The Causes And Consequences Of The Drastic Increase In Population Growth

“The human overpopulation issue is a topic seen as the most vital to solve if our children and grandchildren are to have a good quality of life.” - Alexandra Paul.

Through research and opinions, the following technical essay deals with a world crisis we call overpopulation. There is a distinct link between overpopulation and the environment. Resources are simply insufficient to ensure survival of nations.This essay highlights the causes and consequences of the drastic increase in population growth. Solutions are suggested to improve this vast growing concern and once implemented would significantly reduce overpopulation in communities and nations and by large the world.

Introduction

If someone were to ask, “What would you say is the world’s largest crisis?” what would you answer? Did you know that the world is statistically proven to be overpopulated? In fact, it is, however, it would not be the first to come to mind. Overpopulation is an undesirable condition where the number of existing human population exceeds the carrying capacity of Earth. This means that in an overpopulated environment, the number of people residing there might be more than the available resources for survival such as transport, water, shelter, food or social amenities. Overpopulation causes environmental deterioration, worsening in the quality of life and the disintegration of the population. The current world population is now 7.2 billion people and over 350,000 people are born every day, causing the population explosion and overpopulation. An estimated value of about eighty one million people is added to the world’s population annually. The world’s population is expected to exceed nine billion by the year 2050. The carrying capacity being 4 billion people and we have reached that amount since 1974. Imagine an ant in a massive ball pit and put yourself in that situation.

Causes

Overpopulation is caused by numerous factors which include: a decline in death rate, better medical facilities and technological advancement in fertility treatment, immigration and lack of family planning. The birth rate is not equal to the death rate each year; however, if this was so, then the population would be stabilized. Since our ancestors discovered agriculture and healthy eating habits, this decreased the death rate. Then along came the industrial revolution where technology was introduced, curing and managing a wide range of diseases through the invention of vaccines. Improvements in medical technologies have led to lower mortality rates. Diseases such as smallpox, polio and measles have been eradicated by such advances. With the latest technological advancement and more discoveries in medical science, there is a higher possibility for infertile couples who are unable to conceive to now reproduce by undergoing fertility treatment. Fertility treatments often bring about double, triple and even more new-borns. These all contribute to increase in birth rates. Some people prefer to migrate and live in more well-developed countries, such as the United Kingdom and the United States since they offer better facilities such as medical, employment, education and security causing overpopulation. Early aged marriage with little to no family planning can lead to the increased production of more children, as well as unprotected sex and unplanned pregnancy. All these are factors contributing to the increased population and overpopulation today.

Consequences

By the year 2050, the world would be in mass chaos. Along with causes of overpopulation, there are also consequences. These include: depletion of natural resources, conflicts and wars, rise in unemployment, and degradation of environment. The main effect of overpopulation is lack of food and water since the Earth can only produce a limited amount. English demographer, Thomas Malthus argued that if the world goes unchecked there can be consequences of overpopulation. Moreover, he noted that if the world’s population goes unchecked, the population would outstrip food. In reality, the problem that Malthus focused upon was that food did not grow as fast as the population and therefore the food supply would eventually become insufficient to meet the needs of the population. Where food growth and population size intersected he called this “the point of crisis” where the population will begin to starve. Beyond this the population is now beginning to outstrip food. Water is one of the most important aspects of daily life, along with food. Therefore, water and water security are going to be a crucial focus for governments in the next few decades, especially since the population is expected to reach approximately 9.7 billion by the year 2050. Approximately 50% of the worlds’ population will be living in regions around the globe that are considered “water stressed”, a term defined as when the demand for water exceeds the amount that is available, either due to lack of it, or poor quality.

Overpopulation would result in a higher demand for resources, mainly food and water. This would lead to conflicts and wars amongst developing countries when there are limited resources. Starvation is a huge issue and the mortality rate for children is being fuelled by it.World hunger would become a major issue and worsen if overpopulation is not managed and resolved. When there is a shortage of food and water this would decrease health and increase the causes and spread of diseases.

An increase in population would result in the destruction of the environment. Since more vehicles would be in use, this would result in an increased production of harmful emissions from vehicle exhaust to the environment. This would not only cause breathing and health problems but would further cause ozone layer depletion, resulting in more exposure to the sun which has its negative effects on humans. This would lead to global warming and a rise in sea level when polar ice caps melt. A rapid increase in population would result in a rise in unemployment, also making it difficult for unemployed persons to get jobs. This would result in an increase in crime when unemployed persons have to find alternative means to survive and maintain a family and household, resulting in stealing.

Solutions

Preventative measures, as well as engineering methods, can be put in place to help curb and control this world crisis of overpopulation. An engineer is usually a person who finds solutions to problems. They design, build and maintain engines, machines and structures. They also create, improve and protect the environment we live in. As an aspiring Civil Engineer I would eventually be able to plan, design and oversee construction and maintenance of building structures and infrastructure such as roads, railways, bridges, power plants, and water and sewerage systems. There are both engineering as well as non-engineering methods, controls and solutions to overpopulation and they are all important and efficient in their separate ways. However, in my opinion, I believe that with the non-engineering solutions there would be a faster and more efficient result in comparison to the engineering solutions. It would be wise to control and curb the problems we already have, rather than just inventing new methods or inventions to help manage and solve this world crisis. Non-engineering solutions and controls such as: awareness and education, proper family planning, tax benefits, one child policy, decrease medical care, and engineering solutions such as building smart, are conserving resources of infrastructure and building in the sea. Firstly, we need to educate and raise awareness across the world of overpopulation. Awareness can be raised through lectures in schools to students. Public awareness can be to reach out to adults, through social media, seminars at community centres, banners and flyers and even campaigns. Some people aren’t aware of this world crisis and through education and awareness they would take necessary measures to help control and solve overpopulation. Along with awareness, the public must be fully aware of overpopulation, what are its causes, consequences and solutions.

Secondly, proper family planning is also important. There are many underage pregnancies due to unprotected sex or improper use of protection. We should encourage our youths to abstain from sexual activities to avoid this from happening or if they must, they should take necessary precaution. Condoms and contraceptives are both protection methods when it comes to avoiding unwanted pregnancy, hence maintaining the population. Also, countries should implement policies, such as a tax benefit, along with penalties for couples with more than two children. For example, if a household has two children or less they would have to pay a lower tax than those with more children. Not just penalties but should also implement awards and benefits for example, free education for families with one child. Along the line of policies, there should be a one - child policy per home with the exception of twins, and if this rule is not obeyed additional taxes would have to be paid for the household. Health and medical care should be decreased, meaning that sick and dying persons, who have a limited chance of surviving, especially old persons, should have the right to decide whether they would like to stop medical treatment. This way there would be an increase in death rate rather than wasting resources to take care of a person who is already dying. There would eventually be some sort of balance in the population and overpopulation would be managed.

As a future Civil Engineer, I would advise people to build smart and conserve resources. Build smart meaning to maximize land space by building more horizontal homes rather than vertically wide homes to best fit their land. They can construct part of their homes underground, not only the basement but also a useful part of their home.

Also, there should be a home filtration system to reuse water, for example water from the toilet could be filtered and reused for toilet flushing purposes only, rather than using more resources and energy for the used water to be sent to the Water and Sewerage Authority, filtered and then sent back to our homes, making it less time consuming. Water and Sewerage Authorities could supply fresh, clean water for domestic purposes only. Persons should be encouraged to collect rain water for washing vehicles, clothes, and yard and for watering plants rather than using the clean water WASA supplied. This way, resources are conserved, recycled and reused.A main engineering solution is more infrastructures, not just on land but in seas as well. Engineers could look more into land development rather than having wastage of unused land. There should be a certain amount of land in which a person could own so other people would have a fair opportunity of owning and developing land for domestic purposes. If this is not obeyed, then a monthly tax could be implemented as a penalty. Engineers could find and discover new and efficient ways to build in the sea also populating the seas and not land alone.

Conclusion

In conclusion, overpopulation is a major crisis in the world today and if we do not act now then survival can not be guaranteed. Both engineering and non-engineering methods can help control and solve overpopulation in their various ways whether big or small. There are causes, consequences and solutions to overpopulation. So I am here to say, lets act now and make a change for the betterment of the world today!