Development
Sustainable development
Explain why development must be sustainable.
Will development last? Suppose a country is well developed. We want that development to continue for future generations. But since the second half of the 20th century, scientists have warned that our present type and level of development cannot last. As the book's saying puts it, we did not inherit the world from our ancestors; we have borrowed it from our children.
Renewable resources can still run short. Renewable resources are refilled by nature, like crops, plants and groundwater (refilled by rain). But if we take out more than nature puts back, we overuse them. India's groundwater is under serious threat:
- in about 300 districts, the water level dropped by over 4 metres over 20 years;
- close to one-third of India already uses more groundwater than is refilled;
- if nothing changes, 60 per cent of India could be doing so within 25 years.
Overuse is worst in rich farming areas of Punjab and western U.P., the hard-rock plateaus of central and south India, some coasts, and fast-growing cities.
Non-renewable resources run out. Non-renewable resources, like crude oil, are a fixed stock that nature cannot refill. We sometimes discover new sources, which adds to the stock, but over time even these will be used up.
How long will oil last? (Table 1.7) At today's rate of extraction, the world's oil reserves would last only about 50 years more. But the situation is not the same everywhere:
- countries like India do not have enough oil of their own and must import it, so when oil prices rise, it becomes a burden for everyone;
- the USA, with low reserves (enough for about 10.5 years), tries to get oil by using its military or economic power.
Why sustainability concerns everyone. The question of sustainability raises new questions about how development should happen. Environmental damage does not stop at state or national borders, so everyone's future is linked. That is why sustainability brings together scientists, economists, philosophers and other thinkers. As one of the book's questions says, the earth has enough to meet everyone's needs, but not the greed of even one person.
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