3.1 How driving forces create environmental pressures

The atmosphere, fertile soils, freshwater resources, the oceans, and the ecosystems they support, play a key role in providing humans with shelter, food and safe water, and the capacity to recycle most wastes. However, the pressures exerted by the "driving forces" described in Chapter 2 are in many instances increasing Consequently, air pollution, deforestation, land degradation, deteriorating water quality and biodiversity loss are growing environmental threats (UNEP, 1997a).

Much of the problem lies with the tendency of humans to exploit natural resources with little or no regard to the waste that are produced, or to the effect of such exploitation on local and global ecosystems. Much waste created through our conversion of raw materials into products does not enter the natural cycle, or if it does, causes degradation and pollution. While such resource use has formed the basis of socioeconomic development, and has enabled a part of the global population to benefit from high-level quality of life, the remaining, much larger and more rapidly growing proportion of the global population, must often overexploit what are frequently already very impoverished natural resources in order to satisfy minimum needs. Thus the activities of rich and poor alike risk compromising the quality of life of future generations.