“I have applied Simon’s framework to the issue of climate change, although my historical perspective allowed me to see more of the forest rather than obsess about a few trees. Try as I might, I just cannot ignore the unique and large-scale benefits brought to humanity by the ever increasing use of carbon fuels (e.g., from longer lives and better health to cleaner air and water, more abundant food and reforestation).”

Yesterday, Pierre Desrochers and Joanna Szurmak, summarized their new book, Population Bombed! Exploding the Link Between Overpopulation and Climate Change. Today, MasterResource is pleased to interview Professor Desrochers about his latest book.

Q. In his 1981 classic, The Ultimate Resource, Julian Simon decoupled population growth from resource depletion, rising pollution, food supply, and other popularly believed barriers to progress.…

Editor Note: Today is the release of a new book by Pierre Desrochers and Joanna Szurmak, Population Bombed! Exploding the Link Between Overpopulation and Climate Change.  The authors have provided this synopsis at their website by the same name.

“This book is an attempt to present a relatively concise case for the environmental benefits of economic development, population growth and the use of carbon fuels.”

Many scholars, writers, activists and policy-makers have linked growth in population to environmental degradation, especially catastrophic climate change. They argue that:

• A more numerous and increasingly affluent population creates a growing demand for resources of all kinds. This increased demand requires increased combustion of fossil fuels.
• Burning ever larger quantities of these fuels (coal, petroleum and natural gas) increases atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations to levels said to cause catastrophic global warming.