Transcript Document 7189509

PRESENTED BY:
Kacy Lopez
Kristina Shepard
Sandy Sheldon
Kyra McTighe
A Definition of Overpopulation

Overpopulation is a term that
refers to a condition in which the
density enlarges to a limit that
provokes the environmental
deterioration, a drop in the
quality of life, or a population
collapse.
Impacts of Overpopulation

Grain Production



Falling since 1950
Cropland, Irrigation, and Crop Yield are all
Falling
Cropland


Shrunk by 50% between 1960 & 1998
Further 70% loss by 2050
Impacts of Overpopulation

Fresh Water



1 Billion People Will Be Living In Countries
Facing Water Scarcity in 2050
Substantial Cutbacks in Irrigation Water will
be Needed
Oceanic Fish Catch


1988: 17.2 Kilograms of Oceanic
Catch/Person
2050: 9.9 Kilograms of Oceanic
Catch/Person
Impacts of Overpopulation

Meat Production




An Estimated 37% of World Grain Harvest is
Used to Feed Livestock
Total Meat Consumption will Rise from 211
Million Tons to 513 Million Tons
Further Pressure on Grain Supply
Natural Recreation Areas

Threatened to be Eliminated Due to Human
Encroachment
Impacts of Overpopulation

Forests


75% of the Loss of Global Forests has
Occurred in the 20th century
Loss of Forests Lead to a Loss of:
•
•
•
•
Habitat
Carbon Storage; Which Regulates Climate
Erosion Control
Regulation of Rainfall
Impacts of Overpopulation

Biodiversity


Species Loss is 100 to 1,000 Times the
Natural Rate
Climate Change



Mainly Due to Fossil Fuel Burning
Emissions From Developing Countries will
Quadruple Over the next ½ Century
Emissions From industrial Countries will
Increase by 30%
Impacts of Overpopulation

Energy



Demand for Energy Grew Twice as Fast as
Population Over the Last 50 Years
Asia’s Energy Consumption is Expected to
Grow 361%; Population will Only Grow 50%
Waste

Even in Countries Where Population is
Stable, the Flow of Waste Continues to
Increase
Easter Island
Easter Island



The remote Easter Island lies 2,350 miles
west of Chile, in the South Pacific.
Judging from it’s mild climate and fertile
volcanic soils, the island should have been
a paradise, but more resembled a barren
wasteland when “discovered” in 1722 by
Dutch explorer Jacob Roggeveen.
What he found was 2000 people etching
out a miserable existence on an island
with no trees and few bushes more than a
meter tall.
Easter Island

With no trees, the people couldn’t build
seaworthy canoes in which to fish the
ocean. This also left them without
building materials or firewood. No
animals occupied the island but chickens,
rats, and a few insects, and
their gardens
,
barely provided food for subsistence.
Easter Island


And yet, scattered along
the coastline were
hundreds of immense
stone heads, known as
“moai”, some of which
were as tall as 30 meters,
weighing more than 200
metric tons.
What had happened to the
larger and more advanced
civilization that must have
created these?
Easter Island


Until about 1500 years ago, the
island had been covered with a lush
tropical forest and the soil was deep
and fertile. Polynesian people
arrived on the island around 400 AD
from the Marquesas islands. The
early settler’s diet consisted of
mainly porpoises, land-nesting
seabirds and garden vegetables.
These people called themselves the
Rapa Nui. In addition to the moai,
this rich culture possessed the
Rongorongo script, the only written
language in Oceania.



Their populations soared and reached possibly as
much as 20,000 on an island only about 64
square miles in size. At their peak, they far
exceeded the capabilities of the small island’s
ecosystem.
The construction of the moai was for religious
purposes. They faced inland, meant to guard the
islanders.
Moai construction became competitive between
rivaling tribes, each trying to make a larger
statue. This only fueled deforestation as more
and more trees were needed for moai transport.
Easter Island



By 1400 AD the forest was completely
cut down for firewood, houses, canoes
and, not the least of which, rollers for
transporting their massive statues.
Without protective forest cover, soil
was eroded and washed off steep
hillsides. Springs and streams dried
up. Summer droughts made garden’s
less productive. Land birds became
extinct while seabirds no longer
nested on the island. Without canoes,
the people could not fish.
Statues at this time show sunken
cheeks and visible ribs, suggesting
starvation.
Easter Island



At this point chaos and
warfare seem to have racked
the denuded island.
The people were reduced to
cannibalism as their
population dropped by 90
percent. The few remaining
people cowered in caves.
The statues that were once
the symbols of life and
strength were thrown down
and broken.
Easter Island



Why didn’t these people control their
population and conserve their resources?
What were the islanders’ thoughts as they
cut down the last trees, effectively
stranding themselves?
Does the demise of this population have a
lesson for us?
Bangladesh
Location
Bangladesh is
located in South
Asia with a
population of 200
million people.
That’s 2/3 of the
United States
population living in
a place the size of
Wisconsin!
It has the longest delta area in the world which
promotes mass trade among foreign markets.
With the amount of trading that occurs here one
would think many of its inhabitants would live
comfortably, but this is not the case.
1970 and 1991 Tsunamis
It was rumored that the Tsunami which hit
Southeast Asia this year was the worst
natural disaster ever. Sadly, it was not.



In 1970 a cyclone caused a tsunami which
directly hit the coast of Bangladesh killing
over 500,000 people
In 1991 a Tsunami hit the coast again killing another 138,000
people.
The 2005 Tsunami only killed about 200,000 people in total and
about 75,000 were from Bangladesh.
The loss of life would not have been as severe if
overpopulation weren’t such a problem along the coasts.

Many of Bangladesh’s residents live on, or near, the coast
for easy, and close, access to water and trade.

Main Causes of Overpopulation in Bangladesh
Family size
Housing
Bad transportation system
Unemployment/poverty/famine
Disease/Poor water quality
Family Size



The average Bangladeshi
family consists of 1 father,
1-6 mothers, and 3-50
children
Bangladeshi women have
an average of 4.23
children during their
lifetime.
Contraceptives have been
introduced, but have been
widely rejected by the men
of families due to their
Islamic faith.
Lack of Housing
Large families
usually live in one
room shacks or
with other families
in a communal
house. Up to 70
people may all live
in the same house.
**Space equivalent:
It’s like 12 people
living in a double
room.
Transportation


Road crashes –
Medical/funeral
expenses, head
of household
unemployment
Crowded public
transportation
dangers:
• Buses &Trains:
falls,fire,violen
ce
BUSES
A typical double bus in
Bangladesh which carries up
to 100 people.
A bus fire which killed 20
people and injured 13 others.
Trains
You can see the risk in taking the train to
work, but people need to earn money to
support their large families at home.
Poverty



Mass unemployment :
not enough jobs for
working people leads
to a lack of resources
and food in the family
unit.
Famine caused by a
lack of rainfall and
fertile land occurs
often and has a big
impact
Many children starve
as a result every year.
Disease and Healthcare
Many diseases run ramped throughout Bangladesh due to close living
quarters and inevitable person to person contact. The worse diseases
currently affecting Bangladesh are Diarrheal disease and Cholera.
Diarrheal disease is caused by the consumption of unsanitary water. Seasonal
flooding causes rivers to overflow and run through the streets of larger cities in
Bangladesh. During this time various bacteria, wastes, and microorganisms are
accumulated. The water is then carried to smaller villages where there is
increased poverty. The majority of residents in Bangladesh cannot afford bottled
water, nor do small towns have ways in which to treat and purify the water
before it is drunk.
Cholera is a direct result of the
aforementioned water contamination.
These bacteria attach to plankton and
are ingested. This causes diarrhea,
vomiting, fever, and sometimes death if
not treated. A good thing about this is
that it is self-limiting because people
develop immunity after being infected
more than once.
US AID





Reduce fertility through
contraceptives.
save the lives of children
through immunization and
the early identification and
treatment of respiratory
infections,diarrheal
diseases, and Cholera;
save the lives of mothers
through prenatal and
postnatal care and tetanus
immunization;
provide other reproductive
health care to men, women
and adolescents; and
provide health information
related to all of these
health concerns
Overpopulation in India
India




The land area of India is
329 million square
kilometers (1/4 the size of
the U.S.)
It has a population of over
950 million people
In 1998 the growth rate
was 1.86%, down from
2.2% in the 1980's.
The country has a large
young population of 240
million in the 10-24 age
group.
• Because of this, the
population will continue
to grow, adding 18
million people a year







Half of its people live on less than
$1 a day.
53% of children under five are
malnourished;
71% have no access to sanitation;
37% have no access to safe water
20% of the world's maternal
deaths and 25% of its child
deaths occur in India.
Due to these alarming numbers,
in the late 1970’s Prime Minister
Indira Gandhi allowed for people
to be forcibly sterilized.
• This frightened people into no
longer dealing with a
population policy at all for
decades.
Despite this, India's fertility rate
has dropped in from 6 to 3.4
children per woman in the last 50
years.
More Problems Due to Overpopulation



Due to population
pressures, India is running
out of its natural resources.
Each year, water tables are
dropping 3.3 feet to 9.9
feet.
• This results in less water
for irrigation, thus
cutting India's grain
harvest by one-fourth
and increasing hunger
and malnutrition.
Because of human
settlements and farming,
the forests in India are also
diminishing. Wood fuel is
disappearing.
Sanitation problems as a Result…




About 80% of deadly diseases in
India occur due to contaminated
drinking water by human waste.
• Thus resulting in “poor
sanitation and inadequate
sewage disposal” being the
country’s largest health
issues.
Of over 950 million people, less
than 30% have bathrooms in
their homes.
• Many relieve themselves in
the open.
Of the country’s 4,000 cities,
only 250 have sewer systems
• Most of them don’t even
have proper treatment plans
In cities, thousands of people
could use the same toilet each
day, without proper sanitation.
Solutions?


In 1998 India participated in the World
Health Organization (WHO) in an attempt
to eliminate polio by the year 2000.
The government joined in private
organizations to add bathrooms to homes.
• Due to current population rates and the rate of
construction, it would take 200 years for every
Indian to have access to a toilet.

The World Bank funded $300 million for
the city of Bombay to treat 60% of its
sewage as well as build public toilets for 1
million “slum dwellers.”