Do Now: Movie Clip

• While watching the clip answer the following; 1) How long did it take for the human

population to reach 2 billion? 2) How long did the average person live in 1960: 2010: 3) What is a megacity? How many are there now?

Turn and Talk

• Why do you think human population has risen so quickly and what impact has this increase had on the environment?

Aim: How Many People Can the Earth Support?

Crowded Street in China

Fig. 6-1, p. 125

Reasons for human population increase:

– Movement into new habitats and climate zones– Modern agriculture methods– Control of infectious diseases through• Sanitation systems• Antibiotics• Vaccines• Health care

• Most population growth over last 100 years due to drop in death rates

Human Population Growth Is Unevenly Distributed

• Population growth in developing countries is increasing 9 times faster than developed countries

Read A Loud

• How long can the human population keep growing?

Fig. 6-B, p. 129

Pause…Think…Write

• How close do you think we are to the environmental limits of human population growth: pretty close, moderately close, or far away? Explain using evidence from the text support your answer.

Take A Stand

• Because our population will soon be at seven billion people and continues to grow, we need to expand land area available for living and growing food by cutting down the rain forest.

Take A Stand

• With seven billion people commuting from one place to another, drilling for more oil is necessary to fuel more cars.

Take A Stand

• In order to feed our population, we must use pesticides, chemical fertilizers, and genetically modified crops to increase farm yields.

Take A Stand

• Governments in countries with fast-growing populations should make laws to limit the number of children that couples can have.

Take A Stand

• With seven billion people on the planet, water pollution is inevitable and we should not waste money trying to prevent it.

Take A Stand

• If China and India can each take care of over a billion people on relatively the same size land as the U.S., then the U.S. should accept immigrants until it reaches a billion people as well.

Summary:

• Can Earth support a population of 9 billion in the near future. Explain using evidence from the text support your answer.