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Economic development and population growth
The problem of overpopulation
Overpopulation effects on the environment
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Overpopulation Crisis
There are approximately 6 billion people on our planet now and by 2050 that number is expected to jump to 9 billion people. (http://www.prb.org/datafind/datafinder5.htm) Picture yourself driving down a crowded street or stuck in a traffic jam, have you ever wondered how it is possible for that many people to live all on the same planet. I have had those thoughts several times and believe that overpopulation is one of the biggest problems in the world today. Overpopulation has become a major crisis in the twenty-first century and it's detrimental effect on our living standards, environment, and much needed resources. The problem is not the number of people in this world, but the way people choose to live. The dilemmas created by overpopulation affect people of all races and social status. This is why we as the ?human race? must work together to preserve our planet and necessary resources before it is too late.
The living standards embraced by today?s population causes people to consume more resources, which in turn produces more waste and raises life expectancy. New industrial developments have provided a sense of stability and a lot more jobs for the people in their surrounding communities. Also, the increase in wages has allowed people to have larger families because they are able to support them financially. Statistics show that a child born in the U.S. today will produces 52 tons of waste and consume 11 million gallons of water by the age of...
To begin with, the rise of technology has allowed people an easier way of transportation, but everything comes with a cost, such as greenhouse gases. Cars, power plants, factories, oil sands, clear-cut, to name a few, has all played a factor in the increase of climate change. This can cause the extinction of species. Animals without homes, migration patterns scattered and algae blooms
With Australia’s population rapidly nearing 23.5 million people, the issue of sustainability and the number of people Australia can allow to live comfortably without significant damage to the surrounding environment is extremely important. The misconception that Australia is underpopulated with plenty of room to accommodate the worlds rising population is widespread. With the majority of Australian land being arid and inhospitable, finding available land and resources to accommodate a rising population is placing a huge amount of pressure on the Australian environment. Australia’s population growth consists of two main components; births minus deaths and net migration. While Australia’s birth rate sits at 1.9, lower than the 2.1 needed to replace our aging population, our expanding population comes from overseas migration accounting for around 60 per cent of our growth (Department of Immigration and Border Protection). Currently the total migration rate is set at 210,000 people per year making Australia’s population quickly on the rise. This poses an important discussion regarding the impacts of such a rise and if there is a specific number that constitutes a sustainable Australia regarding population. The issues that may come to pass as a result of overpopulation are great and varied. These include and are not limited to; resource shortages, social conflict, overcrowding, pollution, habitat and biodiversity loss and a lowering in national health standards. The Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF) has put forward arguments opposing a rising population due to the predicted environmental damage we would face as an outcome. A few of the main problems associated with an unconstrained population are outlined in this essay.
Also recycling as spoiled societies in well developed regions. I Believe we consume way more then we need because we know it 's will be reused for a good cause but all that waste is generating more working for recyclers which in way is counterbalancing the environmental benefit. In Junkyard Planet by Adam Minter he spoke on a study that was done at the university where they observed the paper towel usage in a men 's restroom over a period of time. First with just a trash can and then the second time the recycling bin included the study found that that people used about half a hand towel more where there was a recycling bin (pg 266). “The increasing consumption found is partially due to the fact that consumers are well aware that recycling is beneficial for the environment: however the costs of recycling are less salient”(Minter 267). I believe the reason why recycling isn 't technically working is because we consumer see recycling as a first option when it 's actually should be sacred process that should be used in rarity. We as consumers need to think conserve instead of
...such as recycling and reducing waste has significantly helped our environment and will continue to if future generations practice these same habits. For deforestation, many organizations have strived to plant more trees and add more oxygen to the atmosphere as well as nutrients for the soil. Seeing that although humans create many negative impacts in our global environment, there are many positive arrangements in correcting these issues.
Previously, the population had been low and had little impact on the Earth and her resources. Though it was always steadily growing. During the beginning of Earth it only accounted for approximately 10,000 people. It grew reaching approximately one billion in the early 1800’s. The industrial revolution had begun occurring around this time increasing medical ideals and improving life. Through this life expectancy
Overpopulation has become a drastic issue, for no one knows how many people the earth
The population of the world is nearing eight billion people. The population is taking over the world, and the food is diminishing. The population is growing too large for the planet to sustain. There must be rules about the growth of the population if the human race is to survive and grow together. If the race that is humanity wishes to survive, population control must be in effect.
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.
Because of the sudden rise of population there was an unbalanced collapse in economy, which resulted in high demand of food, water, shelter causing the environment to decline causing poverty. Increase of population means there will be more competition for education, which impacts the economy which leads to poverty. Also food, water, land space demands increase resulting in shortage of food and water in some countries and shortage of land space in others. Factories are created to combat with the high demand of supply leads to high demand of space needed to create factories, fumes secreted by factories which impact the environment.
Fewer people mean fewer demands on the environment. With growth in human population, the grasses and animal populations humans used for sustenance did not have time to recover, which turned into humans using the earth's natural resources in an unsustainable manner (class discussion 02.14.03). Humans living in agrarian society do not necessarily use the environment's resources in an unsustainable manner, but the greater the population density, the more land will be needed to support that population in a sustainable manner. As resources become more and more scarce, field owners will be less willing to let land lay fallow (class discussion 02.21.03). Humans then found a "tech fix" with the development of agriculture and the domestication of animals.
Economic growth and social development are complementary and they have a close but complex relationship. With the economic growth, it is clear that there are many environmental concerns in today’s society. Air, water, and land pollution have worsened; the environment of wild animals and plants has been seriously damaged; many species are threatened with extinction, deforestation and over-exploitation of mineral resources.
Population growth can be positive for the World, in terms of both the economy and environment. As a country’s population grows, it can have significant positive implications on its economy as more people are in a position to buy goods and services, which in turn allows the economy to experience substantial growth. Following on from this idea ‘the more people on Earth, the larger are the markets for new innovations’ (Mulligan, 2009) so as a population grows there is a higher chance of more people existing who have the potential to be innovators who could develop technological solutions such as alternative energies or efficient means of food production. Population growth can also help with the environment as whilst ‘larger populations use up fossil fuels, they also stimulate the effective supply of fuels and substitutes’ (Kahn, 2005), so whilst larger populations use up more energy, they can also develop safer, renewable forms of energy which can help to protect the environment. This can occur because as technological advancements take place, resources such as oil and coal which can have ample negative effects on the environment, are pushed aside by innovators who want to develop new efficient ways in which to produce energy without having any lasting impacts on the
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 going to continue to be a growing problem all over the world unless we come together and help each other out. This is a difficult task but it can be dealt with. This is the most important environmental issue because it leads to many others. It leads to loss of species, shortage of land, lack of resources, deforestation, health issues, pollution, and famine. Overpopulation is a growing problem we can stop. The only way this is going to be stopped is by humans taking action and trying to help each other.
decrease in resource consumption and a ‘steady state economy' for expanding human development on the planet.