Worst Environmental Problem Overpopulation Essay

There are many kinds of environment: the physical environment often thought of as nature, psychological environments built out of human interactions, and political environments rife with manipulation and posturing. While there are some obvious effects that large human populations would have on the natural environment, there are also less evident psychological and political ramifications. Thus, overpopulation is todays most pressing environmental issue. Acclaimed hermit Henry David Thoreau once wrote that humans have plenty of space. â€Å"Our horizon is never quite at our elbows† (Thoreau, 49). But is this really true? The U.S. Census Bureaus international population clock estimates the global population at slightly over 8.6 billion†¦show more content†¦It stands to reason that the planet we live on has a finite limit of resources: water, air, and land. More people mean more industry, which means an increase in the resources we consume and the more emissions we produ ce. There is also evidence to support theories regarding human contribution to global warming and climate change. As the population grows, cities are constructed along rivers and other waterways, and the sources are modified to meet urban needs rather than ecological. More and more food needs to be grown to nourish people. Now, land is degrading and sea levels are rising, making growing impossible in many former farming areas. Because of this, ... 800 million people are chronically malnourished, and 2 billion lack food security (Dahl, 603). Because agriculture for the masses depends heavily on irrigation, it puts additional strain on the globes water tables (Dahl, 602). Not to mention that current water sources are being polluted by sewer discharge and industrial waste. Deforestation is another issue. Forests and other natural vegetation help protect against flooding and soil erosion. In the 1990s, 563,709 square miles of land were cleared of forests (Dahl, 602). Without these for ests, global warming has been accelerated as more carbon is released into the atmosphere, rather than being consumed as fuel by plants and released as oxygen. For example, in India and Sri Lanka, a tsunami, unhindered by the mangroves that used to grow there, destroyedShow MoreRelatedCauses And Effects Of Overpopulation1073 Words   |  5 PagesWhat are the effects of overpopulation? Overpopulation is an undesirable condition where the number of existing people on earth exceeds the carrying capacity of the earth. However, overpopulation has not always been a problem. At the dawn of agriculture, 8000 B.C., the population was approximately 5 million. 8000 years later, 1 A.D., the number of people existing on earth was between 200-300 million. That’s a growth rate under 0,05% per year. 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