Abstract
Analyses of future energy systems have typically focused on energy suffi ciency and
climate change issues. While the potential supply of energy services will probably not
constrain us in the immediate future, there are limits imposed on the energy system by
climate change considerations, which, in turn, are inextricably bound up with land, water,
and nonrenewable mineral resources issues. These could pose constraints to energy
systems that may not have been fully accounted for in current analyses. There is a pressing
lack of knowledge on the boundaries that will impact a sustainable energy system.
A more integrated view of energy sustainability is necessary to ensure the well-being of
current and future generations. This chapter proposes a set of measures related to sustainability
within the context of selected energy scenarios and develops a methodology
to define and measure relevant quantities and important links to other resource areas.