Conservationist News: Who gets to Decide How Many Animals Exist on the Planet?
taken from: terradaily.com
“New York NY (SPX) Dec 01, 2006 - How many wildebeest should live in the Serengeti? How many grizzly bears should call Yellowstone home? Are there too few tigers in the world? Conservationist biologists grapple with the task of setting population targets for the species they are trying to protect - a decision steeped in politics, emotion, and sometimes, science.”
In my search to find more info on this mysterious idea of ‘population targets’ I came across an interesting article from The Hindu Online which discusses China use of population control targets starting in 1979 and all of the alleged problems it has caused.
The article also refers to India’s proposed two child norm legislature, which already exists in some states, “”The impact of the two-child norm of certain State Governments is directly interfering with the reproductive rights and informed choices in the family leading to sex-selective abortions.,” the report observes.
Now it seems obvious to me, but if we can’t even control overpopulation in our species, how can we even begin to imagine that we can save all of the wildlife and set limits for their population effectively?
An interesting sidenote in the population debate is that most scientists agree that the world can only sustain a population limit of about 9 billion people. We should reach that number in the next few generations if present birth rates continue.
I am more optimist about that number and believe that new technology will be the key to sustainable human growth into the next century and beyond.
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