Ecological sustainability of Gerbangkertosusila Region based on ecological footprint approach for the land use controlling

Abstract

Gerbangkertosusila region is a prime mover of regional economic activity within East Java Province and even the national level. The impetus for economic growth has an impact on the carrying capacity of the environment. Thus, to achieve sustainable development goals, it is necessary to conduct a study of environmental carrying capacity which is related to the maximum capacity/entropy that can be utilized by the human being. An ecological footprint approach is an approach of the environmental carrying capacity to identify the components of natural resource consumption, waste, and availability of natural resources in each type of land use. Carbon footprint which is the biggest part of the ecological footprint has a relation with CO2 emission production, which influences climate change mitigation. The purpose of this study was to formulate land use control policies based on the ecological footprint approach. The analysis method consists of three phases. First, the calculation of biological capacity was based on the availability level of natural resources. Second, the calculation of an ecological footprint was based on the consumption level of natural resources. The final phase was sustainability calculation to get the result to accommodate the population consumption within the region. The finding showed that Mojokerto City, Surabaya City, and Sidoarjo Regency were regions which a deficit in terms of ecological sustainability. The rest regions within the Gerbangkertosusila region were considered regions that are experiencing a surplus. It has a surplus of 87,424,615 gha or equal to 9.13 gha/capita.