."
The UN Environment Program (UNEP) panel said the world is already
running out of cheap and quality sources of some essential
materials such as oil, copper and gold, which in turn need rising
volumes of fuel and water to produce.
It said governments must find ways to do more with less, at a
faster rate than economic growth - the notion of "decoupling".
Currently people in rich nations consume an average of 16 tonnes
of minerals, ores, fossil fuels and biomass - fuels and other
products from plants - per year. In some wealthy countries the
figure rises to 40 tonnes.
In India, however, the average person only consumes four tonnes
per year, the report said.
The panel said there has to be a major rethink of resource use and
"massive investment" in technological, financial and social
innovation to at least freeze consumption levels in wealthy
countries.
"People believe that environmental 'bads' are the price we must
pay for economic 'goods'. However, we cannot and need not continue
to act as if this trade-off is inevitable," said UNEP executive
director Achim Steiner.