Ecological Footprint as a tool for local sustainability: The municipality of Piacenza (Italy) as a case study

Scotti, Marco; Bondavalli, Cristina; Bodini, Antonio

doi:10.1016/j.eiar.2008.07.001

Title: Ecological Footprint as a tool for local sustainability: The municipality of Piacenza (Italy) as a case study

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Abstract

The Ecological Footprint is a synthetic index useful to assess sustainability of anthropic systems. Its operational use, however, has been hampered by some difficulties, especially at a local scale. Being conceived as a measure of the biologically productive area requested to sustain individual consumptions in a human community, it leaves out the impacts associated to economic activities. Accordingly, the index cannot contribute much to define local policies, whose target are economic activities, and only marginally affect citizens' behaviour. Ecological Footprint calculation scheme can be modified to include the depletion of natural capital due to local activities such as industry, agriculture, tertiary sector, transport, waste and water management. We provide here an approach which takes into account these different aspects, while we discuss its application to a municipal area as a case study.

Authors:

Scotti, Marco ^[1]; Bondavalli, Cristina ^[1]; Bodini, Antonio ^[1]

Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Parma, Viale Usberti 11/A, 43100 Parma (Italy)

Publication Date:: Thu Jan 15 00:00:00 EST 2009

OSTI Identifier:: 21180405

Resource Type:: Journal Article

Journal Name:: Environmental Impact Assessment Review

Additional Journal Information:: Journal Volume: 29; Journal Issue: 1; Other Information: DOI: 10.1016/j.eiar.2008.07.001; PII: S0195-9255(08)00094-2; Copyright (c) 2008 Elsevier Science B.V., Amsterdam, The Netherlands, All rights reserved; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); Journal ID: ISSN 0195-9255

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

Subject:: 54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES; AGRICULTURE; CAPITAL; COMMUNITIES; ECOLOGY; ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS; ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION; ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY; INDUSTRY; ITALY; WASTES

Citation Formats


                    Scotti, Marco, Bondavalli, Cristina, and Bodini, Antonio. Ecological Footprint as a tool for local sustainability: The municipality of Piacenza (Italy) as a case study.  United States: N. p., 2009. 
        Web.  doi:10.1016/j.eiar.2008.07.001.

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                    Scotti, Marco, Bondavalli, Cristina, & Bodini, Antonio. Ecological Footprint as a tool for local sustainability: The municipality of Piacenza (Italy) as a case study.  United States.  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eiar.2008.07.001

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                    Scotti, Marco, Bondavalli, Cristina, and Bodini, Antonio. 2009.  
        "Ecological Footprint as a tool for local sustainability: The municipality of Piacenza (Italy) as a case study".  United States.  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eiar.2008.07.001.

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@article{osti_21180405,

  title        = {Ecological Footprint as a tool for local sustainability: The municipality of Piacenza (Italy) as a case study},

  author       = {Scotti, Marco and Bondavalli, Cristina and Bodini, Antonio},

  abstractNote = {The Ecological Footprint is a synthetic index useful to assess sustainability of anthropic systems. Its operational use, however, has been hampered by some difficulties, especially at a local scale. Being conceived as a measure of the biologically productive area requested to sustain individual consumptions in a human community, it leaves out the impacts associated to economic activities. Accordingly, the index cannot contribute much to define local policies, whose target are economic activities, and only marginally affect citizens' behaviour. Ecological Footprint calculation scheme can be modified to include the depletion of natural capital due to local activities such as industry, agriculture, tertiary sector, transport, waste and water management. We provide here an approach which takes into account these different aspects, while we discuss its application to a municipal area as a case study.},

  doi          = {10.1016/j.eiar.2008.07.001},

  url          = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/21180405},
  journal      = {Environmental Impact Assessment Review},

  issn         = {0195-9255},

  number       = 1,

  volume       = 29,

  place        = {United States},

  year         = {Thu Jan 15 00:00:00 EST 2009},

  month        = {Thu Jan 15 00:00:00 EST 2009}

}

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