Some Consequences of Population Growth

There were an estimated 626 million people on Earth in 1700, 815 million in 1750, 985 million in 1800, and the first billion people inhabited the planet shortly after 1800, with the 2 billion point reached merely before 1930 and making the 6 billion before the twelvemonth 2000 ( Goldewijk, K. K. , 2005 ) . The population addition was non every bit spread all over the universe. Historically, a big portion of the planetary population has been populating in Asia. With all these people in the universe, it is no admiration that worlds have effected the Earth in negative ways.

Global population growing has non merely been rapid over the past 3 centuries, but besides unevenly distributed. What consequences this growing has had on the planetary and local environment and what it could hold in the hereafter is a serious inquiry. Harmonizing to Goldewijk, a think armored combat vehicle of scientists, economic experts, business communities, international high civil retainers and ( former ) caputs of province called “ The Club of Rome ” rang the dismay bell in 1972 with its study “ Limits to Growth ” . They argued that semisynthetic harm to the Earth ‘s nature put its endurance at interest. Concerns that population, nutrient production and ingestion of non-renewable natural resources was increasing at a rate, which “ the bounds to growing on this planet will be reached sometime within the following 100 old ages ” .

Although the bulk of world has been able to feed itself despite the turning force per unit area on resources, surveies have shown that parts of the universe can prolong far more people than today, provided that economic resources and engineering are committed to this end ( e.g. Heilig et al. , 1999 ) . It ‘s non the sum of nutrient that must be produced, but the distribution across the planet which is neglecting. This is a point of concern.

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Another point of concern is the increasing pollution to the environment. A study from

Marland, Boden and Andres ( 2003 ) showed that the mean planetary C dioxide emanations, stemming from burning of fossil fuels has increased from about zero in pre-industrial clip to about 4 metric dozenss CO2 per capita at present. These emanations could take to a farther sweetening the planetary clime alteration, sea degree rise, environmental pollution, etc.

Colonization of the universe has left its grade on the environment ; many countries where immense sums of natural land screen have been converted into agricultural land, ensuing in an addition in nutrient production, but besides ensuing in environmental harm and pollution and loss of biodiversity. What all this means is to be seen, but with the bounds to growing on this planet that is estimated to be reached within the following 100 old ages, and with the addition in pollution in the air every bit good as the environment, this is decidedly an issue that needs to be addressed more sharply, in my sentiment, and I hope for the interest of my future coevalss, it will be.

Work Cited

Goldewijk, K.K.Three Centuries of Global Population Growth: A Spatial Referenced Population ( Density ) Database for 1700-2000.Population and Environment v. 26 no, 4 ( March 2005 ) p. 343-67. Linccweb. Web. 04 March 2010.