Sustainability

Sustainability

These pages provide a short introduction to the measures, targets and requirements for sustainable development that should be observed on the government's civil estate. These summaries link through to more detailed information published on the relevant government websites.

Sustainable development is a process for the achievement of a balance between social progress, economic stability and caring for the environment. A widely recognised and accepted definition of sustainability is:

"Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs."¹

While the drive for sustainability on the government estate intends to achieve this balance, the departmental targets and requirements have a focus on reducing the government's environmental impact.

The key sustainability themes for the government estate are:

• Climate change and energy - including carbon emission reduction, energy efficiency and renewable energy;
• Natural resource protection - including water conservation and the protection of biodiversity;
• Sustainable consumption and production - including waste reduction and recycling

There are a number of targets and requirements that Government departments must adhere to under each heading, linked to above, as well as some more general requirements.

^{1 "Our Common Future: The UN World Commission on Environment & Development", Dr Gro Harlem, 1987}