ABSTRACT
So far, the policy context of our prior analyses has been largely one of achieving sustainability in an individual economy. As illustrated in previous chapters, the premise for such an achievement rests on minimising excessive rates of KN utilisation so that a constant stock of KN can always be maintained. The significant difficulty with a steady state for KN, apart from issues pertaining to the composition of the constant stock, is that KN stocks are not readily delineated by geographic boundaries. Even moderate rates of KN utilisation in one economy could threaten the sustainability of another economy because of the continuity of KN across nation-states and the difference in degree of vulnerability of KN across this continuum. For example, the draining of peat swamp forests for timber harvesting in Indonesia generates significant amounts of greenhouse gas emissions due to the mere exposure of peat soils to the sun. The resulting haze does not blanket much of Indonesia but other parts of South East Asia instead, due to the direction of wind movements during periods of the specific forestry management practices. The issue of transboundary pollution is widespread across the world and pertains to all types of KN-sinks: atmospheric, as well as surface and subsurface land, rivers, lakes, and oceans. The study of global ecosystems reveals that the emergence of endangered species in one location may be propelled by loss of habitats several thousand kilometres away. Numerous examples of this kind clearly indicate that changes in KN stocks are in fact powerful manifestations of globalisation and global connectivity.
