As every year, Luxembourg was the lowest ranked country in the American association Global Footprint Network. The network calculates the "overshoot day", the date on which humanity has exhausted the resources that the planet can renew in one year. Only Qatar does worse than Luxembourg, reaching that day on 10 February.
In 2022, if every inhabitant of the planet consumed like a Luxembourger, the day of the overrun would be Monday 14 February. Only Qatar does worse (10 February). (Illustration: Global Footprint Network)
This date is much earlier than the actual day of the global overrun, which in 2021 was on 29 July. It would therefore take about 1.7 planet Earths to be in ecological balance at the global level, but more than eight planets if each inhabitant consumed as much as a Luxembourger.
Partial indicator
However, these figures must be put into perspective. The size of Luxembourg partly explains the country's very poor ranking. The phenomenon of cross-border commuters and ‘petrol station tourism’, for example, represent in terms of ecological footprint, the equivalent of two planets out of the eight, explained the president of the Higher Council for Sustainable Development (CSDD), , in an .
Of the remaining six planets, 60% of the footprint would be due to fossil fuels. Here too, the details are important: exports from the industrial sector should be deducted from the calculation. However, this is not the case for tyres or steel, which are mainly exported, but are nevertheless attributed to Luxembourgers. The same applies to the services sector, which is very energy-intensive but also exports.
Although it is "useful", this indicator remains "incomplete", says Poulles. He nevertheless recognises that, although the ecological footprint may represent four planets instead of eight, the conclusion remains the same: "In all cases, we overconsume.”
This story was first published in French on . It has been translated and edited for Delano.