Human Overpopulation: Impact on Environment

Background

An exponential growth of human population over the last few centuries has caused encroachment in the wild habitats and their consequent destruction, posing a potential threat to biodiversity components (Vinod, 2012). Growth rate of world population was approximately 2% per annum from 1960-2000, which indicted potential population doubling every 35 years thus could cause ecological unsustainability (Bloom, 2011). Projected world population growth for the major regions is presented in Table 1. Improved agriculture practices, modern medical facilities and illiteracy in rural regions caused demographic transition with more natality rate and decline in mortality rate. From 1980–81 until 1999–2000, agriculture showed a growth rate of 3.2% per annum, which exceeds the population growth rate of 2.0% annually over the period, while annual growth rate of per capita income was 3.1% between 1980 and 1991 and 4.3% since there forms of 1991 (Lal, 2006). According to the Inter Academy Panel Statement on Population Growth, several environmental concerns such as, elevated level of greenhouse gases, threat to biodiversity, climate change and environmental pollution are arisen as a result of rapid population growth (Coleman, 2011; Edet et al., 2014). This chapter reviews the impacts of overpopulation on environment, indicates future perspectives and provides some recommendation to combat the adverse impact of overpopulation.

Source: United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division. (2010). World Population Prospects: The 2010 Revision.