São Paulo’s Ecological Footprint The state of São Paulo’s average Ecological Footprint is 3.52 global hectares per capita and that of its capital city, 4.38 gha/cap. It means that if everyone on the planet were to consume the way the inhabitants of São Paulo state do, then two planets would be needed to sustain their lifestyle and if they consumed like people in the capital city do, then almost two and a half planets would be needed. The Ecological Footprint of the city of São Paulo is 49% bigger than the Brazilian average and 25% bigger than that of São Paulo state. In turn, the state’s Ecological Footprint is 20% larger than the Brazilian national average, which is 2.93 global hectares per person. It should be noted that the pattern of footprint composition among the various categories maintains the same proportion as the Brazilian national pattern that is to say there is a strong demand for grazing land, agriculture land and forests. Brazilians have a smaller demand for CO2 absorption areas as compared to the global average due to the lower levels of emissions associated to the energy matrix and the intense use of biofuels in mobile sources of emissions (Figure 18). Figure 18: Ecological Footprint by ecological resource categories (gha/cap)
5,00 4,50 4,00 3,50
Key
3,00 2,50
Energy and CO2 Absorption
2,00
Built up Areas Fisheries Forests
1,50 1,00
Pastures Agriculture
0,50 0.0 Cidade de São Paulo
Estado de São Paulo
Brasil
Mundo
The Ecological Footprints of São Paulo – State and Capital 2012 p.
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