Dancing with danger
Sir, As a result of overpopulation, overconsumption, global warming and environmental degradation, it now looks increasingly likely that there will be a major societal collapse within the forseeable future.
Between 1997 and 2007, world population increased from 5835 million to 6,600 million which is equivalent to an increase of 210,000 per day during this period. Between 1950 and 2000, world GDP increased by a factor of 10 in constant US$, which is a measure of consumption. Between 1800 and 2002, the atmospheric CO2 concentration increased from 288 to 373ppm and is expected to reach 460 ppm in 2030. This means that as much CO2 will be emitted to the atmosphere between 2002 and 2030 as during the whole of the industrial revolution from 1800 to 2002. In 1961, mankind used only about one half of the Earth’s biocapacity; but this increased to 1.2 times in 2002. This means that global demand for natural resources now exceeds the biological ability of the earth to renew these resources by more than 20%.
The increases in these four parameters clearly demonstrate the extent to which we are overexploiting the natural environment and resources on which we depend for our survival. Unless curbed, these increases are likely to have a major impact on the human population within the next 50 years.