The Rising Issue of Overpopulation: How Much More Can Earth Handle?

Earth is only one of the eight planets in our solar system, but is the only one known to be habitable by living organisms. Therefore, it is imperative that we learn what is killing our planet and how to care for it. Two significant factors affecting the current state of the Earth is the overpopulation of humans and the subsequent overconsumption of natural resources. These factors have resulted in negative ecological effects on our planet’s ecosystem that will only worsen if we do not take actions to stop them.

Overpopulation, simply put, is being in a state of having too many people. When do we know if we have “too many” people? What number is that? Some researchers say that we know there are too many people when the population has exceeded the number of resources available for everyone. Others believe that having too many people is when there isn’t enough physical space for everyone. Combining these ideas, the world will be overpopulated when it starts to become inhabitable, either due to a lack of resources, space, or another factor.

While unsure of what number this will be, scientists are beginning to get worried. Currently, world population is at 7.7 billion and is set to reach 9.7 billion by 2050, according to the United Nations. As the population is growing, land mass is stagnant, if not decreasing due to rising sea levels. The area of land on Earth is not expanding to accommodate the increasing population, which means that population density is increasing. Population density, which is the number of people over an area of land, is a huge contributor to pollution. The countries with the densest populations have some of the highest rates of pollution and carbon footprints.

High pollution and overconsumption go hand in hand with overpopulation. If there are too many people on Earth, even having everyone using the bare minimum of natural resources needed will still result in a depletion someday. However, it is believed that there will be a plateau in population growth when the population hits around 11 billion. Until, and even after then, we should all try to be environmentally conscious of our behaviors and usage of natural resources.

Some things you can do to reduce your carbon footprint are to use renewable sources of energy such as solar or wind power, drive an electric car (if you can afford it), and insulate your home to decrease the amount of heat that is being emitted into the atmosphere. In addition, speaking up about these issues goes a long way so that bigger corporations and governments learn that heavy pollution and the burning of fossil fuels is something we are no longer okay with. The world we live in is precious; unfortunately, we do not get another world if we mess this one up. It is not too late to change our lifestyle habits in order to protect our ecosystem.