Sector Definitions of Sustainable Development
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Definitions of sustainable
development for specific industries and professions provide helpful guidelines |
Building and Construction
Coffee, tea and chocolate are consumed in large quantities in
developed countries, mostly with temperate climates, but grown by developing countries in
warmer climates. The value of these crops remain much the same as they were in the 1950s,
but the cost of fertilisers, pesticides and machinery, imported from the rich countries
has increased substantially. Sometimes farmers have to sell at prices that do not cover
their production costs, resulting in massive debts for millions.
To counter this trend, development agencies buy direct from
farmers at better prices and market the products through their own worldwide network of
shops and catalogues. This has enabled many farmers to recover from their debts without
making the consumer pay more for the goods. To get the goods into supermarkets the concept
of fairtrade has been developed. If manufacturers buy from registered suppliers they may
use the Fairtrade label. Some 17 countries in Europe and north America now sell Fairtrade
products such as coffee, drinking chocolate, chocolate bars, orange juice, tea, honey,
sugar and bananas.
Fishing (Source: Marine Stewardship Council
brochure April 1999)
The Marine Stewardship
Council (MSC) answers the question "what is sustainable fishing?" and sets
out five steps towards it.
| What is sustainable fishing? |
Five steps to sustainable
fishing |
Sustainable fishing:
- allows target fish populations to recover at healthy levels
from past depletion
- maintains and seeks to maximise the ecological health and
abundance of marine fish
- maintains the diversity and structure of the marine eco-system
on which it ultimately depends
- conforms to all local, national and international laws and
regulations
|
- After international consultation, the MSC has developed a
standard for sustainable fishing (The Principles and Criteria for Sustainable Fishing)
- Fisheries can volunteer to be assessed against the standard
- Independent bodies will certify whether a fishery complies to
MSC's sustainable standard
- Companies that process or sell fish from these sustainable
fisheries will be able to carry the MSC logo on their fish products
- Consumers will be able to buy clearly labelled fish products
in the knowledge that they come from sustainable sources.
|
Forestry (Source: Forest Stewardship Council web site)
The Forest Stewardship Council's (FSC) Principles of
Sustainable Forestry can be summarised as:
- Compliance with Laws and FSC Principles:
respecting national laws, signed international treaties and FSC principles
- Tenure and use Rights and Responsibilities: defining,
documenting and establishing legally all land use rights
- Indigenous Peoples' Rights: recognising and
respecting legal and customary rights of of indigenous peoples
- Community Relations and Worker's Rights:
maintaining and enhancing the long-term social and economic well-being of forest workers
and local communities
- Benefits from the forest: encouraging the
efficient use of the forest's multiple products and services to benefit people,
environment & economy
- Environmental impact: conserving biological
diversity and associated values - soil, water, ecosystems and landscapes
- Management plan: keeping up-to-date a written
plan that is implemented
- Monitoring and assessment: monitoring forest
condition, yields, custody, management activities, social and environmental impact -
appropriate to the scale and intensity of the operations
- Maintenance of Natural Forests: conserving
primary forests, well-developed secondary forests and sites of major environmental, social
or cultural significance, so that they are not replaced by tree plantations or other land
use
- Plantations: planning and managing in
accordance with FSC Principles and Criteria 1 to 9, to reduce pressure on and restore
natural forests.
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Last modified 6 May 1999