Human Population
There is no doubt that the current state of the human population accounts for much of the stress put on our natural environment. The majority of the growth and stress has been in the last 100 years. Since 1900, the human population has quadrupled, growing from 1.6 billion to 6.4 billion currently. Advances in medical technology and lifestyle improvements has extended the human life span, (in developed countries). This longer lifespan combined with the industrial revolution, has created tremendous growth in human numbers. This growth has put a severe strain on the planet's natural resources. Land is cleared at alarming rates in the name of growth and prosperity, which deletes wildlife habitats and removes plants that produces the very air we breath. Air and water are stressed by pollution from industry, transportation, construction, laziness & personal gain. Although, natural resources are wasted world wide, the 20% of the world's people in the highest-income countries account for 86% of total consumption and resource waste. The poorest people, 20% of our population, are responsible for a minuscule 1.3% of cunsumption and even less resource waste. (source) United Nations Development Programme's 1998 Human Development Report.
This means that those of us that live in developed countries must be responsible for our existance. We have to continue to look for ways of reducing our consumption of vital resources and look for true plans of sustainability.
