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  • Overpopulation: Root Cause of Many Problems 02/11

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    A great number of problems can be directly or indirectly linked to a single root cause: overpopulation. The more people there are, the more homes there are to heat or cool, cars to fuel, products to manufacture. A lower population density would produce fewer "traffic jams" and less crowding on public transportation.

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    A great number of problems can be directly or indirectly linked to a single root cause: overpopulation. The more people there are, the more homes there are to heat or cool, cars to fuel, products to manufacture. A lower population density would produce fewer "traffic jams" and less crowding on public transportation.

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    191 views2 pages

    Overpopulation: Root Cause of Many Problems 02/11

    Uploaded by

    Rabby-D
    A great number of problems can be directly or indirectly linked to a single root cause: overpopulation. The more people there are, the more homes there are to heat or cool, cars to fuel, products to manufacture. A lower population density would produce fewer "traffic jams" and less crowding on public transportation.

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    Overpopulation: Root Cause of Many Problems

    02/11 (LWN) People often speak of the many problems affecting the world as
    separate issues which ought to be solved individually. Few realize that a great
    number of these problems can be directly or indirectly linked to a single root cause:
    overpopulation. Let's take a look at some examples of this...

    POLLUTION: The more people there are, the more homes there are to heat or cool,
    cars to fuel, products to manufacture, and so on. All of this generates pollution; the
    benefits of stopping population growth are undeniably far greater than those of using
    more hybrid cars or CFLs.

    POVERTY: With some exceptions, more heavily populated countries tend to have
    poorer people. Guatemala, Bangladesh, and Nigeria are examples of this. The
    benefits of a country's natural resources are smaller as they are divided among a
    greater number of citizens.

    RACISM: People (or their leaders) frequently look for a "scapegoat", often another
    race or religion, to blame their poverty on. They sometimes hold beliefs such as "if
    there weren't so many of them around, there would be more money and jobs for us,
    and less crowding."

    STARVATION: Nations become incapable of meeting their food needs when their
    populations rise, making them less self-reliant. Famine rarely seems to occur in
    countries with low population densities, especially if they have a substantial amount
    of farmland.

    TRAFFIC: Clearly a lower population density would produce fewer "traffic jams" and
    less crowding on public transportation. Instead of targeting the root of the problem,
    people talk about building additional highways and adding more lanes to them.

    CONFLICT: International and civil wars are often brought about by the desire to gain
    additional resources and/or territory. As a country's population becomes higher, its
    need for resources and land are increased. It may also seek to use war to boost its
    economy, as overpopulation makes it poorer.

    EXTINCTION: When species of animals become extinct or endangered, it is often


    the result of humans using them (or things they eat) as food. Increasing human
    populations need more food and are less concerned about protecting endangered
    animals.

    DEPLETION: Finite natural resources, like oil, uranium and coal, are being rapidly
    depleted to serve the energy and manufacturing needs of people around the world.
    As the population continues to rise, this will only worsen and the environment will be
    sacrificed to extract harder-to-obtain resources.
    EDUCATION: More children bring about higher education costs and more crowding
    in schools. Because children do not pay taxes and their parents pay no more
    property taxes individually for having more children, this ends up increasing
    everyone's taxes.

    DEFORESTATION: Countries like Haiti and the Philippines suffer from both
    overpopulation and deforestation. Cutting down massive numbers of trees has
    greatly increased their vulnerability to flooding, adding to the death toll and material
    costs of such disasters.

    Undoubtedly, there are other major problems which overpopulation also helps to
    bring about. This is an issue which a vast number of countries must address. The
    U.N. Human Development Report has indicated that many nations had their
    population rise by more than double in the years since 1975. Significant increases
    occurred in Greece, Nepal, Australia, the United States, and many others.

    Instead of attempting to solve the world's problems with expensive new technology
    and ineffective feel-good schemes, we should find a solution to their root cause. This
    solution could include government incentives for people who have fewer children
    (worldwide) and efforts to improve the availability of birth control and sexual
    education in developing countries. The mass media should also cease its promotion
    of having multiple children as something beneficial to society.

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