Don't we have enough food resources to feed many
more people?
Pamela
Wasserman
Answer: Already, more than three-quarters
of a billion people suffer from malnutrition.
Although much of the world's hunger problem stems
from uneven food distribution, to feed future
populations, agricultural output levels must keep
pace with the exponential population growth. While
increased investment in agricultural research and
technology may result in increased yields, unless
population growth is slowed, food production
shortages and environmental degradation will
persist.
"For just how long can we feed this many people?
Too little is known about the long term
consequences of soil and water degradation and
species extinctions to be confident the earth's
resources can be relied on to feed indefinitely any
specific number of human beings, even today's 5.7
billion," according to a recent report issued by
Population Action International.4
This poses a challenge since the report also
states that between 1945 and 1990 "food production
and other human activities" degraded nearly three
billion acres of vegetated land, "an area equal to
China and India combined." This means this land has
lost its capacity to hold and supply nutrients to
vegetation. Two thirds of the most degraded land is
in Africa and Asia.5
Arable land diminishes as a result of soil
erosion, which deprives farmers of plant nutrients,
and irrigation, which deposits salts and other
minerals that interfere with root growth. Soil
conservation measures have been, in large part,
underfunded and unproductive. Global soil losses
are estimated to be 25 billion metric tons
annually, or 4.5 tons per person worldwide. About
10 percent of all irrigated land -- about 50 to 75
million acres -- is "severely salinized," while
another 150 to 200 million acres are affected by
some problems related to salinity and
waterlogging.6
Source: Pamela Wassserman, 'Frequently Asked
Questions: Things You Ought to Know About
Population', Zero Population Growth Inc. World Wide
Web, 1997.
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