IS SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT ENVIRONMENTALLY SUSTAINABLE?

摘要

The term sustainable development has been widely and often unquestioningly accepted by environmental managers. It is sometimes said to be a framework for policy and it resounds when used in conferences and seminars like an 'Amen' in church. Nobody dare question its sanctity, indeed the word sustainable has been added to phrases, stealthily integrated into political jargon, and infiltrated into project descriptions, as if to add some spurious eco-validity. But what does it really mean? Is it a synonym for environmental protection, and can sustainable development be shown to be environmentally sustainable? Repeating the phrase is not enough. Nowhere has sustainable development been contrasted with environmental sustainability, but nowhere is this distinction more important than in waste management.