The Space Sustainability Paradox

TL;DR

The paper introduces the concept of the space sustainability paradox, highlighting how increased space activity aimed at societal benefits may threaten long-term sustainability of space and Earth environments, requiring strategic policy reforms.

Contribution

It presents the novel concept of the space sustainability paradox and critiques current policies, advocating for a strategic, responsible approach inspired by the doughnut economic model.

Findings

Current policies may worsen space debris and environmental impacts.

Existing remediation efforts are insufficient for long-term sustainability.

A strategic, holistic approach is necessary to prevent a tragedy of the commons in space.

Abstract

The recent growth of the space sector, spurred by a surge in private actors, has led to a sharp increase in our ability to address societal challenges through space data. However, this has exacerbated an already critical situation in space: the proliferation of space debris and a critical expansion of space traffic which is leading to high levels of orbital congestion. In parallel, increased levels of spacecraft production and orbital launches are also heightening the environmental footprint of the sector. This might lead to a paradoxical situation whereby the use of space to support the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) becomes unsustainable from the perspective of both the Earth and space environment. This situation can be described as the space sustainability paradox. This paper presents this concept for the first time and argues that existing policies and remediation actions are not a long-term sustainable solution for tackling this issue and may actually intensify the problem. This places an added importance upon addressing space sustainability in a more coherent, strategic and responsible manner, potentially based on the doughnut economic model of social and planetary boundaries. Doing so may prevent the sector from falling victim to a tragedy of the commons type of scenario and avoid negative trends from becoming the norm. As a result, this would ensure that outer space can continue to be used by future generations to address societal challenges, without priming severe and enduring damage to the Earth and space environment.