IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/ecomod/v220y2009i20p2819-2823.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

How deep is the footprint? A 3D representation

Author

Listed:
  • Niccolucci, V.
  • Bastianoni, S.
  • Tiezzi, E.B.P.
  • Wackernagel, M.
  • Marchettini, N.

Abstract

Depletion of natural capital stocks and use of natural capital flows are the central issues in the sustainability debate. Differentiation of these two components, considering natural capital and its limits, is important for planning and management of land use. This paper offers insights into this issue and proposes a new perspective of the Ecological Footprint (EF) in three dimensions, considering not only its size but also its depth: according to this viewpoint the footprint is not an area but a volume, although maintaining the same value as the one in two dimensions. Use of annual flows provided by the Earth is represented by the footprint size, expressed in global hectares (gha) and plotted in the (x,y) plane. Footprint depth represents the demand for extra land to meet human needs through depletion of stocks of natural capital. It is plotted on the z-axis. It can be seen as the number of years necessary to regenerate resources liquidated in 1 year (and to absorb the respective wastes) or as the number of planets necessary to support the inhabitants of the planet Earth. The evolution of these two components in the last five decades is studied and discussed.

Suggested Citation

  • Niccolucci, V. & Bastianoni, S. & Tiezzi, E.B.P. & Wackernagel, M. & Marchettini, N., 2009. "How deep is the footprint? A 3D representation," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 220(20), pages 2819-2823.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecomod:v:220:y:2009:i:20:p:2819-2823
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2009.07.018
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0304380009005213
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2009.07.018?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Niccolucci, Valentina & Pulselli, Federico M. & Tiezzi, Enzo, 2007. "Strengthening the threshold hypothesis: Economic and biophysical limits to growth," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 60(4), pages 667-672, February.
    2. Ekins, Paul & Simon, Sandrine & Deutsch, Lisa & Folke, Carl & De Groot, Rudolf, 2003. "A framework for the practical application of the concepts of critical natural capital and strong sustainability," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 44(2-3), pages 165-185, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Yao Lu & Xiaoshun Li & Heng Ni & Xin Chen & Chuyu Xia & Dongmei Jiang & Huiping Fan, 2019. "Temporal-Spatial Evolution of the Urban Ecological Footprint Based on Net Primary Productivity: A Case Study of Xuzhou Central Area, China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(1), pages 1-21, January.
    2. Zhigang Li & Jie Yang & Jialong Zhong & Dong Zhang, 2022. "Assessment of Urban Agglomeration Ecological Sustainability and Identification of Influencing Factors: Based on the 3DEF Model and the Random Forest," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(1), pages 1-15, December.
    3. Shuhui Zhang & Fuquan Li & Yuke Zhou & Ziyuan Hu & Ruixin Zhang & Xiaoyu Xiang & Yali Zhang, 2022. "Using Net Primary Productivity to Characterize the Spatio-Temporal Dynamics of Ecological Footprint for a Resource-Based City, Panzhihua in China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(5), pages 1-14, March.
    4. Ling Li & Xingming Li & Hanghang Fan & Jie Lu & Xiuli Wang & Tianlin Zhai, 2024. "Quantifying and Zoning Ecological Compensation for Cultivated Land in Intensive Agricultural Areas: A Case Study in Henan Province, China," Land, MDPI, vol. 13(10), pages 1-21, October.
    5. Haiqian Ke & Wenyi Yang & Xiaoyang Liu & Fei Fan, 2020. "Does Innovation Efficiency Suppress the Ecological Footprint? Empirical Evidence from 280 Chinese Cities," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(18), pages 1-23, September.
    6. Hua Liu & Xiaofen Lin & Jinhuan Wei & Lei Hu, 2023. "Assessing Environmental Sustainability Based on the Three-Dimensional Emergy Ecological Footprint (3D EEF) Model: A Case Study of Gansu Province, China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(10), pages 1-20, May.
    7. Xiaoyan Cao & Jizong Jiao & Xiuli Liu & Wanyang Zhu & Haoran Wang & Huiqing Hao & Jingtao Lu, 2022. "Establishment of an Ecological Security Pattern under Arid Conditions Based on Ecological Carrying Capacity: A Case Study of Arid Area in Northwest China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(23), pages 1-20, November.
    8. Mengba Liu & Anlu Zhang & Xiong Zhang & Yanfei Xiong, 2022. "Research on the Game Mechanism of Cultivated Land Ecological Compensation Standards Determination: Based on the Empirical Analysis of the Yangtze River Economic Belt, China," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(9), pages 1-29, September.
    9. Niccolucci, V. & Galli, A. & Reed, A. & Neri, E. & Wackernagel, M. & Bastianoni, S., 2011. "Towards a 3D National Ecological Footprint Geography," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 222(16), pages 2939-2944.
    10. Tang, Yuzhi & Wang, Mengdi & Liu, Qian & Hu, Zhongwen & Zhang, Jie & Shi, Tiezhu & Wu, Guofeng & Su, Fenzhen, 2022. "Ecological carrying capacity and sustainability assessment for coastal zones: A novel framework based on spatial scene and three-dimensional ecological footprint model," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 466(C).
    11. Ziheng Li & Yinying Hu, 2022. "Evaluation of the resource-environmental pressure based on the three-dimensional footprint family model: a case study on the Pearl River Delta in China," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 24(5), pages 6788-6803, May.
    12. Hua Liu & Dan-Yang Li & Rong Ma & Ming Ma, 2022. "Assessing the Ecological Risks Based on the Three-Dimensional Ecological Footprint Model in Gansu Province," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(24), pages 1-19, December.
    13. Haiqian Ke & Shangze Dai & Haichao Yu, 2022. "Effect of green innovation efficiency on ecological footprint in 283 Chinese Cities from 2008 to 2018," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 24(2), pages 2841-2860, February.
    14. Decun Wu, 2022. "Multi-Scale Analysis of the Evolution of Jiangsu’s Ecological Footprint Depth and Its Factor Decomposition," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(11), pages 1-20, November.
    15. Ye-Ning Wang & Qiang Zhou & Hao-Wei Wang, 2020. "Assessing Ecological Carrying Capacity in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Based on a Three-Dimensional Ecological Footprint Model," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(22), pages 1-18, November.
    16. Decun Wu & Jinping Liu, 2016. "Multi-Regional Input-Output (MRIO) Study of the Provincial Ecological Footprints and Domestic Embodied Footprints Traded among China’s 30 Provinces," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 8(12), pages 1-31, December.
    17. Yisong Wang & Jincheng Huang & Shiming Fang, 2019. "Sustainability Assessment of Natural Capital Based on the 3D Ecological Footprint Model: A Case Study of the Shennongjia National Park Pilot," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(4), pages 1-17, February.
    18. Huihui Yang & Shuiyu Yan & Na An & Qiang Yao, 2024. "Using Ecological Footprint Analysis to Evaluate Sustainable Development in Lushan County, China," Land, MDPI, vol. 13(7), pages 1-21, July.
    19. Jing Guo, 2022. "Evaluation and Prediction of Ecological Sustainability in the Upper Reaches of the Yellow River Based on Improved Three-Dimensional Ecological Footprint Model," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(20), pages 1-25, October.
    20. Fang, Kai & Heijungs, Reinout & De Snoo, Geert R., 2015. "Understanding the complementary linkages between environmental footprints and planetary boundaries in a footprint–boundary environmental sustainability assessment framework," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 114(C), pages 218-226.
    21. Nicoletta Patrizi & Valentina Niccolucci & Riccardo M. Pulselli & Elena Neri & Simone Bastianoni, 2018. "The Ecological Footprint Accounting of Products: When Larger Is Not Worse," Resources, MDPI, vol. 7(4), pages 1-13, October.
    22. Shanshan Guo & Yinghong Wang & Jiu Huang & Jihong Dong & Jian Zhang, 2021. "Decoupling and Decomposition Analysis of Land Natural Capital Utilization and Economic Growth: A Case Study in Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(2), pages 1-18, January.
    23. Yening Wang & Yuantong Jiang & Yuanmao Zheng & Haowei Wang, 2019. "Assessing the Ecological Carrying Capacity Based on Revised Three-Dimensional Ecological Footprint Model in Inner Mongolia, China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(7), pages 1-18, April.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Galychyn, Oleksandr, 2022. "Towards sustainable cities: A multi-criteria assessment framework for studying urban metabolism," MPRA Paper 121584, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 11 May 2022.
    2. Scott Duke Kominers & Alexander Teytelboym & Vincent P Crawford, 2017. "An invitation to market design," Oxford Review of Economic Policy, Oxford University Press and Oxford Review of Economic Policy Limited, vol. 33(4), pages 541-571.
    3. Daniel Buda & Hoinaru Razvan & Mocanu Mihaela & Roman Aureliana-Geta, 2019. "IAS 41 and beyond for a sustainable EU agriculture," Proceedings of the International Conference on Business Excellence, Sciendo, vol. 13(1), pages 829-839, May.
    4. Genesis T. Yengoh & Frederick Ato Armah & Edward Ebo Onumah, 2010. "Paths to Attaining Food Security: The Case of Cameroon," Challenges, MDPI, vol. 1(1), pages 1-22, August.
    5. Margherita Casini & Francesca Gagliardi & Gianni Betti, 2018. "Sustainable Development Goals indicators: a methodological proposal for a fuzzy Super Index in the Mediterranean area," Department of Economics University of Siena 782, Department of Economics, University of Siena.
    6. Sylvie Ferrari & Sébastien Lavaud & Jean-Christophe Pereau, 2012. "Critical natural capital, ecological resilience and sustainable wetland management: a french case study," Post-Print hal-00799051, HAL.
    7. Sharmila Moganadas & Victor Corral-Verdugo & Santhi Ramanathan, 2013. "Toward systemic campus sustainability: gauging dimensions of sustainable development via a motivational and perception-based approach," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 15(6), pages 1443-1464, December.
    8. Baumgärtner, Stefan & Quaas, Martin F., 2009. "Ecological-economic viability as a criterion of strong sustainability under uncertainty," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 68(7), pages 2008-2020, May.
    9. Silvio Franco & Barbara Pancino & Angelo Martella, 2021. "Mapping National Environmental Sustainability Distribution by Ecological Footprint: The Case of Italy," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(15), pages 1-14, August.
    10. Dietz, Simon & Neumayer, Eric, 2007. "Weak and strong sustainability in the SEEA: Concepts and measurement," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 61(4), pages 617-626, March.
    11. Kasztelan Armand, 2014. "A comparative analysis of Lubelskie and Kujawsko-Pomorskie voivodships in the context of environmental competitiveness of regions," Bulletin of Geography. Socio-economic Series, Sciendo, vol. 23(23), pages 87-96, March.
    12. Aleksandra Pieloch-Babiarz & Anna Misztal & Magdalena Kowalska, 2021. "An impact of macroeconomic stabilization on the sustainable development of manufacturing enterprises: the case of Central and Eastern European Countries," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 23(6), pages 8669-8698, June.
    13. Jean-François Ruault & Alice Dupré La Tour & André Evette & Sandrine Allain & Jean-Marc Callois, 2022. "A biodiversity-employment framework to protect biodiversity," Post-Print hal-03365820, HAL.
    14. Beça, Pedro & Santos, Rui, 2010. "Measuring sustainable welfare: A new approach to the ISEW," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 69(4), pages 810-819, February.
    15. Mehmet Ünal & Fatma Ünal, 2022. "Ecological Footprint Reduction Behaviors of Individuals in Turkey in the Context of Ecological Sustainability," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(1), pages 1-19, December.
    16. Zhicheng Lai & Lei Li & Zhuomin Tao & Tao Li & Xiaoting Shi & Jialing Li & Xin Li, 2023. "Spatio-Temporal Evolution and Influencing Factors of Ecological Well-Being Performance from the Perspective of Strong Sustainability: A Case Study of the Three Gorges Reservoir Area, China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(3), pages 1-25, January.
    17. Maria Carmela Aprile & Damiano Fiorillo, 2016. "Water Conservation Behavior and Environmental Concerns," Discussion Papers 6_2016, CRISEI, University of Naples "Parthenope", Italy.
    18. Jukka Mähönen, 2020. "Comprehensive Approach to Relevant and Reliable Reporting in Europe: A Dream Impossible?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(13), pages 1-38, June.
    19. Devenin, Verónica, 2021. "Collaborative community development in mining regions: The Calama Plus and Creo Antofagasta programs in Chile," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 70(C).
    20. Comte, Adrien & Sylvie Campagne, C. & Lange, Sabine & Bruzón, Adrián García & Hein, Lars & Santos-Martín, Fernando & Levrel, Harold, 2022. "Ecosystem accounting: Past scientific developments and future challenges," Ecosystem Services, Elsevier, vol. 58(C).

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:ecomod:v:220:y:2009:i:20:p:2819-2823. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.journals.elsevier.com/ecological-modelling .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.