China Population

Asian Studies 371 Jennifer Janisch Clifford

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One-fifth the World’s population lives in China. World’s most populous nation, but will soon be surpassed by India. China is extremely important to global sustainable development. Issues:

 Pollution  Increased inequality

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Census China’s Population: 1.34 billion  Increased by 73.9 million in ten years  5.8% growth from 2000

• World Population now 7 billion & increasing 1.5% per year. • Net gain of 230,000 people every day • At this rate World population could double within 35 years.

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98% of population growth between 1998 & 2025 is expected to take place in the LDCs. UN projects 9.2 billion by 2050 High projection = 10.5 billion Low projection = 8 billion

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Already showing signs that we have exceeded the Carrying Capacity of the Earth Water Stress

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Resource Shortages

• One billion people lack access to clean water supply • Within 25 years 3 billion people will be living with water stress

• General Resource Shortages • Steel, aluminum, wood, concrete, oil, food • All driving up prices

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Total Fertility Rates (TFR) = # of live births per woman Most LDCs have TFR > 5 Highest TFRs are concentrated in the poorest LDCs Stationary population: Growth rate = 0

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China: Annual growth = 0.6% India: Annual growth + 1.7% At this rate India’s population could reach 2.2 billion within 40 years. U.S. Population is also growing too fast. U.S. population on track to double within 70 years.

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A child born in the U.S. or Canada consumes 5 Xs the resources that a child from an LDC does. The affluent in the LDCs are exceeding those consumption rates. The 25% of the World’s population living in the industrialized countries consume > 70% of the World’s resources.

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Population growth is a function of :

◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ Educational level of women (-) Literacy rates of women (-) Economic opportunities for...