City-Level Decoupling-Full Report

City-Level Decoupling: Urban resource flows and the governance of infrastructure transitions

2 D ecoupling, material flows, and infrastructure

2.1 Introduction The existing literature on cities demonstrates that many things need to be done differently if urban poverty and inequalities are to be reduced within a context of finite resources. The rapid influx of predominantly poor people to under- prepared cities of the global South raises questions as to how this mass of people will access the goods and services associated with a better quality of life in the city. Resource- and energy-intensive approaches to the provision and extension of services are not sustainable, and a significant change in the way resources are used is required so that more can be achieved with what is available in the interests of greater equity and lower environmental impact. This chapter summarizes the concept of decoupling as a means of addressing this challenge. Following a basic explanation of the two types of decoupling, it considers the role cities could play in facilitating reductions in global resource use in line with planetary limits. It introduces 'urban material flows' as a useful method for identifying areas for potential intervention on a city level, and emphasizes the need for investment to change the way cities function in relation to natural resources. 2.2 Material flows and decoupling At the start of the 21 st century, total raw material extraction is estimated to have been between 47 and 59 billion metric tons

per annum. 3 Between 1900 and 2005, global material resource use increased by a factor of 8, almost twice as fast as the rate at which the global population grew. Construction materials increased by a factor of 34, while industrial minerals and ores grew by a factor of 27 and fossil fuels grew by a factor of 12. Despite a fourfold increase in population over the period, biomass extraction only increased 3.6 times (though from a higher baseline). Biomass’s share of total material use has dropped significantly from three-quarters to one-third, indicating a significant growth of non-renewable resources over the past century (Figure 2.1). Average per capita resource consumption around the world is currently around 8 tons per annum, about 22 kg per person per day; extraction increases to about 40 kg of resources per day if that which is extracted but goes unused is included. This average figure masks significant variation in the quantities and types of resources extracted and consumed across continents and countries, and between individuals within countries. Considering extraction alone, Oceania extracts the most resources per capita, equating to 158 kg per day in 2000. This is followed by North America with around 68 kg, Latin America with 41 kg, Europe with 36 kg and Africa and Asia with around 15 kg per day. 4 UNEP’s International Resource Panel has been promoting the term 'decoupling' as a way to describe the efforts to break the causal link between economic prosperity and the depletion of finite resources and degradation of environments. The term

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