972. Global Resource Use Trends and Outlook

The world is facing a triple planetary crisis - climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution. On March 1, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) released its Global Resource Outlook 2024, calling for a fundamental shift in our approach to resource consumption to foster a sustainable environment and society.

The extraction and processing of resources such as fossil fuels, mineral resources, non-metallic minerals and biomass account for more than 55% of greenhouse gas emissions and 40% of particulate-matter-related health impacts. When land use change is taken into account, the climate impact of resource use exceeds 60%, with biomass use having the largest impact (28%), followed by fossil fuel use (18%) and non-metallic mineral and metal use (17% combined). Biomass resource use (crops and forests) is responsible for more than 90% of land-use related biodiversity loss and water stress. The food and energy systems, led by the built environment and mobility systems, drive demand for resource use, and together these systems account for 90% of global resource demand. Resource use is projected to grow from 100 billion tons in 2020 to 160 billion tons in 2060, an increase of 60%, requiring urgent and drastic action to rethink resource use.

The following are the report's key messages.

1  Increasing resource use is the main driver of the triple planetary crisis.

2  Material use has increased more than three times over the last 50 years and continues to grow by an average of more than 2.3 per cent per year.

3  Climate and biodiversity impacts from material extraction and processing greatly exceed targets based on staying within 1.5 degrees of climate change and avoiding biodiversity loss.

4  Delivering on the SDGs for all requires decoupling, so that the environmental impacts of resource use fall while the well-being contributions from resource use increase.

5  High-income countries use six times more materials per capita and are responsible for ten times more climate impacts per capita than low-income countries. 

6  Compared to historical trends, it is possible to reduce resource use while growing the economy, reducing inequality, improving well-being and dramatically reducing environmental impacts. 

7  Bold policy action is critical to phase out unsustainable activities, speed up responsible and innovative ways of meeting human needs and promote social acceptance of the necessary transitions.

8  The prevailing approach of focusing almost exclusively on supply-side (production) measures must be supplemented with a much stronger focus on demand-side (consumption) measures.

9  The scientific community is united around the urgency of resolute action and bold evidence based decisions that protect the interests and well-being of all, including future generations.

Reference
United Nations Environment Programme (2024): Global Resources Outlook 2024: Bend the Trend – Pathways to a liveable planet as resource use spikes. International Resource Panel. Nairobi. 
https://wedocs.unep.org/20.500.11822/44901

Contributor: IIYAMA Miyuki (Information Program)