The recent letter by Ann English (December 20) raised the very sensitive issue of population on planet Earth.

This is something everyone avoids while they increase the paranoia of global warming.

Here are the facts always avoided by parliamentarians, church leaders and the media:

In the 400 years 1500-1900 global population is estimated to have trebled, from approximately half a billion to one and a half billion.

Since then in only the 100 years from 1900 to 2000 the population quadrupled to over six billion and is currently around eight billion, all of whom expect and place much greater demand on the Earth's resources than previous generations ever did.

Aspiration by everyone across the world is for a better lifestyle — homes complete with running water, electricity, refrigerators, washing machines, central heating, air conditioning, etc, etc. Furthermore it creates an increased demand for transport such as buses, trains, planes and cars, needing more raw materials and fuel, remembering that electric sources also use much of the Earth's raw materials, even wind-power doesn't come free.

As it is estimated that the maximum capacity planet Earth can support with food and water is less than 10 billion, then if this is correct by 2050, even if the increase in population has reversed — which is very unlikely — global warming will be the least of problems for those still living on planet Earth!

Bees have developed a solution to this type of problem — they swarm and fly off to a distant location!

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