The rapid growth of the human population is making us the dominant species on this planet. It has been stated that there are about 5.8 billion people occupying the planet today and it is estimated to increase in the near future. The high human population is having a huge affect on biodiversity which results in the destruction of species. The obvious reason for this impact is stated clearly in the quote by Charles Darwin “Although some species may be now increasing more or less rapidly, in numbers, all cannot do so, for the world would not hold them.” I think we can all agree that this quote is so very true and as our population along with the species population increases, this world would just be unable to support us all.
It is sated that most of the problems in the environment are caused by density-dependent factors relating to human population. So basically, when the population of an area exceeds its carrying capacity, the earth has to somehow adjust and make everything stable. Diseases killing off some of the population and insufficient food leading to the starvation of some of the population are all results of the earth trying to keep things balanced. In order to preserve our planet we, as humans, have to either voluntarily control our numbers or the nature will for sure do what ever it can to control it for us. Unfortunately, scientists say that many creatures will remain unknown to us forever because they seem to disappear or be extinct before we even get a chance to learn about them.
Everyone should care and be worried about this situation because the loss of species in our environment affects us all. Most species provide us with our essential needs such as food, fiber and numerous other products, which we gradually take advantage of. Let’s take a look at how specific species and plants contribute to our everyday needs. Plants and microorganisms create our soil; the forests clean the air while it also replenishes our ground water supplies. Frogs, fish, and birds control pests; and insects provided pollination service, which is very important to the reproduction of many plants.
Overall, at this point we have had a negative impact on this planet and if we wish to be stewards of the world we must change our ways. Two things that we can do is 1) reduce our reproductive numbers and 2) we could all always try to consume less. Some may disagree and say that reducing our reproduction is hard or consuming less is impossible, well I say that even one person makes a difference. It may not result in huge change, however it will have some affect and it may encourage others to do the same. If we don’t start paying attention to our planet now, in the future there might not be any planet for us to care for at all. We should start being stewards of the world and make this planet a better place to live.
Sources:
Edward J. Otten. "The Effects of Human Population on Biodiversity." Biodiversity and Human Health. 2001. Joseph Dougherty. 30th of September 2009. <http://www.ecology.org/biod/population/human_pop1.html>
"Population and Biodiversity Factsheet." Sierra Club. 30th of September 2009
<http://www.sierraclub.org/population/reports/biodiversity.asp>
Picture - http://worldhistoryforusall.sdsu.edu/images/population_graph.jpg
