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Chapter 15

Effects of economic activity

2.1 Economoc activity

Economic activity is only sustainable where its impact on society and the
environment is also sustainable

2.2 Environmental footprint

An attempt to evaluate the size of a company’s impact on the environment in three
respects:

 company’s resource consumption.

 harm to the environment brought about by pollution emissions.

 measurement of the resource consumption and pollution emissions in terms of
harm to the environment in either qualitative, quantitative or replacement terms.

NB Where resource use exceeds provision, then the activity can be termed
unsustainable.

2.3 Social footprint

Evaluates sustainability in three areas of capital

 Human Capital – personal health, knowledge, skills, experience that individuals
have and use to take effective action.

 Social Capital – networks of people and the mutually-held knowledge and skills
they have and use in order to take effective action.

 Constructed Capital – material things, such as tools, technologies, roads,
utilities, infrastructures, etc., that people produce and use in order to take
effective action.

Illustrations and further practice

Now read illustration 2 and try TYU question 1

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