Impact of the Global Population on the Environment - Orthodox Fellowship of the Transfiguration

By George P. Nassos

Using the time of Jesus Christ as the starting point, the world population at His time was estimated to be about 200 million people. It took almost 1800 years to reach one billion people on the earth but only about 120 more years to add the second billion. And what have we done in the past 100 years? We have quadrupled the world population to over eight billion and are adding 70-80 million people annually, which amounts to about one billion people every 12 years.

One of the biggest environmental issues is global warming, better known now as climate change, and there is no question that human activity has had a major impact on climate change. Since the beginning of human civilization up until about 200 years ago, our atmosphere contained about 275 parts per million (ppm) of carbon dioxide (CO2). A concentration of 275 ppm of CO2, along with some other greenhouse gases (GHG), is a useful amount that traps heat in the atmosphere. Without it our planet would be too cold for humans to inhabit. Unfortunately, due to the increase in population, the CO2 concentration has exceeded the ideal level of 350 ppm and is now around 425 ppm and continuing to increase. This is primarily due to the increase in transportation and energy production demanded by the increase in population.

Another major environmental issue is the overconsumption of our natural resources. This refers to the generation of materials required for food and business development such as agricultural products for food and construction. But these natural resources also include what is found in lakes and oceans, material such as fish. Some time ago the earth generated much more materials than were in demand, but today we are consuming these natural resources at a rate of about 1.8 earths. Eventually, there will be a major shortage of these natural resources.

Water is a natural resource with a finite quantity. The amount of water on this planet 2000 years ago is the same as it is today, but the population has expanded greatly. Of all the water on this planet, only 0.1% is available for industrial, agricultural and human consumption. And of these three general uses, 70% is for agricultural use, 20% for industrial use, and only 10% for human consumption. Going further with the calculations results in only 0.01% of all the water on the earth being consumed by humans, and as the population grows, that leaves less for everyone. According to the United Nations, two thirds of the world’s population may already be facing water scarcity. Corpus Christi, Texas already is short of water as is Cape Town, South Africa. As the population continues to grow, water scarcity will continue to grow.

The current world population is 8.3 billion and could reach 9.7 to 9.8 billion by 2050. So, there is no question that this increase in population will have a negative impact on the environmental issues already discussed. However, we may be able to avoid the negative impacts by taking certain actions. Without going into detail here is a partial list of some possible actions.

Climate change