Chapter Summary

CHAPTER 15: POPULATION, GLOBAL INEQUALITY, AND THE ENVIRONMENTAL CRISIS

In the past 55 years the global population more than doubled from 2.5 billion to over 6.3 billion. The numbers alone speak for themselves. Whether or not the planet can take the strain of another doubling of the population in the next 55 years is debatable. But numbers alone are only a part of the problem. The problem of over population is even more serious in areas of the world with high population densities. A part of population growth is legal and illegal immigration. In the United States and several other countries the immigration controversy has created heated debate.

Population growth rates vary among nations. The combination of fertility, mortality, and migration determine the actual growth or shrinkage of a particular society’s population. High-income nations usually have a lower growth rate than low-income nations. Some European countries are actually declining in population because of low birth rates and large numbers of emigrants leaving. The study of the size, composition, and distribution of populations is called demography.

Fertility refers to the number of children born to an individual or a population. Fertility is associated with social as well as biological factors. Mortality is the number of deaths occurring in a specific population. Migration is the movement of people from one geographic area to another for the purpose of changing residence. Important concepts associated with fertility, mortality, and migration are crude birth rate, crude death rate, life expectancy, infant mortality rate, immigration, emigration, and the crude net migration rate.

In the United States overpopulation is less of a concern than legal and illegal immigration. Immigration accounts for an increase of about 900,000 people annually with refugees accounting for an additional 130,000. This is less than a third of the estimated three and a half to four million people who enter the nation illegally.

Population growth affects population composition which is its biological and social characteristics. These include age, sex, race, marital status, education, occupation, income, size of household, and other variables.

Rapid population growth is often met with greater degrees of human suffering. Thomas Malthus, an English clergyman and economist, predicted the world would eventually destroy itself because of rapid population growth combined with an insufficient food supply. Today neo-Malthusians speak of a population explosion and the population bomb that will lead to the same end. Countering the Malthusians are the supporters of the demographic transition theory that states societies move in stages from high birth and death rates to low birth and death rates. Eventually, the process corrects itself.

Worldwide, millions of people suffer from chronic malnourishment. Although the “green revolution” has created dramatic increases in the food supply there are other problems created with its benefits. These include the use of fertilizers and pesticides that may be harmful to people and the environment, irrigation needs, and expense. Another effort to increase food supply involves the use of microorganisms in innovative ways, a process known as the biotechnical revolution. But just as the green revolution presents problems with its implementation, so does the biotechnological revolution.

Demographers looking to reduce population growth concentrate on ways to decrease fertility. To do so requires people to make calculated choices, see advantages in reducing fertility, and be willing to become masterful in effective birth control techniques. Even if only zero population growth were achieved, especially in areas with the highest birth rates, the overall world population would stabilize or decrease.

The debate over immigration in the United States has two very different arguments. On one side, immigration is believed to be draining financial resources from states with high immigration rates. On the other side of the argument, immigration is believed to actually stimulate the economy by providing labor that others refuse to do. Regardless of which position is correct, immigrant bashing and high dropout rates of immigrants from school contribute to social problems that are irrefutable.

Whether or not the population of the world is 5, 10, or 20 billion, everyone must live on the same planet. Together the environment and population form the ecosystem. All the earth’s ecosystems combine to form its biosphere. When the inhabitants of the earth overpopulate a specific area or engage in practices that damage the environment it results in environmental degradation. Factors contributing to environmental degradation include the burning of fossil fuels, destroying natural vegetation, land erosion, air pollution, and the accumulation of solid and toxic waste. Acid rain, formed when sulfuric and nitric oxides created by engine exhausts combine with rainfall, destroys forests and kills fish and other aquatic life in streams and lakes. The greenhouse effect, created by excessive qualities of water vapor, methane, and nitrous oxide in the air is the primary cause of global warming. Accompanying these environmental issues are soil depletion, deforestation, and desertification. Solid and toxic wastes, especially nuclear waste, present the seed for technological disasters on a global scale. Nuclear accidents at Chernobyl and Three Mile Island could have been far more serious than they were. The pollution of the Love Canal caused generations of birth defects.

Sociologists examine problems about the population from the three sociological perspectives. An added feature to their study of these issues is the science of environmental sociology. Functionalists focus on the relationship between social structure, technological change, and environmental problems. One group of functionalist believes technological innovation benefits society. Another group sees technology as a part of the problem because it increases the number of people needing to be fed.

Analysts using a conflict framework believe that population and environmental problems have less to do with overpopulation and a shortage of resources than it does with power differentials. Corporations and the government do what is in their best interest, regardless of the consequences to individuals, minority groups, or the planet. The symbolic interactionist perspective views environmental problems in terms of individuals.

The future of the planet, and its population, may be set in motion in the twenty-first century. The problem is global in nature with all nations, regardless of income level, being required to “pitch in” to be a part of the solution.