Indicator Assessment
Ecological footprint of European countries
Indicator Assessment
Prod-ID:
IND-161-en
Also known as:
SEBI 023
Published 16 Jul 2019
Last modified 11 May 2021
12
min read
This is an old version, kept for reference only.
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Topics:
Biodiversity — Ecosystems
This page was archived on 20 Apr 2020 with reason:
Other
(New version data-and-maps/indicators/ecological-footprint-of-european-countries-2/assessment was published)
The total ecological footprint of the EU-28 countries increased rapidly during the 1960s and 1970s, and has remained relatively constant since the 1980s. However, total biocapacity — the capacity of ecosystems to produce useful biological materials and absorb waste materials generated by humans, using current management schemes and extraction technologies — has changed very little since 1961. The picture is similar for the EEA-39 countries and the wider pan-European region.
The constantly increasing ecological footprint has resulted in an ever larger biocapacity deficit which may have negative consequences for the environment both within and outside Europe.