Overpopulation

in China
Group 1

Introduction
What is Overpopulation? According to the definition, it is, the condition of having a population so dense as
to cause environmental deterioration, a impaired quality of life, or a population crash. Some of the current
issues that currently face China are limited resources, limited healthcare, more pollution, more waste, and
climate change.
China contains 21% of the worlds population. Since it is so overpopulated, their
government has looked for different solutions to remedy their countries problem of
land degradation, pollution, and poor living conditions. In 1979, China started the
one child per family policy. This required the citizens to obtain a birth certificate
prior to the birth of a child. Families who chose to have only one child were offered
special benefits, those who chose to have more were taxed up to 50% of their
income. Unplanned pregnancies had to be terminated and it was up to the local
officials to make sure that population did not exceed targeted goals.
The following slides will demonstrate the toll that overpopulation has taken on China.

Howcompare to other nations?

How does Chinas population

Chinas Population Growth Over the Years

Statistics

There are currently 7.4 billion people in the

world. Of that, China remains the highest
populated country making up 18.72% of
the world population or 1.33 billion people
Over the last 60 years, Chinas population
has increased over 738 million
Ranked #1 as the most populated country
In 2016, 56% of the population is urban.
Whereas 60 years ago, 13.9% was urban
By 2050, China is forecasted to rank #2
(India estimated to soon exceed China) at
1.38m with 77.9% of it being urban
population.

Chinas Population Over the Last 60 years

China Population 2010-2020

(in millions)
2010 - 1.34m
2012 - 1.35m
2014 - 1.36m
2016 - 1.38m
2018 - 1.39m
2020 - 1.41m

Chinas Population by Age and Gender

Population by Gender
Males - 52%
Female - 48%

Population by Age
Under 14 years - 27%
15-64 years - 67%
Above 65 years - 6%

Causes of Overpopulation
"Of all things in the world,
people are the most
precious."
-Mao Zedong

Mao Zedong proclaimed in 1949. "Of all things

in the world, people are the most precious."
The communist government condemned birth
control and banned imports of contraceptives.

In 1949 Mao Zedong encouraged large families and

outlawed abortion and the use of contraception, urging
women to produce offspring who would boost the
workforce and the ranks of the People's Liberation Army.
According to sources, in 1978 China embarked on
an economic reform project that libarized foreign trade
and investment, encouraged the formation of rural and
private bussines as an attempt to rise China's economy.
So as a result people had more children as this was
condusive to the economy to bring a more wealthier
Chinese economy.
Chinas population started to increase dramatically
after World War II because the government thought the
population increase would bring money to the country
and help China produce more food, build a better army,
develop water control, and establish communication
systems (Chinese Population).

The Future In China

This graph shows the population rate
within the last 60 years and the future 40
years. As you can see it has increase and
will continue to increase over the next many
years. They are predicted to triple the
amount of people they have to 322 million.
With all of the old people in China right now
their health problems and diseases have
increased significantly. The exposure of
smoking, high fat and high calorie diets.
Which will just add to many more of their
health problems.

Environmental Impacts - Water Pollution

of industrial wastewater and more than

90% of household sewage in China is
released into rivers and lakes without
being treated.
80% of Chinas cities do not have sewage
treatment facilities.
90% of cities underground water supply is
contaminated.
of Chinas population lacks safe drinking
water.
of Chinas rural population use water
contaminated with human and industrial
waste.

Environmental Impacts - Water Pollution

Sources of Water Pollution:

Chemical factories
Drug manufactures
Fertilizer makers
Paper mills
Tanneries

Rivers with significant pollution:

Yangtze River- one of Chinas most

legendary rivers.
Yellow River-mother river
Pearl River- mostly contaminated due to
industrial pollution.

Water Pollution and Cancer:

Cancer is Chinas biggest killer, with an

80% rise in mortality from the disease in
the last 30 years.
Water pollution is the cause of the high
rates of cancer in areas where factories
discharge chemicals into rivers.
Cancer villages are the settlements in
China where there is high rates of cancer
due to water pollution.

Environmental Impacts - Air Pollution

Causes - Economic Growth
Globalization
China surpassed the United States in
2007 and Germany in 2009 to become the
worlds leading exporter
Urbanization
In the past 30 years, China's urbanization
rate rose to 57% from 20% as market
reforms concentrated wealth, technology
and public resources in the big cities
Industrialization
Coal accounted for 68% of total energy
consumption in 2011
Transportation
Emissions from motor vehicles contribute
to 30% of Beijings air pollution

Environmental Impacts - Air Pollution

Negative Effects
Health
Premature Death
Lung Cancer
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
Weakened Immune System
Reduction in Lung Function
Economic
Increased Public Health Costs
Welfare Damage (lost labor)
Decrease Crop Productivity and
Ecosystem Damage
International
Acid Rain in Japan & Korea
Particulate Pollution in Los Angeles

Environmental Impacts - Degradation

Almost all human activities have a negative impact on the environment in one way or another, as
human population expands, the damaging effects on the environment multiply. Overpopulation is the
root force driving environmental degradation.This puts a strain on the world natural resources. Soil
and land degradation is caused by:

Deforestation
Commercial logging and clearing of land for farming,
profit and development in places like China.
Improper land management like farming that is too
concentrated
Forcing the land to produce food crops year after
year without letting it rest and build up needed
nutrients
Nutrient depletion as a form of land degradation has
a severe economic impact at the global scale
Environmental degradation could contribute to
reducing yields in years to come

Economic Impacts
China still has the worlds second largest
economy, but its currency has been devalued
thus losing economic growth, wages, and
employment. This is their slowest economic
growth in last 25 years. Less prosperity in China
means fewer purchases of fancy goods and
circulation of monies. The working age
population, aged 15 to 59, could fall by around
7% from 2010 to 2030.
China experienced difficulty educating a large
population thus contributing to low skills to help
boost the economy. After ending the one-child
policy, Chinas medical system isnt ready to
handle a baby boom.

The second largest economy in the world, China

has a gross domestic product of $9 trillion. Its
2013 rate of GDP growth was 7.7 percent. Its
unemployment rate is about 4.1 percent. Its
labor force, also the largest in the world, is
divided roughly equally among agriculture,
industry, and services
A slowdown in Chinese economic growth
implies a slowdown in demand growth for iron
ore, lead, steel, zinc, copper and many other
industrial or investment commodities which
means slower prices (a deflationary shock) for
these and other commodities that China has
been voraciously consuming.

Population Control Policies

One Child Policy

One child per family
Must obtain Birth Certificate before
birth
Extra children would incur fees (50%
increased tax rate) or forced abortion
if pregnancy was unplanned
Target Goals
Birth-quota to monitor population
growth
Local officials punished if target
goals werent met
Birth Control Programs
Tubal ligations, vasectomies,
abortions amounted to 35% of birth
control methods
Mandatory insertion of intra-uterine
devices

Pros of Population Control Policies

Environmental Impacts
Sulfur dioxide emissions reduced by
17.6% due to population controls
Reduction of 137-200m tons of
carbon dioxide from entering the
atmosphere
Water pollution decreased by 30.8%
Economic Growth
Unemployment rates decreased with
fewer people in the workforce
Stabilization of the population
allowed china the flexibility for
industrial expansion and economic
growth

Poverty and Standard of Living

Prior to Chinas One-Child
Policy 45 million citizens died of
famine and hunger related
diseases
More than 400 million births were
prevented with the policy, allowing
resources to be dispersed
between fewer citizens
Access to health care increased
with emphasis on pre-natal care

Cons of Population Control Policies

More pressure on a shrinking work

population as well as on government
pensions and healthcare.
Severe consequence of the policy is
gender imbalance. There are more male
babies than female babies being born.
This is due to the strong cultural
preference for boys who carry on the
family name and are viewed as an
investment.

With the arrival of ultrasound technology

sex selective abortion and female
infanticide became widespread. There are
more boys than girls, resulting in a lack of
brides. This in turn has fuelled human
trafficking where brides are bought from
Vietnam and Cambodia.
The Chinese government has been
accused of conducting forced abortions
even on women who are past the legal
abortion limit of 24 weeks.

Solutions
There are several solutions to help with the
overpopulation of China, such as:

spreading awareness and education about

overpopulation
enacting birth control measures and
regulations
providing universal access to birth control
devices and family planning
Educate young men and women on safe sex
Eradicate gender bias
End financial awards for families with
children

The government has also added tax

concessions which favors families that have
either no children or a certain number of kids
Implementing social norms and marketing
strategies to assist with education.
Another solution to this growing issue that has
recently slowed the overpopulation issue has
been the fact that as the elderly population
increases their children are starting to sacrifice
their future to assist with their aging parents.

Future Forecast

Fertility decline and improved longevity

over the past two decades are causing
China's population to age at one of the
fastest rates ever recorded.
The growing age of the population will lead
to soaring health care costs to meet the
long-term care costs.
There will also be less working-age
population to help pay the bill for the
elderly population.
The steady increases in the aging
population is one of the main concerns
If the population growth does not slow,
experts say it has to potential to reach 9
billion by 2050 and simply put, the world
cannot sustain that amount of people

Future Forecast

Chinas Population 2000

Chinas Expected Population 2050

Sustainability Development

Efforts should be made to optimize the

structure of demand and shift economic
growth to rely on consumption.
China has aimed to control and improve
the quality of population, advance a longterm and balanced development of
population, promote employment,
accelerate the development of various
social undertakings.

Sustainability Development

To increase the poors income and quality

of life, China has relied on special projects
and industries in society to beef up poverty
alleviation efforts.
Efforts have been made to implement the
most stringent land and water resources
management system, develop a circular
economy, encourage clean production,
promote the conservation of resources,
further improve energy efficiency, and
accelerate the upgrading of energy
production and consumption.
Donghai Bridge Wind Farm is Chinas first large-scale offshore
wind farm and was designed and built domestically.

References
Barb Murtaugh
1. Matus, Kira, et al. Health Damages from Air Pollution in China. Global Environmental Change 22.1 (2012)
http://globalchange.mit.edu/files/document/MITJPSPGC_Reprint_12-3.pdf
2. Liu, Jianguo, and Jared Diamond. Chinas Environment in a Globalizing World . Nature 435 (2005)
http://archive.csis.msu.edu/Publications/JLiu_2005_Nature.pdf
3. https://www.wto.org/english/res_e/statis_e/its2015_e/its2015_e.pdf
4. http://europe.chinadaily.com.cn/business/2014-04/29/content_17476219.htm
Jennifer Fogel
1. https://overpopulationinchina.wikispaces.com/Causes+of+Overpopulation+In+China
2. http://www.yale.edu/ynhti/curriculum/units/1998/7/98.07.02.x.html
3. http://factsanddetails.com/china/cat4/sub15/item128.html
4. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One-child_policy
Rhena Mull
1. http://www.grida.no/publications/rr/food-crisis/page/3567.aspx
2. http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/detail/soils/use/?cid=nrcs142p2_054028
3. https://www.thegef.org/gef/land_degradation
4. https://orbisunumlana.wordpress.com/2012/03/01/land-degradation/
Connie McDermott
1. http://www.newsweek.com/2014/01/24/one-child-policy-one-big-problem-china-245118.htm
2. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/eastwest-center/chinas-population-policy_b_7860318.html
3. http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2011/oct/25/china-one-child-policy-benefits-rules
4. http://theworldoutline.com/2013/03/the-impact-of-chinas-one-child-policy/

References
Melissa Galush
http://maps.unomaha.edu/Peterson/geog1000/Sidebar/ChinaPop.html
https://www.rt.com/news/china-abortions-population-control-353/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/alon-tal/in-praise-of-chinas-one-c_1_b_8020038.html
Rebecca A. Garner
1. http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/overpopulation
2. http://maps.unomaha.edu/peterson/funda/sidebar/chinapop.html
3. http://overpopulation2012.blogspot.com/2012/09/chinas-overpopulation.html
Elisabeth Senger
1. Stephenson, Susan. Chinese Students. Transitions Abroad. Web. 21 Mar. 2016.
http://www.transitionsabroad.com/publications/magazine/0601/chinese_students.jpg
2. http://www.worldometers.info/world-population/population-by-country/
3. "China Location Highlighted on the World Map." Free World Maps. Web. 30 Mar. 2016. <http://www.freeworldmaps.net/asia/china/location.gif>.
Shannon Reaves
1. www.globalissues.org
2. www.everythingconnects.org
3. www.huffingtonpost.org

References
Mai Lee
1.
http://www.worldometers.info/world-population/china-population/
2.
http://www.zmescience.com/ecology/world-population-doubles-04325235/
3.
http://www.theguardian.com/business/2016/jan/13/perils-of-china-currency-devaluation-yuan-renminbi
4.
http://money.cnn.com/2015/10/29/news/economy/china-one-child-policy-economy/
5.
http://economics.about.com/cs/moffattentries/a/birth_plan_3.htm
6.
http://www.bbc.com/news/business-35349576
Ashley Albright
1.
http://www.everythingconnects.org/overpopulation-solutions.html
2.
http://www.brookings.edu/research/articles/2010/09/china-population-wan.
3.
http://www.prb.org/Publications/Articles/2006/ChinasConcernOverPopulationAgingandHealth.aspx
4.
http://www.codewit.com/asia-pacific/15717-overpopulation-in-china
Estyn Utz
1.
http://www.eoearth.org/view/article/156920/
2.
http://factsanddetails.com/china/cat10/sub66/item391.html
3.
http://www.greenpeace.org/eastasia/campaigns/toxics/problems/water-pollution/
4.
https://www.rt.com/news/china-water-pollution-cancer-346/
5.
Carrissa Brown
1.
http://www.prb.org/Publications/Articles/2006/ChinasConcernOverPopulationAgingandHealth.aspx
2.
http://maps.unomaha.edu/peterson/funda/sidebar/chinapop.html
3.
http://www.codewit.com/asia-pacific/15717-overpopulation-in-china
4.
http://www.studentpulse.com/articles/68/environmental-sustainability-in-china-a-historical-perspective

References
Amanda Stephens
1.
2.
3.

http://www.china-un.org/eng/chinaandun/economicdevelopment/sfz/
http://www.china-un.org/eng/chinaandun/economicdevelopment/sfz/t622277.htm
http://www.china-un.org/eng/chinaandun/economicdevelopment/sfz/P020070606361483442404.pdf

Jane Cline
1.

http://www.prb.org/Publications/Articles/2006/ChinasConcernOverPopulationAgingandHealth.aspx