Earth Population Reaches 8 Billion and Counting

Earth’s population just won’t stop growing.

The human population hit 8 billion on November 15, 2022. This has many asking, “What are the consequences?”

Many are not worried about overpopulation; some going so far as to call it a “myth”; still others view it as one of the greatest, or perhaps the greatest, threats to the planet. Among those who feel overpopulation is a challenge that needs to be addressed, there are varying ideas about what exactly should be done.

Between 1980 and 2015, the Chinese government allowed couples to have no more than one child. The policy was highly controversial, with many considered it an infringement on personal liberty. The policy was reversed by early 2016.

“As well as biodiversity loss, human population is a critical driver of climate change, as affirmed by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Globally, Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita and population growth remained the strongest drivers of CO2 emissions from fossil fuel combustion in the last decade,” Director of Population Matters, Robin Maynard, said in an official statement for her organization.

“[Overpopulation] is a challenge or problem in the sense that there are obstacles to overcome, things to figure out. [It’s a] challenge to figure out sustainability,” science teacher at Fleetwood Area High School Mr. Damian King said.

King went on to say that, though he considers overpopulation a challenge, at this point in time, he does not support any measure that would be considered “population control.”

“Overpopulation describes a situation where the number of people exhausts the resources in a closed environment such that it can no longer support that population. That is not an accurate description of our situation,” St. Mary’s Catholic Church of Kutztown priest Father John Maria said.

It is undeniable that the topic of overpopulation is one of the heated opinions on both sides.