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Chapter 19: Population and Environment |
The study of population and environment, and the interaction
between the two, is the focus of chapter nineteen. Various tools
are used to gather and assess demographic data. In the United
States, the decennial census is the most important source of
data. To assess change in overall population numbers demographers
use three variables—fertility, mortality, and migration.
The impact of these variables is best seen in the age structure
of a nation—the pattern that emerges when people in a society
are grouped by age.
An issue of worldwide concern today is the burgeoning human
population. Thinkers, such as Thomas Malthus and Karl Marx,
have studied the problem for centuries and proposed various
solutions. The strategies most widely used today to control
the rate of population growth—especially in Third World
countries—are changing the cultural influences on fertility
rates, encouraging the use of contraception, and elevating
the status of women. The world population, however, continues
to grow, and this has serious implications for the earth and
its people. Population growth strains the world's food-producing
capacity and results in the depletion and pollution of the
earth's natural resources. The consumption of fossil fuels,
deforestation, air pollution, and water pollution are issues
to which solutions will continue to be sought in our quest
for a sustainable world.
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