International Conference on Engineering Education in Sustainable Development EESD2004 D. Ferrer-Balas, K. F. Mulder, J. Bruno and R. Sans (Eds.) © CIMNE and UPC Barcelona, 2004 Sustainability: necessity for a prosperous society Prof. Dr. J.T.F. Fokkema Delft University of Technology INTRODUCTION Ladies and Gentlemen, the Netherlands is often seen as one of the leading nations in sustainability issues. In 1972 most copies of the report of The Club of Rome were sold in Japan and in the Netherlands. Does this mean that the Japanese and the Dutch were gentler towards the environment than other people? The attitude towards Sustainability in these countries is probably not caused by a moral superiority or an over average cosmopolitism of its inhabitants. Sustainability is a necessity for these densely populated countries, with a very high standard of living, that depend so much on external resources, but that are thereby also very vulnerable. The Netherlands is more or less an experimental area in Sustainability and I will first explain why. THE NETHERLANDS IN SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT The specific situation of the Netherlands with respect to the environment creates a great sense of urgency. In the Netherlands the combination of • a high population density • a relative high level of welfare and • its delta character results in the highest burden on the environment per surface area. As a nation the Netherlands have: • The highest GNP, the highest energy use, the greatest number of cars, the greatest length of highways and (until recently) the greatest number of pigs per square km • An economy which depends for 50 % on import/export. Raw materials are imported and products are exported while the wastes in between remain in the Netherlands. A striking example is pigs breeding: soya fodder is imported from South America and Asia and pigs meat is exported keeping an enormous quantity of manure threatening soil and groundwater inland. • The geography of The Netherlands as a delta means a very vulnerable soil, which is easily poisoned once waste is deposited. Moreover much waste is “imported” by the rivers from upstream countries. This poisons the sludge that settles in riverbeds and harbours. In the sixties and seventies of the last century the Dutch situation seemed to be rather unique. Nowadays we know that with growing world and national economies this pattern can be found in many densely populated areas giving rise to global messages of concern, global threats and global challenges as described in “Our Common Future” the report of the World Commission on Environment and Development (1987).