A Parched Future

While the country and the Congress debate our future direction in reversing global warming and providing health care to all Americans, policy-makers and the public alike continue to ignore the major impact of our rapidly expanding population. The United States’ population is now over 306 million and is growing at the net gain of one person every ten seconds. By 2050 the U.S. population is expected to reach 438 million. According to the Population Reference Bureau, the United States is the only developed country that significantly contributes to global population growth.

Some theorize that current over-population and on-going rapid population growth are issues the human mind cannot cope with due to their overwhelming implications -- and are therefore subject to psychological denial tactics by both individuals and societies.Yet we already see the climate change impact of over-populating the planet as greenhouse gases pour into the atmosphere, arable land is consumed by urban expansion and safe, healthy water supplies are harder to find.

Water serves as a prime indicator of the population problem. Water wars already occur in the Southwest. By 2050, climate change is expected to cut short winters which will reduce one-quarter of the snow pack in the Sierras, dramatically diminishing water availability in Western States. Proposed solutions include harvesting stormwater to collect 400,000 acre-feet of water per year, enough to supply two-thirds of Los Angeles’ annual water use. Still, the amount of water available will drop by 74% per person in the U.S. by 2050.

Population growth means the United States will have to revamp social systems such as healthcare and education. Conservative analysis shows the increases to U.S. population increases health care costs by about $2,700 per person per year. Adding 138 million people by 2050 could easily add $350 billion dollars in health care costs in that year alone! As we attempt to address the shortfall in healthcare today and find ourselves overwhelmed by the financial burden, you have to wonder how we are going to care for all of these people. But have you heard one mention of the costs of population growth in the health care debate?

With education resources strained in almost every state, the influx of new students will further stress already overloaded systems. It is critical that we understand the aggravating factors contributing to these problems and address them immediately.

How can we bring U.S. population growth into the discussion of critical issues such as climate change and healthcare? Why has over-population been denied attention by policy-makers and the public alike? Where will the U.S. get enough clean water to supply its mushrooming population? Who will pay for the impact of population growth on basic social services such as education?