ABSTRACT
The first chapter defines categories of sustainability for integrative measurement. An overuse of natural resources caused the collapse of ancient societies. Depletion of fossil fuels is still a significant environmental concern, but newer threats of nuclear accidents, loss of genetic resources and pollution have emerged. Environmentalists see these impacts as a threat to the natural environment and the sustainability of human health and wellbeing. Environmental statistics and indicators describe the trends of the interaction between the environment and the economy. They cannot confirm if, when and where the environmental impacts of economic activity become unsustainable.
