Chapter 6, “Climate Change,” of your textbook discusses reputable  scientific studies that show that the Earth is warming at an  unsustainable rate because of a rise in the release of CO2 and methane  gases.

What is the relationship between population increases and climate  change? Do you think fertility control is an effective strategy to halt  climate change? Why or why not?

Reply:

Hello classmates and Professor!

Climate change can be directly tied to the increase in the global population through increased demand for resources. This demand results in an increase in pollution from various sources, including farming practices, deforestation, power production methods, transportation, and manufacturing processes. Having said that, we have already, as a global community, approached a critical juncture in the pendulum of climate change. Let me explain the reason I elected for the word pendulum here. There have been at least 5 Ice Ages that we are aware of. Before we get to that, I feel it is important to relay that as “Earth was emerging out of the last glacial cycle, the warming trend was interrupted 12,800 years ago when temperatures dropped dramatically in only several decades. A mere 1,300 years later, temperatures locally spiked as much as 20°F (11°C) within just several years. Sudden changes like this occurred at least 24 times during the past 100,000 years.” (1). This makes great sense because, as our text affirms, the melting of glacial ice “may be diluting the ocean’s salty water which is essential to keep the so-called “Atlantic heat conveyor” moving” (2).

What I take this to mean is that through whatever means, there are periods of warmer and cooler temperatures that result in disruptions to the delicate machinery that keeps our planet operating at within a range that is most conductive for all forms of life. Seems reasonable, yes? All right, then let’s address the elephant. Our practices have, without a doubt, accelerated this cyclic occurrence, and seeing as we have also artificially introduced factors that were not present in any previous shift all of our estimations may be grossly inaccurate, and not for the better. To perhaps phrase that better, what I mean is there is an established pattern but when one interferes with the design there is no way of knowing how wonky things can get or how large the effects of those interferences can be and with the load on the planet being at a record high, the stakes could not be higher.

So, do I feel that fertility control is an effective measure to halt climate change? Yes but no. As previously stated, there is a cyclic nature to our climate which occurs with or without our input or existence. It was also stated earlier that the larger the population the more demand there is for resources which also increases the pollution which exacerbates the issue. In that sense, reducing the global population (or slowing the rate of growth while cleaner methods are implemented) is a valid PART of the solution. In most aspects, we are at a mitigation phase in this problem. We know that previous actions, such as “gases from emissions from the Industrial Revolution until 2017 will continue causing temperatures to warm up to another 0.5 degrees Celsius in the coming decades through the end of the century.” (2). Simply, I feel that there are so many factors that contribute to this issue that singling out one, such as fertility control and proposing it as a solution is ridiculous as the problem is too large and too varied for a singular ‘cure’.

Sam

1. Sandy Eldridge. 2019. Glad You Asked: Ice Ages – What Are They and What Causes Them? Glad You Asked: Ice Ages – What are they and what causes them? – Utah Geological Survey

2. Kristen Hite. 2021. Global issues An Introduction Sixth Edition. Wiley Blackwell.