Austria's Overshoot Day: Already used up on March 29th!

Austria's Overshoot Day: Already used up on March 29th!

Österreich, Österreich - Austria used up its natural resources for 2025 on March 29, 2025. This day is referred to as the national "Overhoot Day" on which the country's ecological footprint exceeds the biochapacity. Last year this day fell to April 7th. According to 5min , the "Overhoot Day" is calculated from the Global Footprint Network, based on the biocha capacity and ecological need for resources. Currently the earth's creation day for Austria corresponds to a consumption of 4.1 earth, in the previous year it was 3.7 earth.

The change of these values ​​is primarily due to a changed calculation method, especially when it comes to CO2 assignment in international goods traffic. Greenpeace explains that this increase does not necessarily mean a real increase in consumption. Last overhoot days should also be recalculated retrospectively. In addition, the environmental spokesman for the Greens, Lukas Hammer, points out the high soil consumption that can be classified as alarm.

global relationships

The problem of the Overhoot Day is part of a global trend that has been continuing since 1971: the worldwide demand for natural resources continuously exceeds the supply of regenerated resources. bpb now needs more than a year and a half to cover the consumption of a year.

If all people like Europeans were living, almost three earths would be necessary; With a lifestyle based on the North American model, almost five earths. These alarming numbers illustrate the urgency of sustainable resource use, especially with regard to the biocapacity, which includes biologically productive areas and water.

criticism and demands

The performance of Austria in relation to natural resources is interpreted by environmental organizations such as Greenpeace as an alarming wake -up call. Together with Global 2000 and the Greens, the need for binding measures, including a supply chain law, are discussed. Greenpeace also criticizes that there are weaknesses in the existing model, such as the positive evaluation of intensive agriculture, without taking into account the negative environmental consequences.

Aspects such as water consumption and biodiversity are missing in the calculations that are used to determine the ecological footprint. According to the Global Footprint Network, the ecological footprint of a country is a decisive indicator of its sustainability. International comparisons show that in 2012 the ecological footprint of the EU-27 was twice as high as the biocapacity, which means an ecological deficit. On the other hand, the global earth creation day falls on July 24th, whereby the Situation in Uruguay can be compared with the latest national overhoot day on December 17th.