The ecological footprint is a planning and evaluation method, which enables to determine the pressure society exerts on the environment. It informs you how much area of land is used for different human activities and compares it to the amount of land available on a local, regional, national or global level.

Wackernagel and Rees call the consumption of fossil fuels “borrowed land from the past”. The Sustainable Process Index (SPI) as well as the energy footprint are independent methodical developments, which enable us to optimize the use of resources and energy while following the premise of exerting the least pressure on the environment. 

Due to logical operations Process Network Synthesis (PNS) enables to optimize processes, e.g. the use of energy and resources, from a systems perspective.

For further information please contact Univ.Prof. Dr. Gernot Stöglehner and Dipl.-Ing. Dr.nat.techn. Georg Neugebauer

Exemplary Publications

Kollmann, R; Neugebauer, G; Kretschmer, F; Truger, B; Kindermann, H; Stoeglehner, G; Ertl, T; Narodoslawsky, M (2017): Renewable energy from wastewater - Practical aspects of integrating a wastewater treatment plant into local energy supply concepts. Journal of Cleaner Production 155: 119-129.

Stoeglehner, G; Edwards, P; Daniels, P; Narodoslawsky, M (2011): The water supply footprint (WSF): a strategic planning tool for sustainable regional and local water supplies. Journal of Cleaner Production 19(15): 1677-1686.

Narodoslawsky, M; Stoeglehner, G (2010): Planning for Local and Regional Energy Strategies with the Ecological Footprint. Journal of Environmental Policy & Planning 12(4): 363-379.

Stoeglehner, G., Narodoslawsky, M. (2009): How sustainable are biofuels? Answers and further questions arising from an ecological footprint perspective. Bioressource Technology 100: 3825-3830.