ECOLOGICAL FOOTPRINT OF LIVING CONSUMPTION PER CAPITA IN METROPOLIS: A CASE STUDY OF BEIJING AND SHANGHAI
大城市居民生活消费的生态占用初探——对北京、上海的案例研究

Ecological footprint is suggested to offer a conceptual framework and methodology to evaluate sustainability. The ecological footprint is described with the area of productive areas and water ecosystems, which is necessary to produce the resources that people consume and to assimilate the wastes that people output.The ecological footprint of major living consumption per capita in Beijing and Shanghai in 1999 is presented in this paper. First, the consumption is estimated for each relevant category, which includes food, clothing, household facility, fuel and housing. Second, the productive area is estimated for different land categories. The productive land area, including fossil energy land, arable land, pasture, forest, built up areas and sea, are calculated with average yields and adjusted with equivalence factor. Finally, all area figures are summed. The results indicate that the ecological footprint per capita in Beijing and Shanghai is 1.62 hm 2 and 1.33 hm 2, respectively. The differences of ecosystem footprint between Beijing and Shanghai can be ascribed to the diverse living habits and customs within two cities. To accommodate the urban residents, the ecological footprint for Beijing and Shanghai would be 22 and 57 times larger than their territories. Accordingly, it is apparent that city is the area of ecological deficit, and the ecosystems upon which the residents depend are beyond their home territories. Therefore, to develop the sustainable city, we should consider the capacities of ecosystems and advocate the ecological ways of life and consumption.