Describe the global growth and geographical distribution of human population. Discuss the impacts that this growth has on both land and water resources?

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Environmental Science 36E1 People and the Environment

Autumn 2002

Student        1117083


Environmental Science 36E1 People and the Environment

Autumn 2002

Student        1117083

Essay Title:        Describe the global growth and geographical distribution of human population. Discuss the impacts that this growth has on both land and water resources?

In the year 1999 the worlds population reached the 6 billion mark and the United Nations predict that by the year 2025 this will rise to 8 billion with a further rise in 2050 to 9.3 billion before it starts to stabilise at about 10.5 / 11 billion. (Fig 1.0) This exponential growth is a phenomenon that has only really come about during the last three hundred years or so.

During prehistoric time the growth of the global population was very slow. However in the last 350 years, human population has dramatically increased, with most estimates indicating that about 90% of the worlds population growth has occurred during this time. Looking at the growth rate on a global scale we can form many opinions relating to the reasons for such an increase. The population growth can be directly attributed to advancements in health care, and hygiene that has resulted from scientific developments that have occurred from the mid eighteenth century to the present day. Such advancements have enabled crude mortality rates to decrease and life expectancy to increase in many parts of the developed world.

 

Fig 1.0 United Nations predicted World Population related to main fertility Cycles

1950 – 2050

It is a crude fact that people are living longer and that there has never before been so many young people globally. It is also true that most of the worlds population growth is from developing countries. In the developed world the rapid growth in global population has been recognised and a need to manage it has arisen.

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Through education and a gradual change in sociological gender roles there has been a decline in population growth with some countries showing that they are in decline rather than growth with a higher crude death rate (CDR) than crude birth rate CBR). This trend is common in most developed countries with only America being the exception to the rule. Current population growth in the USA shows an alarming rate of growth. The growth rate is such that if the population globally were the same as that of the United States we would need the equivalent of three worlds to ...

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A good attempt to answer the question posed. This essay uses figures well and refers to them in the text, as well as giving references at the end. This answer could have been strengthened by linking back to the question posed in each paragraph demonstrating how the information given was helping to answer the question. 3 stars.