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Overpopulation and its effects on the environment
Overpopulation and its effects on the environment
Overpopulation and its effects on the environment
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The world can only be home to so many people before it exceeds its limits. The environment has a certain carrying capacity. A carrying capacity is the largest population an environment can sustainably support. This means that the environment can only support so many people long term before it has nothing left to give. With the human population expanding, the environment has to give more in order to support us. The extensive population demands more and more from both the environment and also from society. Global overpopulation is a serious issue in need of a solution.
Children cost a lot of money, and too many of them can result in unemployment and weakened economies. In the United States of America, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, one child costs $241,080 to raise for eighteen years (money.cnn.com). This statistic was released in August of 2013. As of early May of 2014, America’s human population is around 322,207,000 people according to worldometers.info. China’s human population as of early May, 2014, is about 1,392,564,400 people also according to worldometers.info. China has the highest human population in all of the world and according to The International Statistical Institute is considered to be a developing country (isi-web.org). To raise a child for eighteen years in China, an estimated cost is near 429,100 Yuan (chinawhisperer.com). This is $68,828.93 in American dollars. The cost of raising a child in American, a developed country, versus China, and undeveloped country, is almost a $172,250 difference. This says a lot about how the two countries use their resources and shows the difference in their economies.
One of many problems with overpopulation is how it is economically harmful in countries and...
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"Developing Countries." Isi-web.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 May 2014.
-web.org/component/content/article/5-root/root/81-developing>.
It Will Cost an Estimated $241,080 for a Middle-income Couple to Raise a Child Born Last Year for 18 Years. "Average Cost to Raise a Kid: $241,080."CNNMoney. Cable News
Network, 14 Aug. 2013. Web. 06 May 2014. .
"The Cost of Raising a Child in Beijing." China Whisper. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 May 2014.
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"World Population Clock: 7 Billion People (2014) - Worldometers." World Population Clock: 7 Billion People (2014) - Worldometers. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 May 2014.
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The worldwide population is approaching 7 billion and is expected to reach 9 billion by 2050 (Baird). This projected population number is down from a once predicted 16 billion (Baird) and while some are not concerned, others are worried about any increase in population. Population growth is discussed in the articles “Too Many People?” by Vanessa Baird; “Population Control: How Can There Possibly Be Too Many of Us?” by Frank Furedi; and “The Population Bomb Revisited,” by Paul R. Ehrlich and Anne H. Ehrlich. Baird and Furedi concur that a concern for population growth has been around since mathematician Thomas Malthus, in 1798, warned that overpopulation could lead to “the collapse of society” (Furedi). Furedi claims that too much human life is being used as an excuse, by population control supporters, for the world’s current and future problems. Baird tries to discover if “the current panic over population growth is reasonable.” For Ehrlich and Ehrlich the concern over population growth is very real, and they reinforce and support their book “calling attention to the demographic element in the human predicament” (Ehrlich and Ehrlich 63). While taking different approaches to their articles, the authors offer their perspectives on population growth, population control and the environmental impacts of a growing population.
Lisa Ling’s study showed that over ¼ of babies adopted and brought to the United States are from China. Most of these babies are girls. Due to the one child policy to control population, these unwanted girls are aborted, abandoned or hidden. They might even get killed. Boys are preferred because they will carry on the family name and they will stick with the family to care for them as they get older. These girls have never known a father. They have never known a mother, and they never knew a big sister. Most of them will be adopted from families in the United States. Others will stay in an orphanage until they are old enough to be on their own. China is one of the world’s oldest civilizations with over 4,000 years of history and culture. Today,
It is clear that China’s one child policy has affected Chinese society in multiple ways. The policy has resulted in corruption in the Chinese government, an abuse of women’s rights, female feticide, and an imbalance in the gender ratio, and potential problems with China’s elderly and younger populations. The Chinese government decided to implement a one child policy in order to counter the effects of rapid population growth. The question to ask is if the benefits of population control really do outweigh the problems the policy has created in Chinese society. It will be interesting to see if the policy continues to affect Chinese culture in the future, and how the changes that have been recently made play out.
By 1980, although the birthrate in China has fallen to below 3 children per family, it was believed by a new regime of Chinese leaders which included Deng Xiao Ping, that forced and restricted population growth would lead to greater economic prosperity. This coercive policy influenced the family of the Chinese citize...
Feng Wang and Cai Yong stated that the fertility rate was already declining and the policy wasn’t necessary for the Chinese people, especially because of the enormous costs. The fertility rate, which is the number of children the average woman has in her lifetime, in China started at 2.7 in 1979 and decreased to 1.7 in 2008. The article “China’s One Child Policy at 30” argued that the policy did not need to be introduced in China because the rates were already lower than Brazil at 4.2 and Thailand at 3.6.
Hicken, Melanie. "Average Cost to Raise a Kid: $241,080." CNNMoney. Cable News Network, 14 Aug. 2013. Web. 05 Apr. 2014.
When it comes to parenting, there is a huge different between China and the United States. If you are a Chinese kid, then you are lucky but tragedy. Because some of the parents like to spoil the kids. They will buy whatever the kids want, and do everything for the kids. In China,
Third world countries have an immense of number of issues arising, especially regarding the environment. The country of India is a perfect example used by Garrett Hardin in “Life Boat Ethics.” In one of Hardin’s excerpts, Overloading the Environment, he explains the problems happening when the population is growing too big for the environments carrying capacity. The carrying capacity is the maximum population size that an environment can sustain to its
In China if families have too many children they are forced to have abortions. Women are drugged and put out of their misery in order to give up their baby. The government’s punishment to these women is horrid, traumatizing and no girl should be forced to go through this. Nora Sullivan from life news says the one-child policy was instated in 1979 and authorities claim that the law prevented around 400 million births from 1979 to 2011.
Over population has been a global issue for decades. Medical advances have made it possible for people to live longer and have multiple births, which are just some of the factors contributing to this social problem. Many countries have attempted to battle this issue, but none as intensely as China. China allows the government to have full control over family planning to help reduce the population. In 1979 China created a policy called the "One Child Law" which limits couples to only one child. Although the Chinese government hopes to curb the population boom and benefit society, the One Child Policy has morally questionable results, negative impacts on Chinese society, which should be changed.
Jacques-Yves Cousteau once said, “Overconsumption and overpopulation underlie every environmental problem we face today” (“Population,” Internet). With the current statistics, Jacques could not be more accurate. Every second, 4.2 people are born and 1.8 people die, which would be a net gain of 2.4 people per second (“Population,” Internet). At this steady rate, the environmental health is spiraling downwards, and it is safe to assume humans are responsible for this. As the population increases, harmful effects on the land, water, and air also do.
Seven and a half billion. Enough steps to walk around the globe a hundred and sixty times. Our planet is trying to provide and sustain for a colossal number of people which is expanding every single second. Now the concern that has been put forth by scholars come from the idea that the consumption and effects to our planet by our current society is an international security risk that greatly compromises the future generations. Confucius even mentions this at the earliest start of civilization by saying:
Overpopulation is a growing problem all over the world. This is a very important environmental issue and needs to be dealt with. This environmental problem is affecting many countries around the world, but mostly the poor and impoverished countries that don’t have the resources to help deal with these issues. It also affects the environment like plants, animal life and air quality. When the population of people expands we need more natural resources from the environment, so we consume more than we can produce.
Over population is a factor in lower life expectancy in fast growing countries. It is projected that in the next 40 years of human growth it will be in less developed areas. This fast population increase will put a strain on that region and make more nonrenewable resources, food, water and housing more competitive which will lead to lower longevity for the native population (Effects of Human Overpopulation). This competition will also lead to less independence and freedom. As populations grow so do the laws that restrict movement in that region. Some examples of this we already see today is water restrictions and gas restrictions such as the 1970’s scare. Another resource that suffers because of overpopulation growth are every day consumables. A study from the website “World Population Balance “was done and stated that if all the 7 billion people consumed as much as the Average American “it would take resources of over five Earths to support all of them.” Each American on average uses biologically productive land totaling near 20
There are various systems in handling population rates and its various issues that connect with threatening our environment. The population and environment debate will forever be a back and forth problem because there is possibly no way to completely stop carbon emissions but ease its production. To help the environment, we must incorporate all potential solutions in governing population such as family planning and governmental involvement and practice renewable resources and stop on using nonrenewable resources, as well as ways to tackle overconsumption to support our corrupting environment.