Amid Drought, Think Tanks Warn Of U.S. 'Eco Deficit'

The U.S. deficit gets voters riled up all over the country. Can the so-called “ecological deficit” do the same?

The nation reached a milestone last month: It hit an ecological deficit, according to a new paper by think tanks Global Footprint Network and Earth Economics. Water scarcity, drought, and rapid use of water resources are chief parts of the problem.

According to these groups, July 14 marked “the date the United States has busted its annual ecological budget, utilizing more resources and services than U.S. ecosystems can regenerate within the full year.”

In other words, “everything from [July 14] until December 31 is deficit environmental spending,” Fortune reported, citing the research paper. The U.S. ranks as the third wealthiest country in the world for natural resources, behind Brazil and China. But the States “are using resources nearly twice as fast as they can be naturally sustained.”

Water was a major part of the groups’ calculation.

Water scarcity threatens our ecological assets. Climate change is contributing to drought, particularly in California. Some states with the greatest natural capital wealth, including Texas and Michigan, are vulnerable to drought and water shortages, which then reduce the productivity of crop and grazing lands. An analysis of baseline water stress shows states in the western half of the United States are likely to face the greatest competition for water.

In California, for instance, the drought is exacerbating the problem. The state is “using resources eight times faster than they can be renewed and in the midst of a severe drought. According to the report, it would take eight Californias to support the state’s large population, voracious appetite for water, and carbon footprint. But Texas and Florida also have high ecological deficits,” Fortune reported.

How is an ecological deficit calculated? The research report states:

Just as a bank statement tracks income against expenditures, Global Footprint Network measures a population’s demand for and ecosystems’ supply of resources and services. On the supply side, a city, state, or nation’s biocapacity represents its biologically productive land and sea area, including forest lands, grazing lands, cropland, fishing grounds, and built-up land. On the demand side, the Ecological Footprint measures a population’s demand for plant-based food and fiber products, livestock and fish products, timber and other forest products, space for urban infrastructure, and forest to absorb its carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels. Both measures are expressed in global acres—globally comparable, standardized acres with world average productivity.

The groups believe that raising awareness through papers like this one is a key part of the solution, according to David Batker, executive director of Earth Economics.

“People need nature. Economies need nature. Securing prosperity in the 21st century requires using informed measures, like the Ecological Footprint, to improve policy, shift investment and fix our ecological budget,” he said.  “This report reveals problems and provides solutions.”

For more drought stories, visit Water Online’s Water Scarcity Solutions Center.