Footprint North West

The report calculates the ecological footprint (EF) of the North West region of England, finding it to be 6.2 global hectares (gha) per capita. This level of consumption would require more than three planets if adopted globally. The study identifies food consumption, construction, and transport as the primary drivers of the region's environmental impact, with food being the largest single EF component. It proposes 'Factor Four' efficiency scenarios to reduce these impacts by 2020 and 2050.

• The total ecological footprint of the North West region in 2000 was 43 million global hectares (gha), which is 30 times larger than the region's actual land area of 1.4 million hectares.
• On a per capita basis, the North West's footprint is 6.2 gha/cap, matching the UK average but remaining lower than the South East's 6.8 gha/cap. This consumption level exceeds the global capacity of 1.9 gha per person, implying a need for more than three planets to sustain such lifestyles globally.
• Household food and drink consumption is the largest single component of the regional ecological footprint at 1.4 gha per person, with animal products accounting for 67% of this total.
• The construction sector is the second largest footprint component at 1.0 gha/cap and the most mass-intensive sector, accounting for 53% of the region's direct material consumption (DMC) and 43% of its total material consumption (TMC).
• Transport is the largest contributor to carbon dioxide emissions, with passenger and freight transport combined producing 4.3 tonnes of CO2 per person (30 million tonnes total). Freight transport is particularly impactful, accounting for 63% of these emissions.
• The region's consumption-based CO2 emissions (125 million tonnes per year) are more than double the emissions from direct production within the region (53.6 million tonnes per year).
• Direct Material Consumption (DMC) for the region was 66 million tonnes (9.5 tonnes per person), while Total Material Consumption (TMC), including hidden flows, reached 160 million tonnes (23 tonnes per person).
• In the service sector, land footprints (55%) are higher than energy footprints (45%), primarily due to high paper consumption in banking, finance, insurance, and public services.
• The report suggests a 'Factor Four' target for several sectors, aiming for a 75% reduction in ecological footprint by 2050 for food, manufactured goods, and construction, while suggesting more aggressive 'Factor 8' (87%) reductions for utilities and services.

APA

Birch, R., Ravetz, J., & Wiedmann, T. (n.d.). Footprint North West. Stockholm Environment Institute. https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Future/footprint_north_west.pdf

Chicago

Birch, Rachel, Joe Ravetz, and Tommy Wiedmann. Footprint North West. Stockholm Environment Institute, n.d. https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Future/footprint_north_west.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Birch |first1=Rachel |last2=Ravetz |first2=Joe |last3=Wiedmann |first3=Tommy |title=Footprint North West |publisher=Stockholm Environment Institute |url=https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Future/footprint_north_west.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{birchndfootprint, author = {Birch, Rachel and Ravetz, Joe and Wiedmann, Tommy}, title = {{Footprint North West}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, url = {https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Future/footprint_north_west.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }