The equilibrium of human population.
People have talked about various problems and fears in regards to rapid population growth or the ‘population bomb’ in developing countries. People worry about whether we have enough resources, such as food, fuel, clean air, education and land, to support the growing population and whether it will deplete our resources to the point that the world will be put into chaos. People too worry about the opposite effect happening in developed countries or declining population and the various consequences and dangers of the aging population. I believe, however, that perhaps there is not so much to worry about because I believe that human population would, in an economic sense, find its natural ‘equilibrium’, based on demand and supply. The problems or needs caused by our rapid population growth create a demand for a solution, and naturally this will create a solution, through human innovation, due to the demand. In the past, many people would not have believed that the world could support 6 billion people. Yet, somehow we have survived well and solved the problems of the rapidly growing population, in a sort of natural progression. Lets consider the various resources that are or were in danger of depletion as a result of rapid population growth.
In the past, firewood was a major fuel source. As firewood ran out, we started worrying and looked for alternatives and we started using coal. As coal ran out, we then started using oil. Now, as oil runs out and as OPEC raises prices for oil, it has created a problem. But the solutions for the problems have come naturally. People have started looking for alternative fuel to run our cars. Hybrid cars, electric cars and electric cars started to be looked at, researched and manufactured at more affordable prices. Governments started looking at alternative forms of energy such as solar, tidal, wind, nuclear or geothermal energy.
Another resources would be land. Nobody in the past would probably have believed that population densities of 6000 per kilometer square was possible. To them, it would be the equivalent of humans living in houses several meters wide and tall. But their perceptions were limited by the height of the houses they thought possible. Today, 6000 people per kilometer square is possible in Singapore as we have housed people in tall buildings, with a survivable amount of space to live (though debatable). As population rises further, its likely that other countries would address the problem in the same way as Singapore.
Yet another resource would be clean water. We worry that our supply of food and clean water would run out. Again, as the resource runs out, the demand for it has in naturally created solutions. In Singapore, as our supply of clean water runs out due to domestic disputes, we have turned to reverse osmosis to create the country’s pride, NEWater. Elsewhere, countries have looked at desalination and the use of recycled water for non-consumption uses.
The point shown here is that, in a way, problems that we have created by our rapid population growth have always seemed to be solved in a natural way by the need for a solution (like a economic equilibrium of demand and supply). If the resource of ‘educated humans’ starts running out and we have a lack of people to educate the growing young generation, I believe it would naturally result in us innovating ways to do so with less people. Though, even with our human innovation, and our understanding of science, perhaps we would not be able to keep up with an exponential growth of population. If that does happen, it probably wouldn’t take human innovation to solve it. Overpopulation and its various problems would create a demand for a solution. Though simplistic, it does make sense that people could simply have less children through contraception and birth-control.
