Goals

• Size of the population
• Rate of annual growth and a projected time line for doubling
• Proportion of annual change caused by:

1. The difference between in-migration and out-migration
2. The difference between births and deaths

2. To maintain a human population distribution that does not reduce the sustainability of the region

• Population density by land use classification
• Proportion of new residents moving into each land use classification
• Distribution among the constituent localities in terms of residential, commercial, and industrial development

3. To maintain a human population composition that does not reduce the sustainability of the region

Distribution according to:

• Age
• Race/Ethnic diversity
• Income/wealth
• Education
• Employment status

4. To have fair and effective policy mechanisms to manage these population dynamics

• Degree to which each locality's Comprehensive Plan articulates sustainable population goals, and proposes mechanisms (which function directly or indirectly) to achieve the desired population size, distribution and composition
• Resident's understanding of population dynamics and impacts
• Individual access to fertility management information and services (measured as proportion of unplanned pregnancies to planned pregnancies)

Human Basic Needs

5. Every member of the community can obtain adequate daily nutrition

• Number of people eligible to receive Meals on Wheels, Food Bank, School Lunch programs etc.
• Percent of eligible people not served by Meals on Wheels, Food Bank, School Lunch programs etc.

6. Every member of the community can obtain adequate, affordable clothing

• Number of non-commercial programs (Salvation Army, etc) that provide low-priced clothing to the general population.
• Amount and location of clothing in non-commercial programs available to the general public

6. Every member of the community can obtain affordable, safe, adequate housing

• Number of people on waiting lists for housing
• Percent of people on waiting lists for housing
• Number of houses with substandard plumbing

6. Every member of the community can achieve optimal health

• Infant mortality rate by race, income and age of mother
• Number and percent of the community that has access to comprehensive medical care, including dental and preventative care
• Percent of residents who have access to primary care physician (by race, income, age and other factors)
• Percent of pregnant women receiving prenatal care, in each trimester
• Number of people with and without health insurance (including dental and mental health)
• Number and percent of employers who offer wellness benefits which include health insurance, health education, access to exercise facilities, counseling, dental, time off for maternity/paternity benefits
• Number and percentage of partnerships between public school health professionals and public school educational professionals
• Number and percent of emergency room trauma visits, hospitalizations and deaths due to malnutrition, exposure, lack of immunizations, inadequate medical care, environmental and occupational hazards, substance abuse, physical abuse, violence and neglect
• Percent of population age 70 and above and/or disabled who are living in "non-institutionalized" (refers to seniors a living at home, in naturally occurring retirement communities etc)

9. Every member of the community can obtain an education consistent with their needs, wants and abilities, to engage them to function as effective members of society

• Percent of high school graduates going on to post-secondary training
• Percent of second grade students able to read at their grade level
• Percent of eligible children participating in formal K-12 education (includes home, private and public) at every level

9. Provide an education and enforcement programs to create and maintain communities that are safe and secure

• Part I Crime Index

9. Every member of the community has access to transportation that is affordable and adequate to meet their basic needs for access to employment, education, health care, and shopping

• Time and type of commute required to reach essential services such as employment, education, health care and nutrition

9. Every member of the community who so desires can obtain work that provides just compensation, employment, mobility, and fulfillment. Provide training and support especially for those with the least access to employment.

• Number and distribution of employment openings correlated with trends in the region's population
• Number and percent of unemployed involved in training programs
• Unemployment rate of locality over extended period of time compared to other localities.
• Number of jobs which provide high hourly wage vs. number of jobs which provide low hourly wage
• Number of jobs which provide high salary vs. number of jobs which provide low salary

• Median "income" per capita calculated as:

1. the region's value calculated according tot he UN Standardized System of National Accounts (SNA)
2. value of volunteer labour for which others are paid
3. change in police costs compared to base year
4. pollution costs

• Median "Economic Wealth" per capita calculated as:

1. SNA for Produced Assets
2. SNA for Natural Assets
3. Capitalized value of "income" (proxy Human Capital)
4. Capitalized value of charitable contributions
5. Change in capitalized value of payments for liability insurance as compared to base year
6. Net financial assets held by residents of the region

9. To encourage strong, flexible, and durable local markets for locally produced goods and services:

• Number of local start-ups/ failures divided by the total number of local businesses
• Dollar value of locally produced goods and services purchased in the region per annum

9. Establish and maintain a diverse mix of small and large scale businesses and industries that operate sustainably:

• Percent of total employment in large and small scale categories

9. To achieve a current flow of savings within the region that will lead to sustainable economic future.

• Total savings
• Savings/income

• Linear miles of facilities constructed especially for pedestrian and bicycle use

9. Connect urban areas of the cities and counties with bikeways and walkways:

• Linear miles of facilities constructed especially for pedestrian and bicycle use

9. Reduce automobile and truck traffic volume and speed in residential areas for the safety of children bicycling and playing in these areas:

• Linear miles of traffic calmed roads.

9. Reduce single occupancy automobile trips within the region by developing attractive and economical transit mass alternatives:

• Auto trips per capita per day
• Number and percentage of passenger movement within the region carried by rail, bus, and automobile

9. Reduce single-occupancy automobile trips into and out of the region by developing attractive and economical transit alternatives:

• Auto trips per capita per day

• Number and percentage of passenger movement into and out of the region carried by rail, bus, and automobile

9. Increase tonnage loads for long-haul alternative freight service into and out of the region:

• Number of tons and percentage of freight movement into and out of the region carried by rail, air, and auto.

9. Measure costs of traffic congestion to initiate planning for transit systems

• Automobile and Rail and Bus travel time for various main routes

9. Measure percentage of local/state/federal transportation funding spent on transit systems:

• Amount and percentage of money to total for each transportation mode

Land Development

• Percent of development and building permits in established centres versus rural land
• Ratio of employees that walk or bike to work versus the number that drive in single occupancy vehicles
• Number of jurisdictions that incorporate principles and goals of sustainability into comprehensive plan and zoning regulations

9. Design current development in such a way as to preserve as many options as possible for the use and reuse of developed land, and for the interconnection of the site and adjoining land in the future:

• Number of miles of bikeway/walkway/low-speed road connections between neighbourhoods, schools and services

9. Define and incorporate the concept of appropriate scale in all development and land-use decisions:

• Number of miles of bikeway/walkway/low-speed road connections between neighbourhoods, schools and services
• Average width of neighbourhood streets

9. Develop alternative transportation systems which are friendlier, easy to use, convenient, economical, gets you where you want to go, safe, non-polluting and quick:

• Number and percent of employees that use alternatives to the single occupancy vehicle.

9. Use renewable energy sources, resource efficient principle of design and construction, and sustainably produced materials in all new structures and encourage the conversion from less efficient structures whenever possible:

• Lbs. of locally generated construction material
• Percent of energy consumed that is produced by renewable resources
• Percent of new and existing buildings certified by sustainable building standards

9. Encourage the use of information technology to decrease the use of automobiles and to make information more readily available:

• Percent of employees who telecommute
• Number of public terminals with access to the Internet in the region, per thousand people.

• Number of lbs. of solid waste land-filled per capita per year
• Number of lbs. of usable material entering landfills
• Number of lbs. of manure compost generated in the region

9. Minimize the use of unsafe disposal of hazardous material:

• Number of lbs. of hazardous waste collected for disposal at designated sites
• Number of lbs. of man-made, toxic, non-biodegradable compounds used or produced in the region

9. Individuals have a personal responsibility to waste:

• Number of tickets issued for littering each year
• Percentage or number of individuals participating in waste reduction efforts

9. Work independently and in partnership to reduce waste:

• Number of businesses involved in recycling efforts
• Using recycled material to produce and end product
• Number of businesses that convert recyclable to raw materials
• Number of businesses that are members of the RWSA Business Alliance (?)
• Number of businesses that meet ISO 14001 standard (requires environmental quality management systems, environmental audits, environmental performance evaluations, product lifecycle assessments and product labeling) in the region

9. The general population understands and practices the six steps to waste reduction: rethink, reduce, reuse, buy recyclables, recycle, material exchange:

• Number of people who use cloth bags to grocery shop

9. Use water efficiently:

• Per capita water use
• Gallons of water recycled in manufacturing processes in the region
• Annually revised estimate of expected "lifetime" of the water supply based on usage trends.

SOCIAL RESOURCES

SOCIAL RESOURCES contd

9. Create conditions for the fair balance of wealth, power and privilege:

• Gap between the incomes of population in the top and bottom quartile
• Measure of wealth, race, gender and residence of elected and appointed members of boards of commissions, relative to the distribution of the same in the population as a whole.

9. Foster the use of conflict resolution tools in public and private disputes:

• Number of conflicts mediated in a particular area, i.e. divorce mediation, indigent legal services.

9. Create conditions in which institutions are encouraged to evaluate the ethical implications of their behavior.

• Number of institutions with an adopted code of ethics.

9. Encourage education and media coverage on sustainability, with particular emphasis on what is happening in our region and in our daily lives:

• Number of sustainability-focussed courses and activities in public, private and post-secondary schools
• Number of sustainability-related articles in region's news media coverage
• Number of sustainability-related educational/ consciousness-raising activities offered each year for elected and appointed officials; numbers participating

9. Improve urban and rural areas' economic interdependence:

• Percent of rural local ag/forestry products sold in and used as productive inputs in local urban area.
• Percent of urban residents employed in rural ag/forestry pursuits
• Percent of urban-created products/services sold in rural areas
• Membership in regional economic partnerships
• Number of taxes or fees that meet these criteria:

• High rate for non-agricultural buildings in rural areas and for land in urban areas
• Low rate for land in rural areas and for buildings in urban areas

• Extent to which infrastructure is extended, year by year, into rural areas, measured by
• miles of new and newly paved roads, sewer and water

9. Encourage a healthy environmental linkage of urban and rural areas:

• High population density in urban areas; low population density in rural areas ---- measured by dwelling unit/acre in top and bottom quartile of development
• Transferable Development Rights availability and usage

9. Encourage a healthy social and political interdependence among urban and rural areas

• Number of regional cooperative arrangements in law enforcement, emergency services, social services/ delivery
• Number of cultural, sports, educational and service groups that draw participants from across jurisdictional lines
• Money from each jurisdiction budget for joint governmental; programs
• Number of joint plans adopted

9. Take responsibility for the indirect and induced impacts of the community on other regions in solid waste, population growth, economic activity, social problems, air/water quality and quantity:

• Number of businesses that are ISO 14001 certified
• Measure our ecological footprint (accounting tool used to determine resource consumption and waste assimilation requirements of a defined human population)

9. Increase the use of renewable energy resources:

• Alternative energy use as a percentage of total energy use

9. Increase the efficiency of energy use through conservation measures:

• Per capita energy consumption

9. Assess all costs and benefits of major public and private decisions from immediate, long-term and cumulative prospective:

• Number and percentage of major decisions (public/private) that are informed by studies employing the methods and techniques of long-term, comprehensive and benefit cost accounting.

9. Involve individuals in neighbourhoods and organizations:

• Membership in neighbourhood associations and selected organizations
• Amount of time volunteered in public service organizations (from a pre-determined list)
• Amount of money donated to local charities or its equivalent

9. Involve individuals in government:

• Number and percent registered to vote
• Percentage of total registered that votes
• Number of persons participating in public hearings
• In opinion survey, percent feeling that they are able to influence governmental decisions

9. Recognize that the long-term welfare of human and natural immunities may require individual and self-restraint:

• Number of adopted comprehensive plans that use longer than 20 year long goals

9. Governments provide needed services and infrastructure for citizens, especially with an eye to the future:

• Public perception of quality and availability of governmental services received, in opinion survey

9. Taxation should be equitable, progressive, relatively easy to collect and either neutral or beneficial in its impact on sustainability of the region:

• Number of governmental revenue sources that do and do not meet that standard, and percent of government revenue received from each.

NATURAL RESOURCES

9. Water quality and quantity are sufficient to support the region's human population and biological resources:

• Number of wells that have gone dry
• Water quality parameters (sediment, BOD, etc)
• Diversity of aquatic organisms
• Total annual water use by sector (residential, industrial, agricultural, commercial)
• Seasonality and duration of water stage level or urban waterways compared to that of rural waterways

9. Ecosystems exist which contain adequate habitat to support viable populations of the plant and animal communities representative of the region's biological diversity:

• Population trends of indicator species by each habitat type
• Habitat Suitability Index for indicator species by each habitat type
• Vegetation cover by patch size and type

9. Air quality does not negatively impact the region's biological and geological resources:

• Tons of toxins released per annum into the environment
• Ozone levels in urban areas as compared to back group levels in rural areas
• Net oxygen production, or amount produced/amount consumed

9. Soil loss does not exceed inputs from deposition and new soil forming processes:

• Net soil loss rate

9. Natural areas exist which serve the spiritual, social and economic needs of human communities:

• Acres of land not subject to extractive uses (forestry, mining, agriculture etc.) or damaging human uses.

9. Promote a full spectrum of local, national and international marketing of local agricultural products:

• Median profits of individual farms in the region per annum

9. Promote local direct marketing of locally produced agricultural products:

• Gross proceeds of direct farm sales (incl. Farm market proceeds) per annum
• Legal impediments to direct farm sales of agricultural products removed

9. Encourage the development of local businesses and industries that create finished goods from local agricultural (and forestry) products and their by-products:

• Gross sales per annum of local value-added goods made with local agricultural products

9. Make buying locally a more convenient and available option for consumers

• Percentage of locally produced agricultural products bought locally

9. Promote retention of farmland for the future:

• Number, size and types of farms in each county
• Number of acres in Ag/Forestal Districts
• Number of acres in land use assessment program (agriculture, forestry, horticulture, open space categories) in each county
• Number of acres per county lost annually to non-qualifying uses
• Percent of localities' tax burden borne by agricultural and forestral lands
• Loss of productive farm (and forest) land to other uses per annum
• Number of acres under perpetual open-space or conservation easement

9. Promote the use of farming practices which combine cost efficiency, environmental soundness:

• Percent of farms using soil conservation practices

9. Broaden the practice of sustainable forestry among loggers and landowners:

• Total forest area and its percentage by type and age classification
• Acreage of forest land in private and in public ownership

9. Maintain or improve, where possible, the quality and long-term productivity of timber for use as wood products:

• Annual removals compared to annual net growth by species group for timber and non-timber products
• Value added to timber production by local manufacturing
• Direct and indirect employment in the forestry and agricultural sectors

9. Encourage local governments to identify the areas best suited for forestry and use local planning and land use tools and fiscal policy to retain the resource base:

• Acreage in Ag./Forestal Districts
• Acreage in conservation/ open space easements

9. Promote a full spectrum of local, national and international marketing for local forest products:

• Value of local timber and non-timber forest products used locally
• Value of local timber and non-timber forest products exported from the region

9. Provide forest recreational and educational opportunities and tourism:

• Visitors per day and dollars spent for forest recreation and tourism

9. Inform and educate the public about the importance of managing and protecting forest resources:

• Number of school programs by the Department of Forestry per year.

Category & Indicators

ECONOMY

1. Domestic Product Gross

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2. Structure of the economy

 

 

 

 

 

3. Expenditure components of GDP and personal savings

 

 

 

 

 

 

4. Consumer expenditure

 

 

 

5. Inflation

 

6. Employment

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

7. Government borrowing and debt

 

 

 

 

 

 

8. Pollution abatement expenditure

 

9. Infant mortality

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

10. Life expectancy

1. The rate of growth of GDP is the main indicator of the speed with which the economy is expanding. If sustained over time, growth in GDP per head will lead to general increases in the standard of living. However, the relationship between growth in GDP and sustainable development is not straightforward. Other things being equal, growth is clearly desirable and, indeed, the objective of the Government's economic policy is "to promote sustained economic growth and rising prosperity". Beyond this, it is hard to generalize. Higher economic activity reflected in higher GDP may increase pollution, or rest upon depletion of scarce natural resources. But, equally growth may raise demands for higher environmental standards and a healthy economy is more able to afford environmental goods, thus improving the future quality of life and promoting sustainability. Published figures for GDP do not take proper account of factors such as these and in some cases can be positively misleading, e.g. expenditure on preventing pollution is counted as a positive component of GDP. This has led to calls for the development of environmental or "green" accounts, which make proper allowance for environmental impacts. But the issues involved, such as the valuation of the damage of pollution, are complex and the development of such accounts is still at a very early stage. Even green parallel for a proper consideration of sustainable development.
2. The structure of the economy - that is, the relative size and activity of the various sectors of the economy - has a considerable potential impact on the environment. Consumption of natural resources, use of energy, the types and volumes of pollutants and waste produced are all dependent on the activities of the various sectors. This indicator shows the contribution of key sectors to GDP since 1970. This indicator has been included to give a background picture of changes in the economy which have an indirect impact on the environment, by influencing the patterns of consumption and generation of pollution and waste.
3. As well as disaggregating GDP by sector, GDP can be broken down by types of spending: investment, consumption, stockbuilding and net trade. Investment expenditure adds to the capital stock that will be available to produce goods and services in future years. Public and private consumption, on the other hand, represent current consumption of resources, although a significant fraction of consumer's expenditure - usually between 5 to 10 per cent - is on durable goods. Investment also uses up resources and ever-higher levels of investment would not be efficient. Stockbuilding can oscillate from year to year and has little implication for sustainable development. It is for people to choose freely how to spend their incomes. To the extent which they choose to save, this may contribute to the amount of finance available to industry. With an aging population, too low a saving rate might jeopardize consumption levels in the future.
4. Consumer expenditure is a measure of the economic benefit which people derive from a growing economy in the form of the ability to buy goods and services. It also reflects change in demand, which may impact on the environment directly and indirectly through changing patterns of consumption of raw materials, water and energy, greater production of waste and pollution, greater demand for travel etc.
5. Inflation is relevant for economic growth, because economies work most efficiently when inflation is low and stable. If inflation is rising persistently, it may indicate that the economy is overheating and that the rate of growth is therefore not sustainable.
6. A healthy economy provides employment (and self-employment) which produces income for individuals, businesses and government and enables them to improve living standards. There is no "correct" level of employment, as the size of the workforce depends on the number of people of working age and how many of them are economically active. Some unemployment is also inevitable as members of the workforce move from one job to another. However, ever-increasing levels of unemployment, or falling levels of employment, are not sustainable in the long term. The implications of the split of employment between different sectors for sustainable development are less clear cut, and the considerations discussed under Indicator 2 (the structure of the economy) are also relevant.
7. The Public Sector Borrowing Requirement (PSBR) is a measure of the Government's annual borrowing. If it is rising persistently, and the ratio of debt to GDP is high and rising, corrective action by the Government would be required, either by raising taxes or cutting expenditure. Servicing high and rising levels of Governments debt could lead to high interest rates for private sector businesses, depressing investment and growth. It is Government policy that the PSBR should be brought back towards balance over the medium term. Other indicators of the public finances, which may have some relevance for sustainable development, are the ratios of public spending and taxes to GDP. High taxation and high Government spending may reduce incentives and so reduce the long run rate of growth of the economy.
8. A healthy economy can free up resources, enabling us to spend more on protecting the environment. An indicator of expenditure on environmental protection, viewed alongside indicators of environmental quality, gives an overall measure of the resources expended on dealing with environmental pollution.
9. Much of the policy of environmental protection is intended to protect human health from adverse effects of environmental pollution. However, in most cases it is very difficult to link specific illness with any particular environmental factor. Ill health can be caused or exacerbated by a variety of conditions including lifestyle (e.g. smoking, lack of exercise, diet), genetic traits, other economic and social factors, as well as by the weather and hazards in the environment. In the UK, incidences of illness which can be directly attributed to specific environmental pollution is, in general, very localized and usually short term. Nevertheless, the health of the population is important to sustainable development, and two widely and internationally accepted measures are rates of infant mortality and average life expectancy.
10. Advances in medical treatment and improvements in standards of living have contributed to significant changes in average life expectancy, even over the last 20 years. Not only does this indicate a generally healthier population, but it also has economic and social implications - more people living longer means a larger population of elderly people relative to those of working age. Public provision for pensions, health and community care will need to be financially supported by a relatively smaller population in work.

TRANSPORTATION

1. Car use and total passenger travel

 

 

2. Short journeys

 

 

 

 

 

3. Real changes in the cost of transport

 

 

 

4. Freight traffic

1. The Government is taking steps to influence the growth in demand for transport by attempting to ensure that people pay the full social and environmental cost of their transport decisions, so improving the overall efficiency of those decisions for the economy as a whole and bringing environmental benefits. Key indicators included in this section are car use and total passenger travel, mode of travel for short journeys, transport pricing, and the volume of freight transport.
2. Government policy is to encourage people to use more environmentally friendly forms of travel. Walking and cycling are the least damaging methods of travel. Research shows that most journeys on foot are less than 1 mile, with some at up to 2 miles. Few people walk further than 2 miles. For cycling, the threshold is around 5 miles. Many people are unable to walk or cycle and for them a bus, where practicable, is often the next best environmental option for short trips. Indicator shows the number of trips per person per year made by mode of transport for journeys of less than 1, 1 to 2, and 2 to 5 miles.
3. The Government has accepted the need to influence the growth in demand for travel, as part of the wider strategy to stabilize carbon dioxide emissions and to make people pay the full cost of their travel decisions. One of the ways of doing this is through price, and the Government has already announced plans to increase the real price of fuel by increasing fuel duty by an average 5 per cent per year. Indicator shows the real change in price of passenger fares and motoring, in comparison with the growth in real personal disposable income.
4. Goods vehicles (over 3.5 tonnes gross weight) account for around 7 per cent of total vehicle traffic. As with passenger transport, the average distance traveled is increasing. There has been strong growth in road haulage, which has been influenced by the removal of quantitative restrictions on road haulage in 1970, larger vehicles and changing distribution methods. In recent years, growth in the number of the heaviest permitted vehicles contributed to an overall reduction in the numbers of goods vehicles. As a result of the diversification of many small, service industries, there has also been considerable increase in the use of light goods vehicles. As a result of the competitiveness and greater flexibility of road haulage and reductions in traditional staple traffics, particularly coal, the importance of rail freight, in terms of the amounts lifted and moved, has declined. Most long distance traffic goes by road. Indicator compares the annual trends in road and rail freight lifted and moved since 1970.

LEISURE and TOURISM

1. Leisure journeys

 

 

 

 

 

2. Air travel

1. Leisure is one of the most significant reasons why people travel, accounting for around 41 per cent of passenger mileage each year. Leisure travel is a fast growing aspect of transport use. As with other passenger travel, most leisure journeys are made by car - 81 per cent between 1992 and 1994. Leisure includes visiting friends and sporting and entertainment activities which mainly take place locally, day trips to the countryside or the coast, and longer trips, including trips abroad, on holiday. Indicator shows the average miles traveled per person per year for each of the main leisure purposes.
2. Trends in leisure travel can be useful indicators not simply of the direct impacts of transport, but also of the wider impacts of tourism and leisure destinations (e.g. economic impacts, changes in land use and overcrowding). Looking at air travel can give some idea of the trends in international tourism as well as domestic. Air travel itself has direct impacts on sustainable development. Carbon dioxide emissions per passenger-mile and per freight tonne-mile are generally higher for air transport than for most other modes. Other types of emissions from aircraft, especially nitrogen oxides, can contribute to atmospheric and local air quality problems (although emissions per passenger-mile are expected to fall as a result of technological developments, fuel efficiency improvements and internationally-agreed regulations). The most significant local environmental impact of aviation is noise. Unlike some other impacts noise has only a transistory effect. But the development of transport infrastructure can have long-term implications for noise. Indicator shows numbers of passengers per year arriving at and departing from UK airports on overseas leisure trips since 1975.

ENERGY

1. Depletion of fossil fuels

 

 

 

2. Capacity of nuclear and renewable fuels

 

 

 

 

3. Primary and final energy consumption

 

 

 

 

 

4. Energy consumption and output
5. Industrial and commercial sector consumption
6. Road transport energy use

 

7. Residential energy use

1. Developed economies such as the UK are critically dependent on the supply of energy and a prime sustainable development aim is to ensure that future generations can enjoy a quality of energy services comparable to that enjoyed today. The way in which energy is produced, supplied and consumed is one of the major ways in which human activity affects the environment.
2. Use of nuclear and renewable sources of energy has considerable benefits, not only in reducing demand for non-renewable fossil fuels, but also in producing lower environmental impacts in terms of carbon dioxide emissions and air pollution. However, possible environmental disadvantages of particular schemes in terms of the effect on landscape or noise, for example, also have to be considered through the planning system. Nuclear power generation also generates radioactive waste which needs to be disposed of safely. Indicator shows the net capacity of nuclear and renewable resources for electricity generation from 1990 to 1994.
3. An examination of the trends in primary and final energy consumption, in total and by sector, can illuminate the way in which energy is used to derive economic benefits for the community. The major user categories which are examined are industry, services, transport and households. While trends in the amounts of fuel consumed are relevant, it is also important to monitor their relationships with other indicators to determine their effectiveness of use. Comparisons are therefore made with GDP and value added, traffic growth and, for domestic consumption, with the number of households. Indicator shows the trends in primary and final energy consumption since 1970.
4. Indicator shows the relationship of primary energy consumption to GDP since 1970.
5. Indicator shows industrial, commercial and public sector energy consumption since 1970 compared with the value added by the two sectors.
6. Indicator compares road passenger vehicle fuel consumption with the number of passenger-miles traveled, and road freight vehicle fuel consumption with the number of tonne-miles moved since 1970.
7. Indicator contrasts the trends in domestic energy consumption with the number of households

LAND USE

1. Land covered by urban development

 

 

 

2. Household numbers

 

 

 

 

 

 

3. Re-use of land in urban uses for development

 

 

 

 

4. Stock and reclamation of derelict land

 

 

 

 

5. Road building

 

 

 

 

 

6. Out-of-town retail floorspace

 

 

 

7. Regular journeys

 

 

 

 

 

8. Regular expenditure

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

9. Green spaces in urban areas

1. The spread of urban development, the consequent loss of rural land and the associated impacts on the environment are important areas of concern. There is a continuing need to reconcile the requirements for additional land for important uses such as housing, industry, commerce and retailing with a desire to protect the countryside and agriculture. More recently, concern about sustainable development, and in particular about the need to reduce travel demand through land use planning controls, has added to interest in the extent and location of urbanization.
2. Demand for housing constitutes the main pressure for increased use of rural land for development. This demand is being driven more by changes in lifestyle than by an increasing population. Over the last century the population has doubled but the number of houses has quadrupled, reflecting a large decline in household size. People are living longer and increasingly on their own, through choice, or through death of a partner, or as a result of marriage break-ups. The pressure for new housing is expected to continue in the first part of the next century, as overall population increases and current trends in the age structure and marital status of the population are maintained.
3. The re-use of land in urban uses, particularly for housing and commercial development, contributes to reducing the pressures on the countryside to accommodate new development. Commercial and residential redevelopment within existing urban areas helps to maintain their vitality and viability. It can also improve the general quality of life and also accessibility for those people without a car by increasing and widening the range of services and facilities available and thereby reducing the need for people to travel to other towns for work, shopping and leisure.
4. Reclamation and regeneration of derelict land in both urban and rural areas minimizes the pressure to develop greenfield sites. It can also help to revitalize local environments, particularly urban areas, by removing unsightly developments and providing land suitable for housing, employment and leisure uses. Indicator shows the stock of derelict land in England and the area justifying reclamation from surveys undertaken in 1982, 1988 and 1993. It also shows the area of derelict land reclaimed on an annualized basis and the area of derelict land which has been brought into beneficial use on an annualized basis during 1982-88 and 1988-93.
5. Businesses and communities need to have reasonable access to goods, services and other people, and an adequate road network is part of the solution. The pressure to build roads has increased in recent years with the growth in car ownership. Economic growth has allowed people to make more use of their cars and has also resulted in rapid increases in the amount of freight transported by road. These factors have increased the pressure for using rural and previously urban land for building new roads in GB. Indicator shows the area of urban and rural land in England used to build new roads during the second half of the 1980s.
6. The development of out-of-town shopping centres and retail parks has contributed to the rundown of town and city centres. Reduced retail activity in urban areas can have a knock-on effect on other services, such as entertainment, leisure, banking, etc. Out-of-town retail developments also encourage people to travel longer distances for shopping, mainly in cars, which causes increased congestion, pollution and noise. Indicator shows the growth in the gross lettable area (GLA) of out-of-town shopping centres between 1970 and 1993.
7. Cars account for around 59 per cent of all journeys. More people are able to afford cars and are using them for commuting and travelling greater distances, as a result of changes in the location of residential and retail development, and employment patterns. People are also using their cars more for leisure purposes (see Indicator c1 in the Leisure and tourism section). In addition, more parents are driving their children to schools, many of which are further from home. Indicator f7 shows trends in the average lengths for commuting, shopping and taking children to and from school.
8. The Government promotes sustainable regeneration, economic development and competitiveness in England through the targeted Single Regeneration Budget (SRB). The SRB Challenge Fund supports comprehensive regeneration strategies developed by local partnerships between the public, private and voluntary sectors to help improve the quality of life of local people. In deprived rural areas, support is mainly channeled through the Rural Development Programme and Rural Challenge. The amount spent by Government on such regeneration programmes gives an indication of the rate at which urban and rural land is being regenerated and put to beneficial use. Indicator shows the amount of actual and planned Government funding for regeneration in England between 1989/90 and 1997/98.
9. Future indicator development: Green spaces in urban areas are important for recreational purposes and for generally enhancing the quality of life of people who live in urban areas. It is therefore important that they are maintained and developed both in terms of area and environmental quality, and not lost to development or allowed to fall into disrepair. No comprehensive and validated data exist on the extent of urban green spaces.

WATER RESOURCES

1. Licensed abstractions and effective rainfall

 

 

 

2. Low flow alleviation

 

 

 

 

3. Abstraction by use

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4. Abstractions for public water supply

 

 

 

5. Demand and supply of public water
6. Abstractions for spray irrigation

1. Although in total the available water resources in the UK well exceed demand, the balance between these varies widely from region to region. Many parts of the UK have had to develop river basin management systems to ensure that water can be reused between its falling as rain and its eventual return to the sea. This occurs particularly in the Thames basin where recycling of abstracted water takes place along the whole length of the Thames. Indicator compares licensed abstractions and effective drought rainfall.
2. River flows in Britain reflect, not just the balance between rainfall and evaporation, but also the effects of abstractions to meet demand from the domestic, industrial, and agricultural sectors. The effects of increasing demand can give rise to unacceptably low flows in rivers, thereby damaging wildlife habitats and having adverse effects on water quality, and recreational and amenity value. Indicator shows the length of rivers in low flow alleviation schemes in England and Wales affected by over-abstractions since 1990/91.
3. Water is drawn from both surface freshwater resources, such as rivers and lakes, and from groundwater resources held in water-bearing rocks known as aquifers. Substantial amounts of water are also drawn from estuarial waters, although these are excluded from the discussions here. Many industrial abstractions, such as those for hydroelectric power by electricity companies and for cooling, agricultural abstractions and for fish farming do not consume water resources. Virtually all of the water abstracted is later discharged back to surface water and the total volume abstracted is therefore of less importance environmentally. However, the quality of the water discharged is not necessarily of the same quality when it is discharged as it was when abstracted. In contrast, uses such as spray irrigation and abstractions for evaporative cooling represent loss to the water resource.
4. Much of the population is concentrated in the drier parts of south and east of England where river flows and water resources are particularly vulnerable to variations in climate. Increasing affluence and higher standards of living are changing water demand patterns. The main increases in domestic water use are for personal hygiene and for watering of gardens in summer, when supplies are under most stress. Indicator shows abstractions for public water supply per head in England and Wales since 1984 together with present patterns of water use by households.

6. Although abstractions for spray irrigation represent only a small proportion (less than 1 per cent) of annual abstractions they can be significant because they are immediately consumptive (i.e. little water is returned to the system due to retention in the crop and/or evapotranspiration), they occur in a concentrated period usually in the drier parts of the country and can vary greatly from year to year, peaking in dry years when surface water is scarcest.

CLIMATE CHANGE

1. Global greenhouse gas radiative forcing rate
2. Global temperature change
3. Emissions of greenhouse gases

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4. Power station emissions of carbon dioxide

2. Indicator shows global annual temperature variations since 1858 and annual temperature variations since 1660.
3. Indicator shows the trends since 1970 in UK estimated emissions of greenhouse gases and total emissions in relation to the change in GDP. Global Warming Potentials (GWPs) provide a relative index which allows the radiative effects of emissions of each greenhouse gas to be compared. Relative to carbon dioxide (GWP = 1.0), the latest GWP estimate for methane is 24.5 and for nitrous oxide 320 over a 100-year time horizon, although considerable uncertainty surrounds these figures. These weights have been applied to annual estimates of UK emissions of carbon dioxide and methane since 1970 and to nitrous oxide since 1990, the earliest year for which UK estimates are available, to give an overall UK global warming index. Although the GWP for carbon dioxide is lower than for other greenhouse gases, emissions of carbon dioxide are much larger so carbon dioxide has the greatest impact on global warming.
4. Indicator shows emissions of carbon dioxide from power stations between 1970 and 1993 in relation to the amount of electricity generated from UK sources.

WILDLIFE AND HABITATS

1. Native species at risk

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2. Breeding birds

 

 

 

 

 

 

3. Plant diversity in semi-improved grassland

 

 

 

 

 

4. Habitat fragmentation

 

5. Lakes and ponds.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

6. Plant diversity in streamsides

 

 

7. Mammal populations

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

8. Dragonfly distributions

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

9. Butterfly distributions

1. Indicator shows estimated proportions of GB native species under threat or nationally scarce. This indicator provides a broad-brush measure of the extent and status of biodiversity in GB. Comparable information is not available for the UK as a whole. The indicator gives the proportions of four groups of species that are considered to be "threatened" (i.e. endangered, vulnerable, or rare based on criteria devised by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN)) and, where available, the proportions which are "nationally scarce" (i.e. species recorded as present in only 16 -100 ten km squares in GB). "Threatened" (i.e. Red Data Listed) and "nationally scarce" species are used in evaluating the conservation importance of sites and their presence is one of the criteria used to select Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs).
2. Birds provide several advantages as representative indicators of the broad state of wildlife and the countryside. They are wide-ranging in habitat distribution and tend to be at or near the top of the food chain. Their mobility and the relatively long life expectancies of some species can result in the integration of environmental effects over large areas and long time spans. In addition, birds are generally well studied and monitored and reasonably reliable data on population and geographical distribution are available over time. Indicator shows the numbers of GB breeding bird species increasing and declining in population size and geographical distribution, by broad habitat type.
3. Semi-natural grassland is a good quality habitat found in the wider countryside in the UK, some of which may have originated naturally before human clearance of shrubs and trees, but most of which owes its existence to prehistoric farmers. There are many different types of grassland which support a diverse range of plants and animals in lowland areas. The wildlife in these areas is best sustained by traditional, low-intensity management, e.g. as hay meadows and grazing pastures. The application of fertilizers or herbicides (i.e. grassland "improvement") can eliminate all but a few common, tolerant species. Indicator shows changes in the number of different plant species found in semi-improved grassland (used as a proxy for semi-natural grassland) in GB.
4. Future indicator development: Fragmentation is an important issue for a number of other habitats, e.g. woodlands, heathlands, etc. Work currently being done to monitor changes in parcel size may be used for future national indicators for different habitats.
5. Indicator shows estimates of the numbers of lakes and ponds in GB between 1945 and 1990. Lakes and ponds have value as wildlife habitats, landscape features, and recreational amenities. Ponds are important because they are widespread and provide aquatic habitats in otherwise terrestrial environments. They thus form additional havens of biodiversity in these environments, as many plants and animals live in the water or at the water edge, or use them in one stage of their life cycle. Ponds were once a vital feature of many farms, used for watering livestock, but changing farming practices have made ponds largely redundant and many have disappeared. However, since the late 1980s a number of measures have been taken which may eventually arrest this decline. These include changes to the Common Agricultural Policy, and the introduction of more environmental land management schemes.
6. Like hedges, stream banks contain many plant species which are absent or rare in them surrounding landscape, and they therefore form an important reservoir of plant biodiversity. Stream banks also form an integral part of the aquatic environment, with many animals dependent on both the quality of the stream's water and the environmental quality of its banks. They also form important corridors between different habitat sites.
7. Mammals are a useful group of species for monitoring biodiversity, because they are widespread, easy to identify, present in large numbers, and include species that might potentially serve as good indicators of a variety of changes in the countryside. For example, some mammals such as deer and rabbits (which are increasing in population) have a significant impact through their grazing on plant diversity and hence influence habitat quality and other species within their ecosystem. Other mammals such as the mountain hare, yellow-necked mouse, and the common dormouse (which may be declining in numbers) may form good indicators at different scales of habitat fragmentation. Others such as the hedgehog, brown hare, harvest mouse, stoat, and weasel (which may also be all declining) may be good monitors of the wider countryside, particularly arable land.
8. Dragonflies breed in a variety of aquatic habitats in GB, including rivers, streams and ditches, lakes and ponds, and bogs, heaths and moorlands. They are reliant on the water from which they emerge, and on habitats surrounding the water which provide feeding areas. Some species are highly specialized to a single or narrow range of habitats, while others are tolerant of a wide variety of habitat types and water quality. Dragonfly populations can be adversely affected by both loss of habitats (e.g. the loss of ponds, the lowering of water levels in rivers and wetlands, etc) and habitat degradation (e.g. through water pollution, adverse management of marginal vegetation, etc). Different species vary in their sensitivity to pollution, which means that it may be possible to gauge the health of an aquatic habitat by the species of dragonflies present.
9. Figures for butterfly species can be used to reflect the health and quality of some land-based habitats, just as dragonflies can be used for aquatic habitats. Butterfly populations can be adversely affected by both loss of habitats and habitat degradation, and are also very sensitive to the climate. Like dragonflies, some species of butterfly are highly specialized to a particular habitat or are sensitive to changes in habitat management and agricultural practices, while others are tolerant of a wide range of variation in habitat type and quality. Different species vary in their sensitivity to pollution, which means that it may be possible to gauge the health of some habitats (e.g. chalk grassland) by the species of butterflies present

LAND COVER AND LANDSCAPE

1. Rural land cover: Indicator shows the stock of rural land (excluding forestry) in GB in 1990 and changes in stock for broad categories between 1984 and 1990
2. Designated and protected areas Indicator shows trends in the extent of designated and protected areas in the UK

 

 

 

 

 

3. Agricultural productivity: Indicator shows agricultural inputs and outputs since the mid-1940s and agricultural productivity as measured by the ratio of inputs to outputs.
4. Nitrogen usage: Indicator shows agricultural outputs compared with nitrogen inputs to soils.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

5. Pesticide usage: Indicator shows the average amount of active ingredient applied per hectare of cereals for different types of pesticides

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

6. Environmentally managed land

1. Agricultural land dominates the rural landscape of the UK. Changes in agricultural practices have the potential to cause positive environmental effects, such as the maintenance of valued landscapes and habitats by environmentally-friendly farming practices, as well as negative ones, such as the loss of hedgerows and walls. The drive for increased food production since the mid-1940s has resulted in an intensification of production and environmental pressures on landscapes and habitats, in particular semi-natural habitats such as ancient meadows, heaths and wetlands. Alongside agriculture, urbanization and afforestation are the other main drivers of change in rural land cover in the UK.
2. Landscapes and habitats in the UK, and a number of plant and animal species, have been influenced by human activities over the centuries. In recent decades, urban and transport development, together with agricultural intensification, have led to the deterioration or loss of some areas of land with landscape or habitat value. National and international legislation aims to protect the areas which are of special interest or outstanding quality and a number of different types of designations have been introduced for this purpose. These areas do not receive unlimited protection, rather in each case every attempt is made to strike a balance between the importance of the site for biodiversity conservation and other economic, social and health needs. Therefore, in many protected areas, limited development and economic activity continues to take place. In many cases, continuation of the latter is essential for the maintenance of the character of the landscape.
3. Efficient use of rural land, in particular arable land and grassland, is important for maintaining a healthy, economic and social balance in rural areas and for ensuring an adequate supply of good quality food. However, as consumers expect to be able to buy an ever-wider choice of foods (not just exotic foods, but out of season products as well), self-sufficiency in agriculture is unlikely and is not, in any case, an objective of policy.

 

 

4. Nitrogen is vital for the growing of crops and rearing of livestock for food. It is contained in mineral fertilizer, organic wastes such as manures and slurries, and animal feed. Atmospheric nitrogen is also fixed in the soil by legumes. However, because crops and animals are naturally inefficient at utilizing it, only a proportion of the nitrogen applied to agriculture ends up in food and other products. The quantity, timing, and method of application also affects the efficiency with which nitrogen is taken up by crops and animals. Nitrogen that is not consumed in agricultural products is transformed in soil, air, and water in the "nitrogen cycle", a complex process influenced by many interacting factors. Some forms of nitrogen can have adverse effects on the environment (e.g. excess nitrate in freshwater) whilst others are benign (e.g. nitrogen gas, which makes up 80 per cent of the atmosphere). Protein is required by humans and animals to sustain life and is contained in crops and livestock products. It is comprised largely of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen and nitrogen. However, protein production is mostly driven by nitrogen availability.
5. Pesticides are important to modern agriculture and also have significant non-agricultural uses to control pests, weeds, and diseases. However, they can have an adverse effect on the environment, by impacting on non-target species of plants, insects and aquatic life, and by contaminating water abstracted for public supply. Government policy is to encourage the minimization of pesticide use through a strict approvals process, and appropriate research and development. In this context minimization means that the amounts of pesticides used should be limited to the minimum necessary for the effective control of pests compatible with the protection of human health and the environment. The levels of selected pesticides found in rivers and groundwater are covered by Indicator in the Freshwater quality section. About 340 different chemicals are used as active ingredients in agricultural pesticides and formulated into some 3,400 different products. This indicator can thus give only a broad guide to trends in pesticide inputs to agriculture. Cereals are the predominant UK crop, and pesticides applied to cereals currently account for 34 per cent of pesticide usage. The trends for cereals are typical of the situation with most other crops.
6. Over the centuries, much of the rural landscape has been shaped by agriculture and continued management is essential to maintain the characteristics and quality which are so much a part of our natural heritage. However, many aspects of good land management are not readily quantifiable, particularly on a national scale. As a proxy, therefore, this indicator shows the extent of land covered by land management agreements, which are designed to ensure that land is managed in an environmentally friendly way, and to conserve or re-create valued landscapes and wildlife habitats, including the promotion of better management of features such as hedgerows and traditional stone walls.

FRESHWATER QUALITY

1. River quality - chemical and biological: Indicator shows trends in the proportion of river and canal lengths in the UK
2. Nitrates in rivers and groundwater

 

 

3. Phosphorous in rivers
4. Pesticides in rivers and groundwater

 

 

 

 

 

 

5. Pollution incidents: Indicator shows major and significant substantiated water pollution incidents in England by source since 1991.
6. Pollution prevention and control

 

7. Expenditure on water abstraction, treatment and distribution

 

 

 

 

8. Expenditure on sewage treatment

1. The quality of rivers and canals in the UK is influenced by a variety of factors - discharges from sewage works and industrial installations, pollution incidents and deposition, leaching and run-off from rural and contaminated land, as well as levels of rainfall and water abstraction. Regular chemical and biological surveys provide a general indication of the quality of rivers and canals across the UK.
2. The presence of various nutrients in excessive quantities in water, combined with particular weather conditions, can lead to eutrophication (excessive algal growth). This can cause long-term ecosystem disruption by oxygen depletion, which adversely affects fish, and by-production of toxins, which are potentially poisonous to other animals. The nutrients in the UK which generally lead to this are nitrate in marine or coastal waters and phosphorus in freshwater.
3. Indicator shows annual average phosphorus concentrations in GB rivers by landscape category.
4. The UK has developed the "Red List" of the most dangerous substances in water, including pesticides and heavy metals, scientifically selected for their persistent toxic and bioaccumulative characteristics. Pesticides are important to modern agriculture and also have significant non-agricultural uses to control pests, weeds, and diseases. However, they can have an adverse effect on the aquatic environment, and, if present in significant quantities in water abstracted for public supply, treatment to remove them is necessary. There are currently about 450 active ingredients approved for use as pesticides in the UK; about 340 of these are used as agricultural pesticides. The majority of pesticides detected most frequently in water are herbicides used for non-agriculture purposes.
5. The NRA, Scottish River Purification Authorities, and the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions for Northern Ireland monitor aspects of water quality in England and Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland respectively. Consents are issued to control point source discharges to water at a level consistent with the achievement of quality objectives for the waters concerned and their users. However, occasionally consents are breached or other incidents occur at points where no consent has been issued which lead to pollution, e.g. accidental spillage and storm overflows. Local inland water quality can be adversely affected by a variety of pollution incidents, with most incidents caused either by sewage, industry, or agriculture.
6. This indicator is concerned with compliance with monitored numeric consents by sewage treatment works operated by the water and sewerage undertakers, trade discharges (which will include site drainage as well as discharges from industrial processes) and privately operated sewage treatment works (in some cases these may be little more than septic tanks).
7. One of the key sustainable development issues relating to drinking water quality is to ensure that adequate freshwater resources of sufficient quality are available for abstraction for treatment as drinking water. A secure supply of clean water is essential for both human health and quality of life. The issues surrounding the supply and quality of drinking water are extremely complex. Different water sources provide water of widely varying quality, and so the necessary treatment can vary from simple disinfection to multistage treatment. The cost of water treatment may thus reflect to some extent the quality of this source water, but also a wide range of other factors such as the efficiency with which particular pollutants can be treated, drinking water standards, etc.
8. The key sustainable development issues relating to waste water treatment (including sewage and industrial effluent) are to maintain and, as necessary, improve the quality of waters receiving waste water effluent discharges, to promote the natural environment and biodiversity, and to ensure adequate water resources are available for particular uses. The polluting load of the effluent, and hence water quality in the area of the discharge, will depend on the level of treatment provided.

SOIL

1. Soil quality: Indicator shows trends in concentrations of organic matter, acidity and concentrations of phosphorus and potassium in agricultural topsoils in England and Wales.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2. Heavy metals in topsoils: Indicator t2 shows concentrations of some of the most important heavy metals in agricultural topsoils in England and Wales.

1. Loss of soil function is an important issue for sustainable development, since soil is essential for food and timber production and also provides habitats for many plant and animal species. It also has other important functions, including the ability to filter, transform and neutralize potentially polluting substances which can enter the soil from rainfall or as a result of human activities. It can act as an important reservoir for water, as a physical base for buildings and as a sink for carbon sequestrated from the atmosphere (see section on Climate change). Organic matter is important for the development of soil structure and contributes to soil stability. Its adsorption properties help to regulate the movements of pollutants and contaminants in soils. Organic matter also plays an important role in the cycling and storage of plant nutrients, which are vital for food production, and low organic matter concentrations can increase the risk of erosion. Many soil organisms obtain their energy supply from the breakdown of organic matter. High organic matter concentrations can increase nitrate leaching and emissions of methane and nitrous oxide. Maintaining pH in arable soils at suitable levels is important for soil productivity and overall soil fertility. Productivity can be reduced as soils become acidic. The UK's climate tends to increase the acidification of soils by the leaching of nutrients. This is the result of rainfall exceeding evaporation and because of the natural acidity of rainfall, even when unpolluted. In those areas where soils are not naturally calcareous, farmers protect their soils from acidification by regular additions of lime so as to maintain production potential. Highly acidic soils can also cause the mobilization of heavy metals which have accumulated naturally through the soil formation process or as a consequence of contamination, for example, as a result of atmospheric deposition of industrial emissions. Once mobilized, heavy metals can leach into, and contaminate, surface and groundwaters. Crop growth is dependent upon the availability of plant nutrients such as phosphorus and potassium, therefore maintaining an adequate supply of these and other nutrients in soil is necessary to obtain optimum crop performance. Accumulation can occur where the application of fertilizers and manures is regularly greater than off-take in crops. Yields are likely to be restricted when soils are deficient in these major nutrients even where extra fertilizers are applied within the crop year.
2. Some soils can be naturally contaminated but human activities have increased metal concentrations in many others. Metal-based industries, fossil fuel burning, waste incineration, chemical industries and the use of leaded petrol have all contributed to an increase in the atmospheric deposition of heavy metals and are probably the largest sources of inputs to soils. The spreading of industrial wastes, sewage sludge and river dredging on agricultural land is another source of heavy metal contamination. Sewage sludge is spread on around 1 per cent of total agricultural land, but the amount of sewage sludge applied to land is likely to increase when the dumping of wastes at sea ceases in 1998 because of the requirements of the EC Urban Waste Water Directive. Very high applications of inorganic fertilizer and animal manures can also increase heavy metal concentrations in soils. However, most of the pesticides that contain heavy metals have been withdrawn from use. Once in soils, heavy metals are immobilized almost indefinitely as the natural removal rate is very low. Remedial treatment to reduce contamination levels are available but can be very expensive and therefore requires careful consideration of the potential benefits to be accrued from the costs that will be incurred. Tackling heavy metal contamination in soils therefore highlights the types of choices and issues we face within the context of sustainable development, although it should be recognized that this is a significant problem only in very localized areas.

WASTE

1. Household Waste:

 

2. Industrial and commercial waste

 

 

3. Household waste recycling and composting:

 

 

 

4. Materials recycling:

 

 

 

 

5. Waste going to landfill

1. Indicator shows recent trends in household waste are rising per capita, together with consumer expenditure per capita, and the composition of household waste It is important because sustainable development depends on positive action by individuals as well as by government or industry. Individuals can reduce waste not only directly, by recycling, reusing and composting where possible, but also through their actions as consumers, by buying long-life, re-usable, environmentally friendly products with minimal packaging. Household and similar wastes collected by local authorities also have a relatively high calorific value and are potentially a valuable source of energy.

3. One of the most obvious ways in which households can minimize the amount of waste which has to be disposed of is to recycle items such as paper, glass, plastics, metal and to compost kitchen and garden waste. This indicator, which measures the proportion of household waste recycled, is an important measure of the extent to which individuals are prepared to take action themselves to help the environment. Indicator shows the percentage of household waste in the UK which is recycled or composted together with the target for the year 2000.
4. Indicator shows the amounts of selected scrap metals and other materials recycle since 1984 in the UK as a proportion of consumption. Landfilling and incineration of wastes results in the loss of many tonnes of potentially reusable materials. Recycling of materials can contribute to the conservation of raw materials, reduce pollution from waste disposal and may contribute to reductions in energy use in and pollution from production processes where it replaces virgin materials.
5. Energy from waste: Indicator shows since 1990 energy recovery from waste disposal and treatment processes and energy recovery from landfill gas projects. Where the environmental and economic costs of recycling are high, it may be better to recover energy from waste, either by burning it or by using the methane-rich gas which is generated as organic wastes decompose in landfill sites. Incineration of waste has a number of environmental advantages: it reduces emissions of methane which is a potent greenhouse gas, it reduces by up to 90 per cent the volume of waste which then has to be disposed of, and it converts waste into a material which is less biologically active and poses fewer potential risks for the environment. Using the gas produced in landfill sites reduces emissions of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, reduces local risks of explosion and enhances the restitution of landfill sites to other uses.
6. A wide range of waste types can be landfilled safely and landfill may remain the only option for some inert wastes and for wastes which are difficult to burn or recycle. However, landfill sites do have the potential to release pollutants into the water and soil, and generate significant quantities of methane which is greenhouse gas.

OVERSEAS TRADE

1. UK imports and exports: Indicator shows UK imports and exports of food, wood, basic materials, manufactured goods, leisure travel and other services, and hazardous wastes.

1. It is not possible to encapsulate the issues discussed above in simple quantified indicators. However, in conjunction with the indicators on consumption of UK resources, it is relevant to consider what proportion of the UK's consumption is met by imports and how this is changing, and also how exports contribute to the UK economy.

MINERAL EXTRACTION

1. Aggregates output
2. Aggregates from wastes
3. Mineral workings on land
4. Land covered by restoration/aftercare conditions
5. Reclamation of mineral workings
6. Aggregates dredged from the sea

ACID DEPOSITION

1. Exceedences of provisional critical loads for acidity
2. Power station emissions of sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides
3. Road transport emissions of nitrogen oxides

FORESTRY

1. Forest cover
2. Timber production
3. Ancient semi-natural woodland
4. Tree health
5. Forest management

AIR

1. Ozone concentrations
2. Nitrogen dioxide concentrations
3. Particulate matter concentrations
4. Volatile organic compound emissions
5. Carbon monoxide emissions
6. Black smoke emissions
7. Lead emissions
8. Expenditure on air pollution abatement

OZONE LAYER DEPLETION

1. Calculated chlorine loading
2. Measured ozone depletion
3. Emissions of ozone depleting substances
4. CFCs consumption

FISH RESOURCES

1. Fish stocks
2. Minimum Biological Acceptable Level (MBAL)
3. Fish catches

RADIOACTIVITY

1. Radiation exposure
2. Discharges from nuclear installations and nuclear power generation
3. Radioactive waste arisings and disposal

MARINE

1. Estuarial water quality
2. Concentrations of key pollutants
3. Contaminants in fish
4. Bathing water quality
5. Inputs of contaminants
6. Oil spills and operational discharges