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View all search results10 billion global population ‘unsustainable’: Kerry
Producing food for 8 billion mouths accounts for over a fourth of greenhouse gas emissions.
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U
nited States special climate envoy John Kerry told AFP that the world’s population would not be tenable in 2050, when it was projected to hit nearly 10 billion, but refrained from asking Americans to give up steaks.
Since November, the global population has officially crossed 8 billion, more than three times the figure in 1950.
This has already stretched food and energy needs and supplies. United Nations projections say the figure will balloon to 9.7 billion in the middle of the century.
“I don’t think it’s sustainable personally,” Kerry said in an interview on Tuesday.
“We need to figure out how we’re going to deal with the issue of sustainability and the numbers of people we’re trying to take care of on the planet.”
Global warming is exacerbating the problem. The landmark 2015 Paris Agreement calls for capping global warming at “well below” 2 degrees Celsius, and 1.5 degrees Celsius if possible.
Producing food for 8 billion mouths accounts for over a fourth of greenhouse gas emissions.
