Does anyone agree that population control can preserve our natural environments?
Some environmentalists say that “the problem is overpopulation” while others say that “the problem is consumption”. In fact, the problem is BOTH. In a system, if any one factor is unsustainable, then the system as a whole system is unsustainable. Neither population nor per-capita consumption can rise exponentially forever (or even for a long time). Some people argue that technology will save us. However, most technology goes into consuming more, not bringing consumption and population into balance with resources. For example, better water pumps allow us to use up our groundwater faster — they don’t create more groundwater. (BTW: I disagree with the claim one writer made that over the last several decades environmental problems have decreased as population has increased. Other than air pollution in some urban areas, I can’t think of any environmental problems that have decreased.) As for the argument that more people give us more “human capital”, human capital is useful only when paire
