Peyton Fahleen
Melissa Bunde
Environmental Sociology
April, 30th 2018
Memo Four
What are your predictions over the next thirty years in regards to the future of environmental sociology? This is a tricky question to answer because of how many potential disasters and diseases there may be. Not to mention, our current problems worsening to the point of shortages and mass devastation.
Although it may seem small, this could potentially be a huge disaster- honey bees going extinct. One out of every three bites of food we eat is a result of pollinators like honey bees, and crops like blueberries and cherries are 90 per cent dependent on pollination. Honey bees are so important that farmers often have bee hives transported and then placed on their farm to provide pollination for their crops. Sadly, the bee population has drastically dropped already due to human activity. One of the most common attackers to bees are varroa mites. They are an invasive parasite that burst on the scene in the early 2000s that attaches itself to bees and weakens their immune systems making them susceptible to a battery of viruses. The pesticides used in agricultural practices poisons the bees when they come to pollinate, and kills them. Some things that we can do to help save the bee population includes setting out water dishes, keeping weeds, planting bee friendly flowers, and not using lawn chemicals.
As the world’s population will continue to grow, so will viruses. The current world population of 7.6 billion is expected to reach 8.6 billion in 2030, 9.8 billion in 2050 and 11.2 billion in 2100, according to a new United Nations report. With roughly 83 million people being added to the world’s population every year, the upward trend in populat...
