Part 21: The 7th billion human on EarthEnvironmental refugees

By Frosty Wooldridge 

“Anyone who believes exponential growth can go on forever in a finite world is either a madman or an economist.” 

                                                                                                                                   Kenneth Boulding   

          With continued U.S. population growth rates, California tops an added 18-20 million by 2040.  Texas grows by 12 million by 2025.  Every state shares negative ramifications of the next added 100 million people.

          Some experts at Vanderbilt University tell us that U.S. population stands at 327 million people, and the growth-rate accelerates even faster, so we could reach 400 million sooner—possibly by 2030.

As you can see, California, already at 38 million, absorbs the lion’s share of this population “Human Katrina.”  At each stage along the way, as those 20 million additional people impact that state, can you imagine what will happen?  Will people fight one another for shrinking natural resources?

How about water?  How about clean air— California smog? How about farmland?  How about traffic?  How about housing?  How about schools?  How about standard of living?  How about quality of life?  How about greenhouse gases?  How about grid-lock?

Ever hear the sound of a toilet flushing?  Ever see one backed up? Ever see and smell the results of both?  How many times can you expand a sewage-treatment plant?  Where do you deposit trash?  There you have it!   California population-density in twenty odd years!

Environmental Refugees

What can we expect from adding 100 million?  Call them ‘environmental refugees’, for lack of a better term.  You can bet your bottom dollar they’re coming to America.  If you doubt me, just travel to the Mexico border, and watch the “pulgas” that come across illegally every night.  The Border Patrol only catches 20 percent.

Human beings become environmental refugees when they exceed the carrying capacity of that portion of the planet that supports them.

Religion and population-growth impacts

For better or worse, the Catholic, Hindu, Buddha and Islam churches encourage unlimited birth rates.  With more numbers come more power, and more money for the churches.

If you look at the results on the world stage, environmental refugees stream into Europe from Africa and the Middle East.  If you look at Central and South America along with Mexico, those same refugees stream into the U.S. at an accelerating rate of speed.

Can realities like starvation and deaths from overpopulation change religious doctrine based on books written 2,000 years ago?  Not likely!  Even in the face of severe environmental consequences, do not look for the Pope to change his stand.  Neither will any Muslim leader stand up against 1,400 years of doctrine!  Ancient religions lock followers into the past as well as the familiar.   Humans tend toward the security of their habits.

The most frightening aspect of the next added 100 million Americans stems from the fact that they won’t be Americans.  Do they speak English? Which national flag hangs in their home in the U.S.?  Where does their primary allegiance rest?

As Mark Krikorian in his book, The New Case Against Immigration: Both Legal and Illegal, said, “Today’s immigrants have one foot in the United States and their ear, via cell phones, back in their old country.  They never fully integrate into American society.  They constitute ‘transnationals’ with no single home  country or loyalty.”

What about overloaded populations?

Mexico grew from 50 million to 104 million in the last century.  At the minimum, Mexico expects 153 million people by 2050 if not sooner.  If they can’t feed, clothe and house countless millions today, what can we expect when they add 50 million?

Why is the U.S. the lifeboat to the world’s unfortunates?

No less than 30 to 40 million destitute Mexicans—if they can’t feed, water and clothe themselves—will move out of their country in the 21st century into the United States.  Over 12 to 15 million Mexicans have already moved into the U.S.  As their conditions worsen in their home country, millions more will migrate.  Major portions of Central America will migrate with the Mexicans, leaving similar situations.

“The vision of a world teeming with environmental refugees is daunting, even for wealthy countries such as the United States,” said John Cairns, University Distinguished Professor of Environmental Biology at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, Virginia.

“When countries capable of absorbing refugees are at or beyond their carrying capacity, every individual on the planet becomes a potential refugee with no place to go,” Cairns said. “The world’s human population is increasing at 77 million net gain per year, but natural support-systems are decreasing.”

Ecological footprint growing dangerously

“It’s abundantly clear that many countries have exceeded their carrying capacity, and can only survive by exporting surplus populations,” Cairns said.

Additionally, the United States, with five percent of the world’s population, creates 25 percent of greenhouse gases.  Will we take responsibility for environmental refugees flooded out of their countries or islands by rising oceans from climate change?  That number could reach into the hundreds of millions.

Climate change–ocean levels rising–resource-competition wars

Simultaneously, what about our own refugees if climate change floods Florida?  Some climate models show one-third of Florida under water within this century.  That could mean as many as 10 million refugees.

          “It is becoming increasingly probable there will be teeming millions of environmental refugees—it will mean that we were terribly wrong about the carrying capacity of the world for our species,” Cairns said. “Disease, starvation and resource-competition wars will doubtless occur—but the root cause will be a social disequilibrium resulting from overpopulation and bad long-term management of natural capital.”

Do you understand that when a third world person reaches America, their ‘ecological footprint’ changes from near zero to 12.6 as soon as they take a job, buy a car, rent a house, buy goods and produce waste?  This occurs into the millions with legal and illegal immigration annually.

Environmental refugees that survive will converge on America and other successful Western societies at all costs.

We can awaken—stop the onslaught—but, will we?

We can change the environmental refugee equation:

          1.When world leaders accept that infinite population growth on a finite    

          planet is not possible.
          2. When humans realize they are dependent upon this planet’s ecological  

          support systems.  They cannot continue to damage the systems without  

          suffering severe consequences.
          3. When leaders understand that achieving sustainable use of the planet will

          not be possible if human population and/or per capita consumption continues

          increasing.
          4. When humans can’t or won’t come to balance, nature’s means of famine,

          disease, wars and chaos will do the job brutally. (Cairn)
          5. When birth control creates human stabilization on a finite planet.

The most astounding aspect of this data—that ties my mind in knots—stems from the fact that the average citizen doesn’t seem to have a clue about what’s coming—and not one national leader will address it.

Why?  Money!  Follow the money.  Every time any environmental shock wave surfaces—like climate change, fisheries collapsing, species extinctions and oil depletion—our leaders think of a dozen ways to obfuscate, deny or ignore our accelerating calamity.  Meanwhile, citizens go about their business completely clueless.

Are we willing to change?

Can we stem this impending environmental refugee flood?  We better!  We are not the world’s lifeboat.

First world countries may provide economic assistance to overloaded countries.  Most impactful, advanced birth control stops the cycle of poverty and overpopulation.  Citizens of the world must be helped in their own countries.

While presenting my program, “The Coming Population Crisis in America: and what you can do about it”, a college student asked, “How can you force other countries to practice birth control if it’s not a part of their culture?”

“Great question,” I answered.  “We can’t force them to use birth control.  We can only offer it.  If they choose not to use it, then, as first world countries close their borders to hyper-population growth nations, it will force them to deal with their own populations one way or the other. Either they choose action or nature takes action.  That may sound harsh, however, it will be just as harsh for overloaded first world countries when the same population dilemmas ultimately manifest within their borders.”

As in the past, until another “Hurricane Katrina” knocks American society upside the head with a whopping sledge hammer—cultural and social changes of the magnitude illustrated in this book— won’t be heeded.  While Americans ignore nature—nature will not ignore America.

The United States tiptoes along the edge of a dangerous cliff.  Americans skipped along that cliff for the past 50 years.  At least two billion of the earth’s humans live on less than $3 each per day.  Very few Americans comprehend that kind of existence.  I’ve seen it and it’s ghastly, depressing and growing by, well, you know!

We see environmental refugees stream into America from Mexico, Central America, India, China, Africa and a hundred other countries. They’ve added 106 million people to our country in the past 43 years.  Are you ready for the next 100 million in 30 years?

The rate of growth increases exponentially.

What preparations have you made?  Are you coaching your kids as to what they face?   Have you Googled for the nearest walled city?  Have you spent your entire 401K toward property with abundant water in the northeast corner of Montana?  If  you hail from Florida, how about adding 10 pounds for the nine-month winter?  Have you cut a good store of wood?  Can you drive horses behind a one furrow plow?   Have you completed your class on how to can corn, green beans and blackberry jam?  Did you order wall paper and insulation for your outhouse? 

For more ideas, visit www.transitionus.com