ZZU301 ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES A CASE STUDY

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SLNO. 1 2 3 4 5 6

TOPIC PAGE NO ABSTRACT 2 AIM/OBJECTIVE/TOPIC 7 LITERATURE SURVEY 8 EXPERIMENTAL 28 METHODS/DATA COLLECTION RESULTS AND DISCUSSION 41 /ANALYSIS OF DATA CONCLUSION 48

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"Go Forth And Multiply!" .

That's what the human population has successfully been doing for thousands and thousands of years, expanding, exploring, migrating, conquering, utilizing, evolving, civilizing, industrializing, and now, destroying the very land upon which we live. The human population is living far beyond its means and inflicting damage on the environment that could pass points of no return. Climate change, the rate of extinction of species and the challenge of feeding a growing population are among the threats putting humanity at risk. We need to keep in mind that : Resources of the earth are not just

scarce, they are finite.

The human population is now so large that the amount of resources needed to sustain it exceeds what is available at current consumption patterns. The result of that population growth combined with unsustainable consumption has resulted in an increasingly stressed planet where natural disasters and environmental degradation endanger millions of humans, as well as plant and animal species. The global economy could be seriously affected by environmental problems, such as the lack of access to enough resources to meet growing population demands. Environmental degradation can contribute to social

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and political instability, which can lead to security issues. Already around the world we are seeing an increase in violence and human rights abuses as disputes about territories, food and water are spilling into wars and internal conflicts. Increase in population has had a major impact on the environment of Earth starting at least as early as the 20th century. There are indirect economic consequences of this environmental degradation in the form of ecosystem services attrition. Beyond the scientifically verifiable harm to the environment, some argue the moral right of other species to simply exist, protected from human exploitation.Our burgeoning population and urban way of life have been purchased at the expense of vast ecosystems and habitats. It's no accident that as we celebrate the urbanization of the world, we are quickly approaching another historic watershed: the

disappearance of the wild.

The past half century has been a traumatic one, as the collective impact of human numbers, affluence (consumption per individual) and our choices of technology continue to exploit rapidly an increasing proportion of the world's resources at an unsustainable rate. During a remarkably short period of time, we have lost a quarter of the world's topsoil and a fifth of its agricultural land, altered the composition of the atmosphere profoundly, and destroyed a major proportion of our forests and other natural habitats without replacing them. Worst of all, we have driven the rate of biological extinction, the permanent loss of species, up

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several hundred times beyond its historical levels, and are threatened with the loss of a majority of all species by the end of the 21st century." Today's consumption is undermining the environmental resource base. It is exacerbating inequalities. And the dynamics of the consumption-poverty-inequality-environment nexus are accelerating. If the trends continue without change - not redistributing from high-income to low-income consumers, not shifting from polluting to cleaner goods and production technologies, not promoting goods that empower poor producers, not shifting priority from consumption for conspicuous display to meeting basic needs-today's problems of consumption and human development will worsen. Many feel (as has been the case throughout history) that the major international wars to be fought in the future will continue to be over natural resources.Studies point to ecological limits to sustain people, but these limits can be different, based on the way we consume resources etc so it is hard to say for sure what over population means let alone if we are at some threshold, below, or above it. Actually we humans have reached a global crunch.This crunch occurs when the population is increasing rapidly, and, at the same time, our basic natural resources for survival are declining. Many renewable resources are used faster than they can restore themselvelves. Humans are still under the control of the basic environmental physical limits. When these limits are reached and the population begins to decrease or

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people are in constant hunger and misery, physical environmental overpopulation has taken place. The results of physical overpopulation on humanscan be the same as in all non-human species when they exceed their carrying capacity. The outcome may be starvation, disease, migration, and increased predation (for humans this is war).Our species lived under these physical limiting conditions for the first 200,000 years of its evolution. That is why our population remained at nearzero population growth until the Agricultural Revolution. So Whats need to be done. Everyone needs to be keep informed about what is happening with the environment and population. Things are changing fast. Some types of information several years old are no longer valid. Population numbers and the trends of family size and population change rapidly. The status of the resources in the world are changeable, especially food production, forest cover, cropland, and degrees of hunger and famines. Local environmental and population problems change. There will be an increased demand for forest products and for conversion of cropland into other uses. Our wildlife ecosystems must be protected for watershed and to prevent soil erosion. We also need them for wildlife enjoyment and survival of species on whose well-being and interrelatedness we depend on Local

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programs to recycle, reduce and reuse are essential for two reasons: They lower the consumption of resources, and they teach everyone that resources are limited. It is a constant reminder that environmentally we are overpopulated.

Globally, the importance of small families cannot be exaggerated. There is no way to get people out of poverty and for women to gain economic and social status in developing countries unless the population is reduced through voluntary reduction of family size. Attempts to improve living conditions are constantly being erased by the increase of population.

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The present project report is an attempt to examine population growth, increasing urbanization and its influence on the environment and health of the people. In order to meticulously understand the causes and consequences the following aims and objectives of the our project compilation have been outlined: 1. To properly decipher the population patterns and their effects on environment. 2. To analyse changes and trends over last fifty years using statistical data. 3.To predict near future of population and environment using current trends. 4.To suggest appropriate remedies that could serve as need of the hour strategies to throttle the environmental problems caused by human population. 5.To use relevant data and case studies in order to achieve above mentioned aims with a pragmatic approach.

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Human population growth is the number one threat to the world's environment. Each person requires energy, space and resources to survive, which results in environmental losses. If the human population were maintained at sustainable levels, it would be possible to balance these environmental losses with renewable resources and regeneration. But our population is rapidly rising beyond the earth's ability to regenerate and sustain us with a reasonable quality of life. We are exceeding the carrying capacity of our planet. We need to limit our growth voluntarily, and promote contraceptive use, before Nature controls our population for us with famines, drought and plagues. Our children's future depends on us. The population reached 6.1 billion in 2000. The United Nation projects that world population for the year 2050 could range from 7.9 billion to 10.9 billion, depending on the actions we take today.

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Population Facts - The future in just 22 years

Scarce Water --- Currently, 434 million people face either water stress or scarcity. Depending on future rates of population growth, between 2.6 billion and 3.1 billion people may be living in either waterscarce or water-stressed conditions by 2025. Scarce Cropland ---The number of people living in countries where cultivated land is critically scarce is projected to increase to between 600 million and 986 million in 2025. Fisheries --- Most of the world 's ocean fisheries are already being fished to their maximum capacities or are in decline. Forests --- Today over 1.8 billion people live in 36 countries with less than 0.1 hectare of forested land per capita, an indicator of critically low levels of forest cover. Based on the medium population projection and current deforestation trends, by 2025 the number of people living in forest-scarce countries could nearly double to 3 billion.
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World Population Estimation by 2050.

Global Warming --- In 1998, the last year for which global data are available for both population and heat-trapping carbon dioxide emissions, per capita emissions of CO2 continued the upward trend that dominated the middle 1990s. When combined with growing world population, these increased per capita emissions accelerated the accumulation of greenhouse gases in the global atmosphere and, thus, future global warming. Species Extinction --- More than 1.1 billion people live in areas that conservationists consider the most rich in non-human species and the most threatened by human activities. While these areas comprise about 12 percent of the planet's land surface, they hold nearly 20 percent of its human population. The population in these biodiversity hotspots is growing at a collective rate of 1.8 percent annually, compared to the world's population 's annual growth rate of 1.3 percent.

A Populous Street in Kolkata(India).

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Consumption Plus Population

When population growth is coupled with excessive consumption of resources, problems multiply. Currently, 20 percent of the world's people in the highest-income countries account for 86 percent of the total private consumption expenditures, while the poorest 20 percent consume only 1.3 percent. The unequal distribution of wealth and resources leads to oblivious waste and excess in the wealthy nations, and suffering in the resource-starved regions. The long debate over the impact of population growth on the environment is gradually converging on a middle ground where most scientists can agree. The need now is to prod U.S. policymakers distracted by political battles over abortionto a consensus on which they can act. Sound population policies can brighten environmental prospects while improving life for women and children, enhancing economic development, and contributing to a more secure world. Changes in population size, age, and distribution affect issues ranging from food security to climate change. Population variables interact with consumption patterns, technologies, and political and economic structures to influence environmental change. This interaction helps explain why environmental conditions can deteriorate even as the growth of population slows. Despite slowing growth, world population still gains nearly 80 million people each year, parceling land, fresh water, and other finite resources among more people. A new Germany is added annually, a new

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Los Angeles monthly. How this increase in population size affects specific environmental problems is impossible to say precisely. Too many factors interact, and much depends on the time frame under consideration. Obviously, trends such as the loss of half of the planets forests, the depletion of most of its major fisheries, and the alteration of its atmosphere and climate are closely related to the fact that human population expanded from mere millions in prehistoric times to nearly 6 billion today. No policy can change the past. But addressing current population needs would head off the regrets that future generations will otherwise have about the failure of todays generation to act. Equally importantly, the policies that address demographic trends have immediate and beneficial impacts on the lives of women and their families. It is this "winwin" strategyslowing population growth by attending to the needs for health care, schooling, and economic opportunitiesthat should encourage policymakers to consider population-related policies when addressing environmental risks.

Population Density of various countries.

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Future population trends will influence the abundance and quality of such critical renewable natural resources as fresh water, fisheries, forests, cropland, and the atmosphere. An international scientific panel, for example, noted recently that Israel, Jordan, the West Bank, and Gaza are home to 12 million people and yet receive only as much rainfall as Phoenix, Arizona. Sponsored by the U.S. National Academy of Sciences and counterpart institutions in the region, the panel identified rapid population growth as a major concern for the regions critically stretched supplies of renewable fresh water. Stabilizing world population tomorrow wont by itself solve natural resource crises and other environmental problems. But without a leveling off of population, eventually environmental challenges press more urgently no matter what other measures are taken. Policymakers tend not to address such interconnected issues. One result is that there really is no U.S. policy on population and the environment, only a range of separate policies related either to international population or to specific environmental issues.

The requirement that environmental conditions be maintained in ways that sustain human life does not imply a need for population "control." Governments cannot control population any more than th ey can control people themselves. Lasting demographic trends respond to the childbearing choices people make themselves, not to those others
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would impose. The decline in family size that has occurred over the past 35 yearsfrom six to three children per woman worldwidehas resulted from changing attitudes about childbearing and improved access to family planning services. Nonetheless, with two in five pregnancies worldwide still unintended, U.S. foreign policy should maintain and strengthen its historic efforts to improve access to family planning and related services where this access is now poor or nonexistent. (Unintended pregnancy stems from more than lack of access to contraceptives, but expanding this access is essential to reducing the phenomenon.) Support of education for girls and of economic opportunities for women would contribute to further declines in birthrates while improving individual capacities. As problems like water scarcity, the depletion of fisheries, and human-induced climate change become more widely recognized in the coming decades, however, governments will increasingly be asked to dsevelop systemic approaches and win-win strategies that go beyond short-term amelioration of environmental deterioration. Future changes in global population will contribute significantly to the need for such integrated, long-term approaches to environmental problems. Although the global rate of population growth peaked 30 years ago, human population has grown by nearly two thirds since then. The ratios of people to fresh water, forests, cropland, fish, and the atmosphere have grown in tandem. According to accepted hydrological benchmarks, fewer than 4 million people lived in countries experiencing chronic scarcities of

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renewable fresh water in 1955, despite the rapid population growth of the time. Less than half a century later, despite slower growth, the population of people living in water-scarce countries has grown to more than 165 million, a figure that could grow to between 1 billion and 2.2 billion, depending on future rates of population growth, in the next 50 years. What applies to water applies to many other natural resources critical to life, health, and economic development, although they may not be as readily quantified. Scarcities of natural resources should concern policymakers, because they not only hamper economic and social development, they also threaten global security by contributing to conflict where institutions are ill-equipped to mediate among groups competing for critical resources. Nondemographic factors also deserve attention in addressing natural-resource scarcity: more responsible consumption, innovative substitution, and pricing systems that discourage waste, for example. But such efforts can reach points of diminishing returns unless the underlying numbers of human beings requiring natural resources for basic needs and aspirations eventually reach stable or declining levels. This characterization of the population-environment connection necessarily simplifies a complex and controversial set of relationships. The key point is that policies that result in lower trajectories of population growth are likely to increase the chances of success for comprehensive approaches to environmental problems in the coming

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decades. Policiesor policy vacuumsthat result in more rapid growth are likely to make these problems even more intractable and thus dampen the long-term success of targeted policy responses. Unfortunately, misperceptions about population contribute to an impasse that discourages environmentalists, opinion leaders, and policymakers from marshaling environmental arguments on behalf of sound population policies. The view that such policies amount to rich countries attempting to "control" the populations of poor countries through incentives or coercion dies hard. Few policymakers understand that population policy is primarily about expanding the capacity of women and men to manage their own reproduction as they choose with slower population growth a mere bonus. Fewer still seem to be aware of the action programagreed to in 1994 by 179 nationsto make this capacity real and universal early in the 21st century.

Fertility rate (Growth rate) of various countries)

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Key Recommendations

Policymakers

and

environmentalists

should

support

the

international consensus on population policy, which would improve the lives of women and their families while slowing both population growth and environmental degradation.

Environmentalists should urge Washington to increase its population assistance to levels consistent with commitments made at the International Conference on Population and Development in 1994 and to restore funding to the United Nations Population Fund.

Congress should resist additional restrictions on overseas family planning organizations.

The reality is that women in all parts of the world, in developing countries as well as industrialized ones, are participating in a demographic revolution. They seek to have fewer children, and to have them later in life, than ever before in human history. Men, too, are joining women in this aspiration. But perhaps because men do not bear children themselves and are less active in caring for them on average, in much of the world they lag behind in this shift. Part of the emphasis in population policy is in finding new ways of attending to the reproductive needs of boys and men, which includes improving their understanding of the needs of girls and women.

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Areas of high population densities.(Dark color indicates higher population densities).

In Cairo, the worlds governments devised a spending formula for achieving universal access to critical reproductive health services by early in the next century. Achieving this goalworthy on its own terms and essential for a stabilized world populationwould cost roughly $17 billion per year in current dollars, with developing countries contributing about two thirds of that amount, industrialized countries one third. Based on the size of its economy, the United States should be contributing about $1.9 billion to this effort; instead, it has reduced its support from about $667 million annually in 1996 to around $400 million in the current fiscal year. Between 1960 and 1999, Earth's population doubled from three billion to six billion people. In many ways, this reflected good news for

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humanity: child mortality rates plummeted, life expectancy increased, and people were on average healthier and better nourished than at any time in history. However, during the same period, changes in the global environment began to accelerate: pollution heightened, resource depletion continued, and the threat of rising sea levels increased. Does the simultaneous occurrence of population growth and environmental decline over the past century indicate that more people translate into greater environmental degradation?

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPLICATIONS OF SPECIFIC POPULATION FACTORS

According to recent United Nations estimates, global population is increasing by approximately 80 million--the size of Germany--each year. Although fertility rates have declined in most areas of the world, population growth continues to be fueled by high levels of fertility, particularly in Asia and Africa. In numerous Middle Eastern and African nations, the average number of children a woman would be expected to have given current fertility levels remains above 6.0--for example, 6.4 in Saudi Arabia, 6.7 in Yemen, 6.9 in Uganda, and as high as 7.5 in Niger. Even in areas where fertility rates have declined to near replacement levels (2.1 children per couple), population continues to grow because of "population momentum," which occurs when a high proportion of the population is young.

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Population Size
No simple relationship exists between population size and environmental change. However, as global population continues to grow, limits on such global resources as arable land, potable water, forests, and fisheries have come into sharper focus. In the second half of the twentieth century, decreasing farmland contributed to growing concern of the limits to global food production. Assuming constant rates of production, per capita land requirements for food production will near the limits of arable land over the course of the twenty-first century. Likewise, continued population growth occurs in the context of an accelerating demand for water: Global water consumption rose sixfold between 1900 and 1995, more than double the rate of population growth.

Population Distribution
The ways in which populations are distributed across the globe also affect the environment. Continued high fertility in many developing regions, coupled with low fertility in more-developed regions, means that 80 percent of the global population now lives in less-developed nations. Furthermore, human migration is at an all-time high: the net flow of international migrants is approximately 2 million to 4 million per year and, in 1996, 125 million people lived outside their country of birth. Much of this migration follows a rural-to-urban pattern, and, as a result, the Earth's population is also increasingly urbanized. As recently as 1960, only

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one-third of the world's population lived in cities. By 1999, the percentage had increased to nearly half (47 percent). This trend is expected to continue well into the twenty-first century. The distribution of people around the globe has three main implications for the environment. First, as less-developed regions cope with a growing share of population, pressures intensify on already dwindling resources within these areas. Second, migration shifts relative pressures exerted on local environments, easing the strain in some areas and increasing it in others. Finally, urbanization, particularly in lessdeveloped regions, frequently outpaces the development of

infrastructure and environmental regulations, often resulting in high levels of pollution.

Population Composition
Composition can also have an effect on the environment because different population subgroups behave differently. For example, the global population has both the largest cohort of young people (age 24 and under) and the largest proportion of elderly in history. Migration propensities vary by age. Young people are more likely than their older counterparts to migrate, primarily as they leave the parental home in search of new opportunities. As a result, given the relatively large younger generation, we might anticipate increasing levels of migration and urbanization, and therefore, intensified urban environmental concerns.

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Other aspects of population composition are also important: Income is especially relevant to environmental conditions. Across countries, the relationship between economic development and environmental pressure resembles an inverted U-shaped curve; nations with economies in the middle-development range are most likely to exert powerful pressures on the natural environment, mostly in the form of intensified resource consumption and the production of wastes. By contrast, the least-developed nations, because of low levels of industrial activity, are likely to exert relatively lower levels of environmental pressure. At highly advanced development stages, environmental pressures may subside because of improved technologies and energy efficiency. Within countries and across households, however, the relationship between income and environmental pressure is different. Environmental pressures can be greatest at the lowest and highest income levels. Poverty can contribute to unsustainable levels of resource use as a means of meeting short-term subsistence needs. Furthermore, higher levels of income tend to correlate with disproportionate consumption of energy and production of waste.

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TWO SPECIFIC AREAS OF POPULATION-ENVIRONMENT INTERACTION: GLOBAL CLIMATE CHANGE AND LAND-USE PATTERNS
Two specific areas illustrate the challenges of understanding the complex influence of population dynamics on the environment: land-use patterns and global climate change.

Land Use
Fulfilling the resource requirements of a growing population ultimately requires some form of land-use change--to provide for the expansion of food production through forest clearing, to intensify production on already cultivated land, or to develop the infrastructure necessary to support increasing human numbers. During the past three centuries, the amount of Earth's cultivated land has grown by more than 450 percent, increasing from 2.65 million square kilometers to 15 million square kilometers. A related process, deforestation, is also critically apparent: A net decline in forest cover of 180 million acres took place during the 15-year interval 19801995, although changes in forest cover vary greatly across regions. Whereas developing countries experienced a net loss of 200 million acres, developed countries actually experienced a net increase, of 20 million acres These types of land-use changes have several ecological impacts. Converting land to agricultural use can lead to soil erosion, and the

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chemicals often used in fertilizers can also degrade soil. Deforestation is also associated with soil erosion and can lessen the ability of soil to hold water, thereby increasing the frequency and severity of floods. Humaninduced changes in land use often result in habitat fragmentation and loss, the primary cause of species decline. In fact, if current rates of forest clearing continue, one-quarter of all species on Earth could be lost within the next 50 years.

Forest Area in 1995 Compared with 1980.

Global Climate Change

Recent years have been among the warmest on record. Research suggests that temperatures have been influenced by growing concentrations of greenhouse gases, which absorb solar radiation and warm the atmosphere. Research also suggests that many changes in atmospheric gas are human-induced. The demographic influence appears
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primarily in three areas. First, contributions related to industrial production and energy consumption lead to carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuel use; second, land-use changes, such as deforestation, affect the exchange of carbon dioxide between the Earth and the atmosphere; and third, some agricultural processes, such as paddy-rice cultivation and livestock production, are responsible for greenhouse gas releases into the atmosphere, especially methane. According to one estimate, population growth will account for 35 percent of the global increase in CO2 emissions between 1985 and 2100 and 48 percent of the increase in developing nations during that period. As such, both attention to demographic issues and the development of sustainable production and consumption processes are central responses to the processes involved in global warming. The policy implications of demographic influences on the environment are complicated and can sometimes be controversial. While some view large, rapidly growing populations in developing regions as the primary culprit in environmental decline, others focus on the costly environmental effects of overconsumption among the slowly increasing populations of the developed nations. These differing emphases naturally point to radically different solutions: slow population increase in less developed nations or change destructive consumption and production patterns in the more-developed nations. This debate, however, presumes a one-step solution to the complex problems created by population pressures on the environment. Both population size and consumption influence environmental change and are among the many factors that
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need to be incorporated into realistic policy debate and prescripti ons. Examples of policies that could address the environmental implications of demographic factors include policies to promote effective family planning, more effective rural development to slow migration to crowded urban centers, and incentives to encourage sustainable levels of consumption and the use of efficient, cleaner technologies. Without argument, the environmental damage done as a result of human activity in the last hundred years far exceeds any damage done over the prior 3.5 million. This increase in damage is the result of not only increases in population, but the leveraging of technologies and tools designed to improve human consumption. Barring a change of attitude, however, this increase in level of damage was unavoidable as its root cause is the natural desire and perhaps even base purpose of humanity. Considering the complex relationships and interdependencies present in the natural world, we well know that there exists a point of no return. After environmental destruction proceeds past this point, there is no turning back Earth will be destined over hundreds and perhaps thousands of years to repeat the fate of Easter Island. The fortunate news is that, odds are, this event horizon is most likely a long way off. The future is always longer than the present. At the same time, the imminent possibility exists that that point has long passed. The human population is more than fifteen hundred times larger than that of ten thousand years ago. Economic measures of technology have grown by innumerable bounds an estimated six thousand times over the same period. This is an enormous difference in leverage. Consider
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this example to help put this increase in perspective: for each single spear used to hunt ten thousand years ago, there could now exist about fifteen thousand hunting rifles. In sheer power an ability to cause environmental damage, this is a terrible amplification. Of course, taking into account destruction of animal and plant populations as well as terra for non nutritional reasons. According to the Union of Concerned Scientists for Environmental Solutions, loss of biological diversity has proceeded at at alarming rate 654 known species over the past four hundred years, far above the historical average. In addition, of all creatures on the endangered species list, less than one percent is threatened because of natural causes. This is not even to mention that 1.5 million hectares of rainforest are destroyed annually.

Food Production per capita 1961-2005.

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EXPERIMENTAL METHOD/DATA COLLECTION

CASE STUDY
The Relationship between Population, Environment and development in various continents of the world.
1. TEMPORAL TRENDS IN POPULATION, ENVIRONMENT AND DEVELOPMENT The twentieth century witnessed an extraordinary growth of world populationfrom billion to 6.1 billion people, 80 per cent of the increase having occurred since 1950. As a result, world population has increased by nearly two and one half times since 1950,with the global rate of growth peaking at 2.04 per cent per year during the late 1960s. The world added its most recent billion people in just 12 years (from 1987 to 1999). Between 1965-1970 and 2000-2005, world fertility declined from 4.9 births to 2.7 births per woman. Estimates suggest a current growth rate of 1.2 per cent per year and an annual net addition of 77 million people. Despite fertility declines to relatively moderate levels, the number of births continues to increase owing to the growth in the number of women of childbearing age. While in 1965-1970 the average annual number of births in less developed regions was 101 million, today this number is estimated at 120 million. As depicted in the graph, the slope of the estimated population growth is on the rise over the last few decades, showing an exponential increase. This trend has led to phenomenal consequences on a number of factors, the most effected ones being the environment and the global economy, as a whole. We

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have witnessed large disparities in both of these lately, which must be a matter of concern for all of us.Another relevant, vital population trend is urbanization.

2. ECONOMIC GROWTH AND POVERTY The enormous expansion in the global production of goods and services driven by technological and social and economic changes has allowed the
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world to sustain both much larger populations and vastly higher standards of living than ever before in history. The two most salient characteristics of economic growth in the latter half of the twentieth century have been its unprecedented pace and its uneven distribution between countries and regions. Between 1950 and 2000, world GDP at constant prices expanded eightfold (International Monetary Fund, 2000).During the same period, world population grew from 2.5 billion inhabitants in 1950 to 6.1 billion in 2000.Technological progress, output growth has remained well ahead of population growth , inducing a threefold increase in per capita GDP.

3. ENERGY CONSUMPTION AND EMISSIONS The importance of energy and raw materials derives from their dual role of providing the underpinnings for economic activity and human well-being, while acting as the driving force behind many environmental concerns, including climate change, acid rain and pollution. Energy consumption is a function of economic growth and level of development, energy consumption is distributed unequally in the world. Although their share has been falling, developed market economies, constituting one fifth of the worlds population, consume almost 60 per cent of the worlds primary energy . As a consequence of development and the rapid replacement of traditional energy sources by commercial (mainly fossil) sources, some developing countries have consumption patterns similar to those of developed market economies. Nevertheless, per capita consumption in developing countries as a group remains far below that of developed market economies. The use of fossil fuels has led to substantial growth in global emissions of CO2 and the build-up of

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greenhouse effects, contributing to global warming. Since 1751, over 265 billion tons of carbon have been released to the atmosphere, one half of these emissions having been produced since the mid-1970s (Marland and others, 1999). Annual global emissions of CO2 from the burning of fossil fuels have qadrupled since 1950. The highest per capita CO2 emissions are in North

America, which is followed by Europe where such emissions

The magnitude of future carbon emissions depends on many factors, including global energy demand, the pace of economic development, the introduction of energy-saving technologies and the degree of shift away from fossil fuels. Models suggest that immediate stabilization of atmospheric CO2

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concentrations at present levels can be achieved only if emissions are immediately slashed by at least 50 per cent and further reduced thereafter. Because of the inertia of climate systems, even with stabilization of emissions, global warming and the rise of sea levels could continue for many years.

4. AGRICULTURE, FOOD AND LAND USE The persistence of undernutrition and food insecurity in some areas of the world, and the increasing scarcity and unsustainable utilization of agricultural and other environmental resources, have dominated the global assessment of food and agriculture prospects. World agricultural production

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has outpaced population growth, and the real price of food has declined.. Over the period 1961-1998, world food for human consumption, per capita, increased by 24 per cent. A sufficient amount of food is being produced to nourish the worlds population adequately . Yet, recent estimates show that some 790 million persons were undernourished as of 1995-1997, owing to poverty, political instability, economic inefficiency and social inequity. More recently, world agricultural growth has been slowing down.. While world food production is projected to meet consumption demands for the next two decades, long-term forecasts indicate persistent and possibly worsening food insecurity in many countries, especially in sub-Saharan Africa. Food production has been increased mainly by expanding the area cultivated and by rising crop yield.Constraints on expanding cultivated land is the main risk of environmental degradation of marginal cultivated lands and forests. The major cause of land loss, however, is degradation. Serious erosion has often followed extension of farmland to slopes of hills, and salinisation of soil is a serious problem in some areas. Long-term global warming and climate change could also threaten the high-quality land deterioration in agroecological conditions.

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CO2 Production(Million tonnes of Carbon) Vs Year Graph

5. WATER An adequate and dependable supply of fresh water is essential for health, food production and socio-economic development. Less than 0.01 per cent is readily accessible for direct human use .The size of a countrys population and the speed at which it grows help determine the onset and severity of water scarcity. The problems associated with water scarcity will continue to mount as the size of the worlds population increases. Currently, humans are using about half the fresh water that is readily available. Fresh water is distributed unevenly over the globe, and already nearly half a billion people are affected by water stress or serious water scarcity, while many more are experiencing moderate stress. Given current trends, as much as two thirds of world population in 2025 may be subject to
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moderate-to-high water stress. Many countries facing water scarcity are lowincome countries that have a rapidly growing population and are generally unable to make costly investments in water-saving technologies. Need for cooperative efforts will persist, particularly in areas facing water shortages,and wherever pollution is carried downstream across national boundaries. Estimates indicate that over 1 billion people lack access to safe drinking water and two and a half billion lack adequate sanitation, and these factors contribute to the deaths of more than 5 million people, of whom more than half are children .

6. POPULATION DYNAMICS OF ENVIRONMENTAL POLICIES Ecosystems of all kinds are under pressure worldwide. Coastal and lowland areas, wetlands, native grasslands, and many types of forests and woodlands have been particularly affected or destroyed. While forests decreased by about 5 per cent between 1980 and 1995, the rate of deforestation has been declining slightly .Additional threats confront fragile aquatic habitats, including coral reefs and freshwater habitats, which face an array of assaults from dams to land-based pollution to destructive fishing techniques. Over the past 150 years, deforestation has contributed one third of the atmospheric build-up of CO2 , and it is a significant factor in the loss of species and critical ecosystem services .Since the beginnings of agriculture 10,000 years.

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ago, almost half of the earths forests have been converted to farms, pastures and other uses, and only one fifth of original forest remains in large, relatively natural ecosystems. Forested areas, including forest plantations as well as natural forests, occupied about one fourth of the worlds land area in 1995. Tropical rain forests are important for the quantity and diversity of life they support. They cover only 7 per cent of the earths land area, but contain at least 50 per cent of terrestrial species. The influences of forests and biodiversity are global, reaching far beyond national borders, in both space and time. Therefore, international cooperation is essential in order to integrate environmental issues better into global, regional and national decision-making processes.

7. GOVERNMENT POLICIES CONCERNING POPULATION, ENVIRONMENT During the 1990s, an increasing number of Governments became seriously concerned about environmental problems, whether of a domestic nature or, less frequently, of a cross-boundary nature. At the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, a consensus was established that population, the environment and development were inextricably linked. This consensus view was reaffirmed at the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development. In addition, reports and statements produced by Governments and non-governmental

organizations for the first quinquennial review and appraisal of the implementation of Agenda 21 and of the implementation of the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development provide a solid basis on which to assess how far the various stakeholders have

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gone in operationalizing the linkages among population,environment and development. Countries in the more developed regions and those in the less developed regions differ significantly with regard to their degree of concern over these issues. In the more developed regions, less than one country in two expresses deep concern over population linkages with air pollution and the deterioration of the urban environment, and one country in three over linkages between population and the quality and quantity of water resources. In the less developed regions, in contrast, 73 per cent of Governments make reference to population trends in relation to water pollution and 63 per cent in relation to the amount of fresh water. A large majority of countries65 per centalso refer to the linkage between population growth and the deterioration of the urban environment. Sixty per cent of countries mention the linkage between rural population growth and density and the degradation of agricultural land and forests. Since the convening of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development in 1992, over 100 countries have adopted national sustainable development strategies or national environmental action plans. These processes have largely focused on setting national environmental priorities, devising the best private-public intervention mixes in relation to those priorities, and involving the public. In national environmental strategies and action plans prepared by countries in the more developed regions, little reference is made to demographic dynamics. Environmental policies and programmes are increasingly designed and implemented through participatory processes that involve civil society. Most Governments and donors believe that participatory

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management through community involvement at the local level is essential to ensure sustainability and to build local capacity. Taking local knowledge and traditional technologies into account is also increasingly seen as necessary. The promotion of sustainable practices is therefore carried out primarily within the framework of community-based initiatives with international technical and financial assistance. Activities range from awareness-creation tobuilding local capacity in the management of natural resources and support to nonagricultural supplemental income-generating activities.

8. THE ESSENCE OF CASE STUDY: PUBLIC OPINION REGARDING THE ENVIRONMENT Political mainstreaming of environmental issues has led Governments to make commitments enabling civil society participation in environmental policy processes and to encourage firms to develop a sense of corporate social responsibility. Gaining a better understanding of the publics attitudes and expectations vis--vis the environment has become an integral part of public policy-making as well as, lately, business strategies. A striking feature of public opinion surveys is the lack of reference to demographic dynamics in relation to the environment in either the questionnaires used or the spontaneous replies of respondents. Findings from recent international surveys, as well as from several national and local surveys, provide a consistent and contrasting picture of how citizens of both developed and developing countries perceive environmental issues, keeping in mind the limits inherent in any interpretation of public opinion polls. First and foremost, survey results point to the environments being a pressing concern of citizens in both the more developed and less developed parts of the world, together

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with issues such as unemployment/economic hardship, violence and health problems. According to the Environmental Monitor, a significant proportion of people in all 27 countries surveyed have at least a fair amount of concern about the environment (Environics International, 1999). In the countries of the European Union (EU), almost one inhabitant in two (46 per cent), on average, has serious concerns about the environment (European Commission, 1999). Furthermore, comparison with results of past surveys clearly shows that environmental concerns have been rising, particularly in developing countries. In urban India, 27 per cent of respondents to the Environmental Monitor volunteered an environment-related response when asked about the most important problems they faced in 1999, as compared with 6 per cent in 1992. Only in Canada and the United States of America has concern with the environment been somewhat lower than the very high level observed in 1992. The belief that high environmental standards pertain only to the richcountry consumers agenda is therefore not supported by recent public opinion polls. Whereas environmental concern is becoming universal, there are significant cross-regional differences in peoples assessment of the overall state of their local and national environment. In all countries of the EU, inhabitants express satisfaction with the current state of their environment and have not much reason to complain about environmental issues such as air pollution, quality of water, waste disposal, noise and traffic problems. However, they chiefly worry about a serious deterioration of the environment in the future. In contrast, close to 80 per cent of inhabitants of Eastern European countries such as Hungary, Poland, the Russian Federation and Ukraine express major dissatisfaction with the current state of the environment in their country. In the less developed regions, similar levels of dissatisfaction are observed in many countries, such as Armenia, Chile,
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Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Kazakhstan, Pakistan, Peru and the Republic of Korea. Only in Malaysiaand Singapore do respondents find the environment satisfactory75 per cent and 91 per cent, respectively.

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According to the World Development Indicators report in 1997, 1.5 billion people live exposed to dangerous levels of air pollution, 1 billion live without clean water and 2 billion live without sanitation. The increase of population has been tending towards alarming situation. The world's population was estimated to be 6.14 billion in mid 2001 and projected 7.82 billion and 9.04 billion in the year 2025 and 2050 respectively. Contribution of India alone to this population was estimated to be 1033 millions in mid 2001 which has been projected 1363 millions and 1628 millions in 2025 and 2050 respectively. According to the provisional results of the Census of India 2001, the population of India on 1st March 2001 is 1027 millions. If the world population continues to multiply, the impact on environment could be devastating. Population impacts on the environment primarily through the use of natural resources and production of wastes and is associated with environmental stresses like biodiversity, air and water pollution and increased pressure on arable land. India is the world's sixth largest and second fastest growing producer of greenhouse gases. Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai are three of the world's ten most populated cities. Two-thirds of city dwellers lack sewerage, one-third lack potable water. India grows equivalent of another New York City every year in its urban population. By the year 2000, more than 350 million Indians will live in cities. In 15

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years, more than half of Indians will be urban dwellers; 1/3 will be slum dwellers and squatters.

India is one of the most degraded environment countries in the world and it is paying heavy health and economic price for it. According to a World Bank sponsored study, estimated environmental damage in the year 1992 amounted to about US $ 10 billion or Rs. 34,000 crores, which is 4.5 % of GDP. Urban air pollution costs India US $ 1.3 billion a year. Water degradation leads to health costs amounting to US $ 5.7 million every year, nearly 60 percent of the total environmental cost. Soil erosion affects 83 to 163 million hectares of land every year. Beside, land degradation leads to productivity loss equal to US $ 2.4 billion or 4 to 6.3 percent of the agricultural productivity every year. The lack of services such as water supply, sanitation, drainage of storm water, treatment and disposal of waste water, management of solid and hazardous wastes, supply of safe food, water and housing are all unable to keep pace with urban growth. All these in turn lead to an increase in the pollution levels. India is the second most populous country in the world after China. India supports 16.87 percent of the world's population on its meager 2.4 percent world surface area of 135.79 million square kms.At the time of independence country's population was 342 million. The countrys population size had grown from 361 million in 1951 to around 846 million in 1991 and 1027 million in 2001. The population of India almost trippled during the period of 1951-2001. The phenomenal increase in the population during the last fifty years has led to rapid
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industrialization and high rate of urbanization which have created tremendous pressure on natural resources like land, air and water. The urban population has increased three and half times, from 62.4 million in 1951 to 217.6 million in 1991 and it again increased to 288 million in 2001. The percentage of urban population increased from 17.28 percent in 1951 to 23.33 percent in 1981, 25.71 percent in 1991 and which further increased to 28 percent in 2001. The decadal growth rates of the population are irregular, as it increased from 13.31 percent in 1951 to 24.8 percent in 1971 and afterwards it marginally declined to 24.7 percent in 1981, 23.9 percent in 1991 and 21.34 percent in 2001. Environmental pollution in urban areas is associated with excessive morbidity and mortality. Overcrowding and inadequate housing contribute to pollution related diseases. There has been three and half times increase in urban population over 1951-1991. During the past two decades of 1971-91, India's urban population has doubled from 109 million to 218 million and is estimated to reach 300 million by 2000 AD. Such rapid and unplanned expansion of cities has resulted in degradation of urban environment. It has widened the gap between demand and supply of infrastructure services such as energy, housing, transport, communication, education, water supply and sewerage and recreational activities, thus depleted the precious scarce environmental resource base of the cities. Poverty is said to be both cause and effect of environment degradation. The poor people, who rely on natural resources more than the rich, deplete natural resources faster as they have no real prospects
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of gaining access to other types of resources.Poorer people, who cannot meet their subsistence needs through purchase, are forced to use common property resources such as forests for food and fuel, pastures for fodder, and ponds and rivers for water. Deforestation : Forests are an important natural resource of India. Forests also play an important role in enhancing the quality of environment by influencing the ecological balance and life support system (checking soil erosion, maintaining soil fertility, conserving water, regulating water cycles and floods, balancing carbon dioxide and oxygen content in atmosphere etc. India has a forest cover of 76.52 million square kms. of recorded forest area, while only 63.34 million square kms. can be classified as actual forest cover. This accounts for 23.28 percent of total geographic area against 33 percent recommended by National Forest Policy of 1988.

Land/Soil degradation : Intensive agriculture and irrigation contribute to land degradation particularly salination, alkalization and water logging. It is evident that most of the land in the country is degrading, thus affecting the productive resource base of the economy. Out of the total geographical area of 328.7 million hectares, 175 million hectares are considered to be landdegraded area.Water and wind erosion is the major contributor of 141.3 million hectares to soil erosion, with other factors like water logging 8.5 million hectares, alkali soil 3.6 million hectares, acid soil 4.5 million

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hectares, saline soil including coastal sandy areas 5.5 million hectares adding to the situ degradation. While soil erosion by rain and river in hill areas causes landslides and floods, deforestation, overgrazing, traditional agricultural practices, mining and incorrect siting of development projects in forest areas have resulted in opening up of these areas to heavy soil erosion. Ravines and gullies reported 4 million hectares, area subject to shifting cultivation reported 4.9 million hectares and riverine and torrents erosion due to floods and eutrophication due to agricultural run off reported 2.7 million hectares.

Air pollution The urban air pollution has grown across India in the last decade is alarming. The main factors accounts to urban air quality deterioration are growing industrialization and increasing vehicular pollution, industrial emissions, automobile exhaust and the burning of fossil fuels kills thousands and lives many more to suffer mainly from respiratory damage, heart and lung diseases.It shows an increasing trend, though fluctuations are noticed in terms of annual maximum levels.

Vehicular pollution Transport activities have a wide variety of effects on the environment such as air pollution, noise from road traffic. Road transport accounts for a major share of air pollution load in mega cities. The environmental effects of fuels like oil and petroleum products are of

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growing concern owing to increasing consumption levels. The combustion of these fuels in vehicles has been a major source of pollution. The different factors are the types of engines used, the age of the vehicles, poor road conditions and congested traffic. Number of registered vehicles in India has increased from 3 million in 1950-51 to more than 33 million in 1995-96, of which about 28 percent are concentrated in the 23 metropolitan cities of India. The major share is contributed by metropolitan cities in all registered vehicles in the country.

Energy production and consumption in India The environmental effects due to increasing consumption levels of fuels like coal, lignite, oil and nuclear etc. are of growing concern to various researchers. The combustion of these fuels in industries has been a major source of pollution. Energy production and consumption has increased steadily in India since 1950 onwards. The production of coal and lignite has increased from 32.2 million tons in 1950-51 to 292.27 million tons in 1995-96, an increase of more than 9 times. The production of petroleum products registered an increase of more than 22 times, from 3.3 million tons in 1950-51 to 74.7 million tons in 1995-96. The bulk of commercial energy comes from the burning of fossil fuels viz. coal and lignite in solid form, petroleum in liquid form and gas in gaseous form. Burning of traditional fuel adds a large amount of carbon-di-oxide into atmosphere and increases air pollution. The production of electricity has increased from 5 billion KWH in 1950-51 to about 380 billion KWH in 1995-96. The share of thermal power has increased from 51 percent in
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1950-51 to about 79 percent in 1995-96 whereas the share of hydropower declined from 49 percent in 1950-51 to 19 percent in 199596. Water pollution Water is among the most essential requisites that nature has provided to sustain life on earth. Water pollution from domestic and human wastewater is the main cause for much severe water borne diseases. Water and sanitation services are basic necessities o f a community and are most essential conditions for development, as they play an important role in improving health and quality of life. 80 percent of the diseases in the world are associated with water usage or poor environmental hygiene. In India, water pollution comes from three main sources: domestic sewage, industrial effluents and run-off from activities such as agriculture. The large scale use of pesticides may have revolutionized food production, but these chemicals are responsible for more than 2 million human poisonings every year with a resultant 20,000 deaths. Broadly, thecauses of water pollution can be attributed to: Urbanization Industrialization Withdrawal of wastes Agricultural run-off and improper agricultural practices Religious and social practices

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70% of the available water in India is polluted. Only five

states,

Maharashtra, Gujrat, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, generate more than 63% of the total waste water in India as they lack treatment facilities. The increasing river water pollution is the biggest threat to public health. All these could be attributed to the rapidly increasing population and lack of water resources.

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Human is the biggest resource in this universe, as it can use almost any resource with his intellect to put it in some use. But with continuous rise in human population the resources which flourish this massive resource are degrading at a alarming rate.Hence, it is very essential to take appropriate precautions and remedies for the general good of life on earth. Rapid population growth continues to be a matter of concern for the country as it has manifold effects, one of the most important being environment degradation. The outcomes of excessive population are industrialization and urbanization. The study reveals that rapid population growth has led to the overexploitation of natural resources. The deforestation has led to the shrinking of forest cover, which eventually affects human health. The considerable magnitude of air pollution in the country also pulls up the number of people suffering from respiratory diseases and many a times leading to deaths and serious health hazards. The situation is also similar for water pollution, as both ground water and surface water contamination leads to various water borne diseases.

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From the various effects of environmental degradation on human beings, discussed in this paper, it appears that if human beings wants to exist on earth, there is now high time to give top priority to control pollution of all types for a healthy living. It can be said that even after fifty years of independence, India is unable to achieve the desirable standards of health for its population as consequences of environment degradation.

There is a need to control population growth in the country. Special efforts should be made for educating the general mass and local leaders about the adverse effects of large population through specially designed IEC (Information, Education and Communication) activities. In order to increase green cover and to preserve the existing forests, afforestation and social forestry programmes should be implemented at the local level. Further, measures to control air pollution should be intensified throughout the country. Wastewater treatment plants be established in accordance with the need of time and its usage should be encouraged. The heavy penalty should be imposed on industries disposing off the wastes into the river. Moreover, the landfills are to be properly managed to prevent ground water contamination. Since slums are one of the major sources of water pollution proper measures should be taken to facilitate the slums with water and sanitation facilities. More emphasis should be laid on compulsory environmental education at the school level in order to make

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people aware of the environment protection. The environment protection should not be a responsibility of government alone but mass and local leaders should be encouraged to make dedicated efforts to eradicate the environmental problems. To sum up, it may be emphasized that the environment is neither a free gift of environmental goods and services, nor it can be thought of as just a sink for depositing of waste products from houses, industries and other sources. It is the need of time to protect environment for the present and future generation. In the report the effects of human population on Environment was successfully studied with help of relevant data, case studies and statistical models. The trends were carefully observed and appropriate solutions to the problems were also enumerated.

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