CBCGDF Sustainable Diet Manual Cases (1)
2019/5/26 12:17:00 本站

Case 1 Water resource/Food bubbles

 

The problem of over-exploitation of groundwater in North China has a long history and has received international attention. In 2018, Swiss groundwater expert Wolfgang Kinzelbach described the North China Granary as a “food bubble” and pointed out that this long-term over-exploitation must be unsustainable.

 

The North China Plain has already overcharged more than 100 billion cubic meters of groundwater. If it relies on natural circulation to supplement these groundwaters, it will take at least 10,000 years. In response to this problem, in February 2019, the Ministry of Water Resources, the Ministry of Finance, the National Development and Reform Commission, and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs jointly issued the Action Plan for Comprehensive Management of Groundwater Over-exploitation in North China. This program hopes to achieve the balance of groundwater recovery, reduce the intensity of water resources development in river basins and regions, effectively solve the problem of over-exploitation of groundwater in North China, and provide water security for the sustainable development of economy and society.

 

China Biodiversity Conservation and Green Development Foundation (CBCGDF) also believes that it is also necessary to strengthen environmental education and advocate public saving of food. The “food is cheap” concept produced in the industrial age is an illusion because people cannot calculate the resource and environmental costs of producing food. Therefore, “Every grain is the product of toiling” means not only the labor cost, but also the cost of environmental resources, and the cost of intergenerational equity. CBCGDF believes that we should not be satisfied with the rich appearance of material life but should be aware of the crisis of environmental resources around us. As early as 1987, the earth has entered the "overdraft mode"; and the situation is getting worse and worse, people may not realize that the “Earth Overshoot Day” of every year is coming earlier and earlier.

 

Therefore, we need to be aware of this severe shortage of environmental resources, educate the younger generation, and pursue green, sustainable production and lifestyle. We must form a spatial pattern and an industrial structure that conserves resources and protects the environment. Starting from our daily life, we will return harmony and beauty to nature.


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By / Niu Jingmei