South African government, private sector and civil society would need to work together to ensure that the value of nature and natural capital was measured and protected, the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) said this week, when it released the ‘Living Planet' report.

"South Africa now faces real threats to its food, water and energy security, but also has an unsurpassed opportunity to forge a green, or low-carbon, economy," the organisation stated.

The recently released ‘Living Planet' report outlined that excessive and unsustainable consumption meant that humanity was consuming at a rate 50% higher than the earth could sustainably regenerate.

In other words, it would take the earth 1,5 years to produce the resources required in a year. It was estimated that the equivalent of two planets would be required by 2030 to keep pace with the rate of natural resource consumption and to absorb the carbon dioxide emitted.

"Natural capital is priceless. We need to measure the value of nature and pay for it," said WWF integrated catchment management programme manager Dr Mao Amis, at the launch of the report in Johannesburg.

He emphasised that nature provided a service, from supplying raw materials for food and fuel, to filtering water through wetlands, and the cost of these services should be properly evaluated.

Water scarce South Africa, which was ranked the 30th lowest country in terms of per capita availability of water, also needed to implement serious interventions to protect all representative types of freshwater ecosystems - including rivers, wetlands and estuaries.

WWF GreenChoice programme coordinator Tatjana von Bormann said that the pressures on the natural resources required to produce food would continue to grow, and if the current 2% population growth trend persists, South Africa's population of 48-million would rise to 82-million by 2035.

"As consumers we don't operate in isolation from the systems that support us," noted WWF South Africa CEO Dr Morné du Plessis.

There should be a focus on catalysing the green economy, which involves renewable energy, investing in natural capital and other factors, to not only alleviate the crisis, but also provide a way out of the poverty trap that mires so many people, added WWF.

The Living Planet report highlighted the unchecked decline of natural resources in developed countries, and the accelerated decline of those resources in developing countries. Overall, decline of 30% of the world's biodiversity since 1970, and the decline of almost 70% in tropical freshwater species, were some of the impacts detailed in the report.

"This report is an enormously powerful document. Its scientific efficacy and the scope of its research should be in the arsenal of anyone wanting to promote sustainable choices in their chosen sphere of interest. It should strengthen the arm, for instance, of those who promote renewable energy over fossil-fuels - making WWF's call for 50% renewable energy 2030, an achievable and necessary target," added Du Plessis.

WWF Living Planet Unit head Saliem Fakir stated that business should use the new King III Report to push a green economy agenda in business, driving the emphasis on corporate citizenship and weaving sustainability into audit processes.

"Low carbon growth will, and must, be the foundation for economic and societal transformation. Energy is a tool to embed the green economy notion into our growth as a nation systemically, rather than marginally," he said.

He highlighted the traditional link between energy and mineral resources, but added that energy's sinews reached wider, into water, food, and transport, and the solution was to use less energy, and to produce "more cleanly".

Sustainable choices must be made by big business and lawmakers, but also by ordinary people - urgent action was required, reiterated WWF.