8.2 Resource use in society

what is renewable natural capital

can be generated and/or replaced as fast as it is being used, it includes living species and ecosystems that use solar energy and photosynthesis, it also includes non-living items, such as groundwater and the ozone layer

what is non-renewable natural capital

it is either irreplaceable or only replaced over geological timescales

is use of renewable natural capital always sustainable

no

what does natural capital provide

goods and services that have value, this value may be aesthetic, cultural, economic, environmental, ethical, intrinsic, social, spiritual, or technological

what does capital include

natural resources that have value to us such as trees, soil, water, natural resources that provide services to support life such as flood and erosion protection, processes such as photosynthesis that provide oxygen for life forms to respire, the water cycle or other processes that maintain healthy ecosystems

what does renewable natural capital include

living species and ecosystems that use solar energy and photosynthesis, non-living items such as groundwater and the ozone layer

when can renewable natural capital run out

if the standing stock is harvested unsustainably

what do technocentrists believe about the dynamic nature of natural capital

new discoveries will provide new solutions to old problems for example, hydrogen fuel cells replacing hydrocarbon fuels, or harvesting algae as a food source

what are two examples of natural capital that have changed in value over time

cork forests, lithium

how has the value of cork forests changed over time

cork used to be essential to seal wine bottles but now plastic corks, plastic lids etc. are replacing cork

how has the value of lithium changed over time

thirty years ago, lithium was not used much as a resource, now it is used in rechargeable batteries for electric devices, the annual production of lithium is not enough if we wish to replace cars with petrol engines

what are some examples of use valuation

economic price of marketable goods, ecological functions such as water storage, recreational functions such as tourism

what are some examples of non-use valuation

if it has intrinsic value, if there are future uses that we do not know yet, if it has value by existing for future generations

what does the socio-economic environmental assessment (SEEA) do

try to value the environment and track resource depletion

how many people per month does walmart bring out of poverty in China

38000