We Have Officially Exhausted More Natural Resources Than The Planet Can Produce In 2017

This year's Earth Overshoot Day came a little early, meaning we have already exhausted the allowance for water, soil, clean air and other resources for 2017.

Uh oh, it's #EarthOvershootDay ? This means we've used more resources than our planet can renew in the whole year! pic.twitter.com/e5TQinbe3c

¡ª WWF_Australia (@WWF_Australia) August 1, 2017

Previously known as the Ecological Debt Day, debt in the sense that from that day on mankind would survive on credit till 31st December. Every year the environment groups WWF and the Global Footprint Network release a date for our overshoot and this year it came on 2 August.

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¡°This means that in seven months, we emitted more carbon than the oceans and forests can absorb in a year, we caught more fish, felled more trees, harvested more, and consumed more water than the Earth was able to produce in the same period.¡± the group said.

Based on the growing population and our consumption levels, the equivalent of 1.7 planets would be needed to suffice our requirements. This date is being calculated from 1986 and this is earliest the day has fallen. In fact, if you see the chart below, you'd notice that every year it's just a little early than the previous one.

If we keep going at this rate, years from now the overshoot might welcome us in January and quite frankly it will be our pitch towards the ultimate debacle.

Anyway, scientists have also calculated the overshoot day for individual countries and just how much they're responsible for this catastrophe.

#DYK today marks #EarthOvershootDay - signalling the day when we¡¯ve used up ALL of our planet¡¯s resources for the entire year ? pic.twitter.com/spQCWq1cHP

¡ª WWF (@WWF) August 1, 2017

The committee said that food marks up for 26 percent of our global footprint if we can just take care of that, we'd be able to reduce it by 16 percent.

You can calculate your own overshoot day here.