The
last centuries have been a period of rapid global industrialization.
Progress in science and technology enabled a large part of human
population to achieve a relatively high living standard. Health
conditions have improved, life expectancy grew, the consumption of
food and material foods increased. It is accompanied by a fast
population growth. In 1950 there were 2.5 billion people in the
world. Over the next 36 years this number doubled. The prognoses say
that the world population will reach 10 billion already in 2025.
Connected with this is the increased use of non-renewable resources.
It pertains not only to energy, but also to almost all non-renewable
natural resources. In the United States between 1950 and 1990 more
fossil fuels were consumed than in the whole human history before. At
present, Japan uses 5 times more energy and 25 times more steel than
40 years ago. Such an intensive human activity leads to a rapid
exhaustion of easily available and cheap resources. As they are used
up, less easily available resources are exploited, causing the costs
of satisfying the growing needs to increase.
Continuing in the
present manner of production and living must lead to irreversible
damage to Earth as an acquiescent place to live that it is now. In
times when energy deficit, scarcity of mineral resources and food,
and deterioration of the natural environment and the quality of life
become real, there is a need to introduce radical changes in social
attitudes.
The need to ensure sustainable development of the
world for the benefit of future generations, to protect natural
resources, climate and every person’s right to breathe clean air is
pronounced in national legislation. The Constitution of the Republic
of Poland (of 1997) in Article 5 states:
"The
Republic of Poland… shall ensure the protection of the natural
environment pursuant to the principles of sustainable
development."
In
the environmental protection law, the following definition of
sustainable development can be found :
"Sustainable
development is such socio-economic development that involves the
process of integration of politico-economic activities and social
behavior with preservation of natural balance and durability of basic
environmental processes – to equalize the chances of access to the
environment of particular societies and citizens – of the present
and future generations ."