Chapter 3
Biocapacity Accounting
Abstract The focus of this chapter is on the biocapacity side of Ecological Footprint and biocapacity accounting. This is based on measuring natural capital for a
land-based metric. Global hectares are the unit for establishing comparable portions
of land around the world that support humanity’s consumption. This represents the
resource base (natural capital) that supports human life and activities. It can be
characterised as ‘carrying capacity’ because it poses an environmental limit to
human consumption. In this way, biocapacity is a fundamental part of the Ecological
Footprint and biocapacity accounting. When the Ecological Footprint is set against
biocapacity, a full picture of the environmental situation can be presented at different
scales. Biocapacity acts like a ‘measuring stick’ for consumption and, thereby,
performs a vital function in the accounts. This chapter addresses biocapacity as
entailing production and, therefore, as a resource base for humanity. Biocapacity is
what sets the Ecological Footprint apart from other performance indicators in that it
provides a baseline for comparison, from where performance and sustainability can
be assessed and monitored.
Keywords Carrying capacity · Natural capital · Resource base · Land-based
metrics · Sustainability · Performance evaluation · Assessment and monitoring ·
Ecosystem services · Ecological overshoot
The focus of this chapter is on the biocapacity side of the Ecological Footprint and
biocapacity accounting. This is based on measuring natural capital for a land-based
metric. Global hectares are the unit for establishing comparable portions of land
around the world that support humanity’s consumption. This represents the resource
base (natural capital) that supports human life and activities. It can be characterised
as the ‘carrying capacity’ because it poses an environmental limit to human consumption. In this way, biocapacity is a fundamental part of the Ecological Footprint
and biocapacity accounting. When the Ecological Footprint is set against
biocapacity, a full picture of the environmental situation can be presented and
interpreted at different scales (e.g., Wackernagel 2014). Biocapacity acts like a
© The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021
M. J. Thornbush, The Ecological Footprint as a Sustainability Metric,
SpringerBriefs in Environmental Science,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-62666-2_3
41
Biocapacity Accounting
Abstract The focus of this chapter is on the biocapacity side of Ecological Footprint and biocapacity accounting. This is based on measuring natural capital for a
land-based metric. Global hectares are the unit for establishing comparable portions
of land around the world that support humanity’s consumption. This represents the
resource base (natural capital) that supports human life and activities. It can be
characterised as ‘carrying capacity’ because it poses an environmental limit to
human consumption. In this way, biocapacity is a fundamental part of the Ecological
Footprint and biocapacity accounting. When the Ecological Footprint is set against
biocapacity, a full picture of the environmental situation can be presented at different
scales. Biocapacity acts like a ‘measuring stick’ for consumption and, thereby,
performs a vital function in the accounts. This chapter addresses biocapacity as
entailing production and, therefore, as a resource base for humanity. Biocapacity is
what sets the Ecological Footprint apart from other performance indicators in that it
provides a baseline for comparison, from where performance and sustainability can
be assessed and monitored.
Keywords Carrying capacity · Natural capital · Resource base · Land-based
metrics · Sustainability · Performance evaluation · Assessment and monitoring ·
Ecosystem services · Ecological overshoot
The focus of this chapter is on the biocapacity side of the Ecological Footprint and
biocapacity accounting. This is based on measuring natural capital for a land-based
metric. Global hectares are the unit for establishing comparable portions of land
around the world that support humanity’s consumption. This represents the resource
base (natural capital) that supports human life and activities. It can be characterised
as the ‘carrying capacity’ because it poses an environmental limit to human consumption. In this way, biocapacity is a fundamental part of the Ecological Footprint
and biocapacity accounting. When the Ecological Footprint is set against
biocapacity, a full picture of the environmental situation can be presented and
interpreted at different scales (e.g., Wackernagel 2014). Biocapacity acts like a
© The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021
M. J. Thornbush, The Ecological Footprint as a Sustainability Metric,
SpringerBriefs in Environmental Science,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-62666-2_3
41