Full Report - Subregional Office for East and North-East Asia - escap

THE STATE OF INCLUSIVE AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN UNCERTAIN TIMES CHAPTER 1
primary forests, the highest proportion in the world,
and three times the global proportion. South-East
Asia has lost 13% of its forest area over the past
20 years, with the net loss of forest amounting to
an area roughly equal to the size of Viet Nam.
Of particular concern in the context of climate risks
is the intensity of water requirements. Because of
the heavy dependence of economies of the region
on agriculture, the water intensity of most Asia-
Pacific subregions far exceeds the global figure
(see figure 1.27). This signals continued pressures
on water resources, vulnerability of these economies
to drought, and declining capacity of freshwater
systems to meet ecosystem services requirements,
including the provision of food to rural communities.
While growing affluence is mainly to blame for
environmental pressures related to resource use,
persistent inequality with regard to the lack of access
to basic services is also a factor. Some 800 million
people are without access to modern forms of energy,
mainly in rural areas. Specifically, the lack of access
to electricity limits overall socioeconomic progress
and perpetuates a vicious cycle in which the need
for wood and other biomass-based forms of energy
promotes extraction from the natural environment.
This problem is particularly prominent in South Asia,
where the annual extraction of wood for fuel wood
use has stayed relatively constant for the last forty
years, in contrast to declining rates in other regions,
and is linked to the low levels of access to modern
forms of energy in that subregion. 17
The perception that intensive resource
use and environmental degradation are
acceptable phenomena is imposing
significant socioeconomic costs
The perception that intensive resource use and
environmental degradation are acceptable phenomena
in a “grow now, clean up later” approach to
development is imposing significant socioeconomic
costs – costs that are most often borne by the
most vulnerable in society. Extensive deforestation
was partially blamed for the flood crisis of 2010 in
Pakistan that affected one and a half million people.
One out of four deaths globally is attributable
to environmental causes, such as polluted air,
contaminated water and lack of adequate sanitation
(WHO, 2006b). According to a World Bank estimate,
China is losing about 5.8% of its GDP due to air
and water pollution (World Bank, 2007). In India,
2.6 million premature deaths a year are related
to air pollution, contaminated drinking water and
other environmental risks (López, Thomas and
Wang, 2008).
Extreme weather events, which may be related to
climate change, add to these costs. While the region
generates 25% of the world’s GDP, it has suffered
Figure 1.27. Water intensity, Asia and the Pacific and its subregions, 2000
World
Asia and the Pacific
Pacific
North and Central Asia
South and
South-West Asia
South-East Asia
East and
North-East Asia
0.00 0.20 0.40 0.60 0.80 1.00 1.20
Cubic metres per US dollar
Sources: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation and UNEP Asia Pacific Material Flows database.
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