Earth's environment getting worse, not better, says WWF ahead of Rio+20 [View all]

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http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2012/may/15/earth-environment-wwf-rio20?intcmp=122


Rubbish and pollution blight a canal on the outskirts of Beijing. The average Beijinger has a footprint three times the Chinese average, says WWF. Photograph: Mark Ralston/AFP/Getty Images


Twenty years on from the Rio Earth summit, the environment of the planet is getting worse not better, according to a report from WWF.

Swelling population, mass migration to cities, increasing energy use and soaring carbon dioxide emissions mean humanity is putting a greater squeeze on the planet's resources then ever before. Particularly hard hit is the diversity of animals and plants, upon which many natural resources such as clean water are based.

"The Rio+20 conference next month is an opportunity for the world to get serious about the need for development to become sustainable. Our report indicates that we haven't yet done that since the last Rio summit," said David Nussbaum, WWF-UK chief executive.

The latest Living Planet report, published on Tuesday, estimates that global demand for natural resources has doubled since 1996 and that it now takes 1.5 years to regenerate the renewable resources used in one year by humans. By 2030, the report predicts it will take the equivalent of two planets to meet the current demand for resources.