Population growth and natural resource availability - Research Paper Example

The awareness regarding the need of the production system is increasing day by day in order to incorporate the goals of sustainable development. For managing this it is important that the natural resources are renewable, as they are considered to be the indicators for sustainability of the economic dynamics. This approach indicates that the natural resources are considered to be a link between environment and societies. The more recent subject in discussion related to resources and population growth is considered to be the significance of the quality of environment which is measured by the absence of water and air pollution and the stock of forest in a particular region.

According to this view, environment may not be considered as a factor which limits the productivity with the expansion of population but it would rather be defined as factor whose quality is degraded with the increase in population. The expanding population increases the need for an arable land; it is a main cause behind deforestation and also encourages the conversion of forests into land for using it for different purposes. It is also considered to be the major cause of air, water and land pollution.

On the other side environmental degradation may impose an effect on the natural resources reducing the marginal product of the labor through promoting lower incomes (Hinrichsen and Robey). In the past, the alarming situation was considered to be the diminution of natural resources. There are many scientists who have been calculating that duration till which the reserves of oil and coal will last. Therefore at present the interaction between man and natural environment is considered to be a source of alarm.

In every natural ecosystem, the increase in population imposes a great pressure on it. This pressure becomes more immense in case of the human population, as this increase is not just numerical but also brings along the diversification and creation of new needs. This qualitative