Chapter 5
Understanding the Complementarities
of Environmental Footprints
and Planetary Boundaries
Abstract While in recent years both environmental footprints and planetary boundaries have gained tremendous popularity throughout the ecological and environmental sciences, their relationship remains largely unexplored. By investigating the
roots and developments of environmental footprints and planetary boundaries, this
chapter challenges the isolation of the two research fields and provides novel insights
into the complementary use of them. Our analysis demonstrates that knowledge
of planetary boundaries improves the policy relevance of environmental footprints
by providing a set of consensus-based estimates of the regenerative and absorptive
capacity at the global scale and, in reverse, that the planetary boundaries framework
(PBF) benefits from well-grounded footprint models which allow for more accurate
and reliable estimates of human pressure or impact on the planet’s environment. A
framework for integration of environmental footprints and planetary boundaries is
thus proposed, which lays the foundation for evolving environmental impact assessment to environmental sustainability assessment aimed at measuring the sustainability gap between current magnitudes of human activities and associated capacity
thresholds. This chapter also proposes a research agenda that will further scientific
discussions on how to set practical and tangible policy targets for adaptation and
mitigation of worldwide environmental unsustainability.
Keywords Environmental footprints · Planetary boundaries · Environmental
sustainability assessment (ESA) · Footprint–boundary (F–B) ESA framework ·
Complementarities · Research agenda
5.1 Introduction
A central challenge for sustainability is how to meet human needs while preserving
our planet as a pleasant place for living and as a source of welfare (Kates et al. 2001;
Kratena 2004). A necessary, though not sufficient, step in achieving this goal is
the identification and measurement of carrying capacity—the maximum persistently
supportable load that the environment can offer without impairing the functional
integrity of ecosystems (Catton 1986; Rees 1996). Attempts have been made to
© The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021
K. Fang, Environmental Footprints,
SpringerBriefs in Environmental Science,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-61018-0_5
69
Understanding the Complementarities
of Environmental Footprints
and Planetary Boundaries
Abstract While in recent years both environmental footprints and planetary boundaries have gained tremendous popularity throughout the ecological and environmental sciences, their relationship remains largely unexplored. By investigating the
roots and developments of environmental footprints and planetary boundaries, this
chapter challenges the isolation of the two research fields and provides novel insights
into the complementary use of them. Our analysis demonstrates that knowledge
of planetary boundaries improves the policy relevance of environmental footprints
by providing a set of consensus-based estimates of the regenerative and absorptive
capacity at the global scale and, in reverse, that the planetary boundaries framework
(PBF) benefits from well-grounded footprint models which allow for more accurate
and reliable estimates of human pressure or impact on the planet’s environment. A
framework for integration of environmental footprints and planetary boundaries is
thus proposed, which lays the foundation for evolving environmental impact assessment to environmental sustainability assessment aimed at measuring the sustainability gap between current magnitudes of human activities and associated capacity
thresholds. This chapter also proposes a research agenda that will further scientific
discussions on how to set practical and tangible policy targets for adaptation and
mitigation of worldwide environmental unsustainability.
Keywords Environmental footprints · Planetary boundaries · Environmental
sustainability assessment (ESA) · Footprint–boundary (F–B) ESA framework ·
Complementarities · Research agenda
5.1 Introduction
A central challenge for sustainability is how to meet human needs while preserving
our planet as a pleasant place for living and as a source of welfare (Kates et al. 2001;
Kratena 2004). A necessary, though not sufficient, step in achieving this goal is
the identification and measurement of carrying capacity—the maximum persistently
supportable load that the environment can offer without impairing the functional
integrity of ecosystems (Catton 1986; Rees 1996). Attempts have been made to
© The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021
K. Fang, Environmental Footprints,
SpringerBriefs in Environmental Science,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-61018-0_5
69