The limits of the productive capacity of ecosystems

In a letter to Science published today, Karl-Heinz Erb from the Institute of Social Ecology Vienna and a number of co-authors discuss how the measurement of biomass production and consumption can be used to gain a better understanding of the limits of the productive capacity of ecosystems.

Future growth of population and GDP are challenged byglobal biophysical limits, such as the scarcity of resources (land, energy, raw materials) as well as the limited capacity of the biosphere to cope with end products (e.g. greenhouse gas emissions). One promising indicator, which is frequently mentioned in this context, and is the subject of research at the Alpen-Adria-Universität, is the human utilization, or "appropriation" of net primary production (HANPP); that is, of the biomass production of green plants. Biomass represents the basis for all human and animal food chains. Furthermore, biomass is not only a source of energy, but also plays a significant role for the carbon sequestration of ecosystems.

In a current letter to the editor of Science, Karl-Heinz Erb from the Institute of Social Ecology at the Alpen-Adria-Universität joins two AAU colleagues and an international group of colleagues in a discussion of how the measurement of biomass production and consumption can be used to gain a better understanding of the "productive capacity of ecosystems." "We identify the factors -- for example, land use intensity -- which are important for a clearer grasp of the global limits of the productive capacity of ecosystems," Karl-Heinz Erb explains.