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82<br />

Box I.8<br />

THE ECO-EFFICIENCY OF URBAN INFRASTRUCTURE<br />

As defined by <strong>the</strong> World Business Council for Sustainable Development, “eco-efficiency is achieved by <strong>the</strong> delivery<br />

of competitively-priced goods and services that satisfy human needs and bring quality of life, while progressively<br />

reducing ecological impacts and resource intensity throughout <strong>the</strong> life cycle to a level at least in line with <strong>the</strong> Earth’s<br />

estimated carrying capacity.” The Council identifies seven key eco-efficient corporate practices:<br />

(i) Reducing resource intensity in <strong>the</strong> producti<strong>on</strong> of goods and services;<br />

(ii) Reducing energy intensity in <strong>the</strong> producti<strong>on</strong> of goods and services;<br />

(iii) Reducing <strong>the</strong> generati<strong>on</strong> and dispersi<strong>on</strong> of toxic substances;<br />

(iv) Supporting recycling;<br />

(v) Capitalizing <strong>on</strong> <strong>the</strong> maximum possible use of renewables;<br />

(vi) Extending product durability; and<br />

(vii) Increasing <strong>the</strong> quality of goods and services.<br />

This c<strong>on</strong>cept can be applied to urban <str<strong>on</strong>g>development</str<strong>on</strong>g>, as shown in <strong>the</strong> following graphic.<br />

THE REDESIGN OF CITIES USING ECO-EFFICIENT INFRASTRUCTURE<br />

Urban services and<br />

processes:<br />

Costing of major envir<strong>on</strong>mental<br />

impacts and opportunities for<br />

introducing improvements:<br />

Urban mobility, <str<strong>on</strong>g>sustainable</str<strong>on</strong>g><br />

housing, intelligent buildings,<br />

integrated neighbourhoods,<br />

technology parks, green<br />

spaces, public spaces,<br />

pedestrian walkways,<br />

c<strong>on</strong>sumpti<strong>on</strong> patterns,<br />

informati<strong>on</strong> and expert<br />

advisory services, etc.<br />

Moving towards<br />

<strong>the</strong> resdesign of<br />

<str<strong>on</strong>g>sustainable</str<strong>on</strong>g> cities<br />

based <strong>on</strong> a full<br />

costing of<br />

eco-efficient<br />

urban<br />

infrastructure<br />

Air quality, reducti<strong>on</strong> in greenhouse<br />

gases, sufficient supplies of clean<br />

water, integrated solid urban waste<br />

management, eliminati<strong>on</strong> of<br />

hazardous wastes, smoothly<br />

flowing urban transit, very low noise<br />

levels, minimal disturbance of<br />

natural surroundings and of natural<br />

features, satisfactory envir<strong>on</strong>mental<br />

services, etc.<br />

Critical inputs:<br />

Energy, water soil and land (territory, space), eco-efficient urban infrastructure<br />

Source: Ec<strong>on</strong>omic Commissi<strong>on</strong> for Latin America and <strong>the</strong> Caribbean (ECLAC), <strong>on</strong> <strong>the</strong> basis of “Ecoeficiencia y desarrollo de<br />

infraestructura urbana sostenible en Asia y América Latina”, <str<strong>on</strong>g>20</str<strong>on</strong>g>07 [<strong>on</strong>line] http://www.eclac.cl/ecoeficiencia.

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