Posted on 15 January
2011 - Hong Kong, China - A new WWF report
shows that Hong Kong people are living well
beyond the Earth’s limits, consuming over
two times our planet's capacity to sustain
us.
According to the Hong
Kong Ecological Footprint Report 2010, if
everyone in the world lived a similar lifestyle
to that of Hong Kong people, we would need
the equivalent resources of 2.2 Earths.
Hong Kong has the 45th largest Ecological
Footprint per person compared to 150 countries
with populations larger than 1 million people
in 2007.
Ecological Footprint
The Ecological Footprint measures the extent
of human demand for the regenerative capacity
of the biosphere. Both quantities are expressed
in units of global hectares (gha). Hong
Kong has an average per person Ecological
Footprint of 4.0 gha, which is more than
double the 1.8 gha of biocapacity - the
area actually available to produce resources
and absorb CO2 - available per person globally.
Reliance on imports,
high carbon footprint
Hong Kong’s excessive
reliance on imported resources such as crops,
meat, seafood and timber makes it most vulnerable
to a changing world.
“While it is unrealistic
to think that Hong Kong could ever be self-sufficient
in terms of renewable natural resources,
Hong Kong has become excessively reliant
on the natural resources of the rest of
the planet,” notes Dr Andy Cornish, Director,
Conservation at WWF-Hong Kong.
“This reliance has not
caused Hong Kong significant difficulties
so far, but the increasing global ecological
overshoot will inevitably mean more global
competition for natural resources and is
changing the rules of the game – rules that
Hong Kong must adapt to. Extreme weather
events will be more common as the climate
changes, making it even more urgent that
we reduce our excessive reliance on imported
resources.”
Hong Kong’s carbon Footprint
is significant, representing 60 percent
of its total Ecological Footprint. While
Hong Kong’s per person carbon Footprint
is excessive, having grown 24 times since
1962, in terms of proportion, CO2 emissions
released in Hong Kong account for only 26
percent of the total carbon Footprint. The
remaining 74 percent is embodied in imports,
meaning that CO2 is emitted elsewhere to
supply imports to Hong Kong.
“Hong Kong will have
to seriously reduce its carbon Footprint
to bring its overall Ecological Footprint
down, and that will require a holistic and
comprehensive climate and energy strategy,”
said Dr Cornish.
Seafood, timber from
unsustainable sources
In addition, Hong Kong
is still consuming seafood and timber products
which are mostly from unsustainable sources,
although a massive recent increase in Forest
Stewardship Council paper providers is evidence
of increasing demand for sustainable products.
Increases in the consumption of beef per
person are less positive, where the beef
consumption per person has surged in recent
years, contributing to the emission of greenhouse
gases.
"We are in a new
era where humanity’s growing Ecological
Footprint is outpacing what nature is able
to renew. In such times of global overshoot,
cities and countries that maintain high
levels of resource dependence are putting
their own economies severely at risk,"
said Global Footprint Network President
Mathis Wackernagel.
"As a region particularly
reliant on the ecological health of the
rest of the world, Hong Kong stands to benefit
from minimizing its resource dependence.
The more it can provide a high quality of
life for its residents on a smaller Ecological
Footprint, Hong Kong will not only address
global risks, but more directly, it will
make its economy more resilient facing the
future," he added.
Hong Kong businesses
and individuals need to take action
WWF calls for immediate
actions from Hong Kong businesses and individuals.
“Consumers can demand that the seafood and
timber products we consume are produced
sustainably. In this way we can leverage
Hong Kong’s buying power and act as a regional
catalyst to drive natural resource producers
towards sustainability. In turn, this will
create increased and reliable sources of
sustainable products supply for Hong Kong,”
concluded Dr Cornish.
“The potential impacts
of climate change overseas to the resources
Hong Kong imports provide additional self-interest
incentives to increase efficiency, reduce
wastage and source sustainably. It is imperative
to do so sooner rather than later,” he continued.
Hong Kong Eco-footprint
Report and The Living Planet Report
The Hong Kong Ecological
Footprint Report 2010 and WWF's flagship
publication, The Living Planet Report, is
produced in collaboration with Global Footprint
Network. Both provide an invaluable benchmark
to track our shift in consumption and the
size of our Ecological Footprint. WWF will
produces the reports every two years, from
which trends can be identified and actions
proposed.
Earth Hour 2011
The release of the Hong
Kong Ecological Footprint Report 2010 also
marks the launch of Earth Hour 2011, a global
campaign that aims to show governments,
individuals and businesses that it is possible
for everyone to take positive actions to
conserve our living planet.
Earth Hour 2011, the
global lights off campaign, will be held
on 26 March, 8:30PM. This year WWF is calling
on individual citizens to take the future
into their own hands by going beyond the
hour, beyond climate and to focus on living
for a sustainable future. In 2010, hundreds
of millions of people from 4,600 cities
across 7 continents turned off their lights
for one hour in a show of solidarity for
the future of our planet. WWF-Hong Kong
invites everyone to join Earth Hour and
expects at least 2.5 million participants
in Hong Kong.
Details of each action
over the next two months leading up to the
Earth Hour day will be available at wwf.org.hk/earthhour.
