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20
GREEN ECONOMY
Challenges and
opportunities
Delineations of a
green economy
Helena Pavese
Greener agriculture ensures food supply for a growing global population
without harming the resource base of this sector. This can be done through
the transition from industrial and subsistence agricultural practices to more
sustainable models, with more efficient use of water, extensive use of organic
or natural soil nutrients and integrated pest control 12 .
The transition to a green economy also requires strengthened
institutions and the development of infrastructure in rural areas of
developing countries. This aspect includes the removal of ecologically
perverse subsidies and the promotion of regulatory reform that incorporates
the cost of degradation into food and commodity prices 13 .
Greening agriculture in developing countries, concentrating on small
properties, can reduce poverty while permitting investment in natural
capital on which the poorest depend. The adoption of sustainable practices
(such as agroforestry, integrated management of nutrients and pests) is one of
the most efficient ways to increase the availability of food and facilitate access
to emerging international markets for green products. Adopting such practices
can move agriculture from the position as major greenhouse gas emitter to a
neutral position, and also contribute to reducing deforestation and water use
by 55% and 35%, respectively 14 .
Water
The growing scarcity of water can be mitigated through fomentation
policies and investments aimed at improving the provision and efficiency
of water use 15 .
Investments in the provision of drinking water and sanitation services
for the poor represent a great opportunity to accelerate the transition to
a green economy in many developing countries. Annual investments of
0.15% of the global GDP would enable global water use to be maintained at
sustainable levels as well as the achievement of the Millennium Development
Goals related to water by 2015 16 .
The supply of jobs in the water sector would suffer temporary
adjustments due to the necessity of recovering water resources.
Improvements in efficiency and reductions in consumption would reduce
total water consumption by 20% and employment opportunities by 25% by
2050 compared to current rates. However, such forecasts do not capture new
Nº 8 • June 2011
11. UNEP (2011b), p.6.
12. UNEP (2011b). p.7.
13. UNEP (2011b). p.7.
14. UNEP (2011b). p.9.
15. UNEP (2011b). p.8.
16. UNEP (2011b). p.10.