The Mediterranean Region Uses More Resources Than It Has at Its Disposal

Having spent two years looking into how various human communities in the Mediterranean region make use of the natural resources they have at their disposal, the Global Footprint Network released a new report stating that, should things continue to unfold in this manner, both economic and social stability are pretty much compromised.

According to the researchers who worked on developing this report, people living in the Mediterranean region are currently using 150% more resources that the environment has to offer them.

In other words, they are abusing surrounding ecosystems and it will not be long until they begin to experience the consequences of this unfortunate status quo.

The World Wildlife Fund informs us that the Mediterranean region witnessed this considerable increase in its ecological footprint as a result of the fact that its overall human population tripled in a relatively short period of time: between 1961-2008.

Although most of the people inhabiting the Mediterranean countries targeted by this report went through the trouble of upping their renewable energy industry, the fact remains that local resources were still far too limited for them to rely entirely on this power source.

As a result, they began to overexploit ecosystems and thus boosted their ecological deficit by 230%.

The report claims that, at least for the time being, Montenegro is the only country that seems to have managed to avoid a debtor status, and stuck to being an ecological creditor.

Commenting on the findings of this study, the World Wildlife Fund Director for the Mediterranean region, Paolo Lombardi, made a case of how, “It is vital that our societies recognize that investing now in tackling environmental issues and safeguarding natural capital in the Mediterranean will sow the seeds for sustainable economies in the future.”

Furthermore, “Sustainable economies, security and cultural dialogue won't be achieved without a healthy Mediterranean environment.”