Chap3.pptxENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
LIVING WITH THE EARTH
CHAPTER 3
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION
AND FOOD SECURITY
Cooking a meal in Africa
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Objectives for this Chapter
A student reading this chapter will be able to:
1. Discuss the impact of population on resources and ecosystems.
2. Define the following terms and explain their response to population growth: retrogression, soil erosion, desertification, deforestation, wetlands destruction, and wildlife destruction
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Objectives for this Chapter
3. Define the term food security and discuss the reasons leading to food insecurity among many nations worldwide.
4. List the suggested steps that might be taken to minimize global food insecurity.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Objectives for this Chapter
5. Explain the most likely reasons for a growing food insecurity in the United States.
6. List and discuss the demographics of the populations in the United States at risk to food insecurity.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
LIVING WITH THE EARTH
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY
INTRODUCTION: THE DEBATE
The ability of our planet to sustain and feed the dramatic increases in human population growth has been an on-going debate stretching back over 200 years.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
The Viewpoint of Malthus and Followers
Neo-Malthusians (Malthus, 1789)
Human growth is logarithmic and plants grow arithmetically. Growth will eventually surpass the ability of the land to feed the expanding population.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Technology and Policy Will Save the Day
Cornucopians
The real threat to global stability is the failure of nations to pursue economic trade and research policies that increase food production, more evenly distribute food and resources, and limit environmental pollution.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Technology and Policy Will Save the Day
The Green Revolution
Strains of plants are being developed that resist diseases, pests, drought and flooding.
So striking has been the increased production, that the incorporation of these new variety of seeds and processes became known as the “Green Revolution.”
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
The Green Revolution
The world markets and the “Green Revolution” may promote monocultural technology that could prove to be ecologically unstable (Fig. 3-1).
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Fig. 3-1
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
The Green Revolution
Cross-breeding (Fig. 3-2)
Induced Mutation (Fig. 3-2)
Gene Transfer (Fig. 3-3)
Precision Farming (Fig. 3-4)
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Fig. 3-2. Cross-breeding and Mutation
Hybridization- pollination or cross breeding. Corn with thin stalk and multiple ears + corn with thick stalk and few ears—select corn with thick stalk and multiple ears
Induced mutation- Seeds are grown to produce second generation. Gamma or ultraviolet irradiation of seeds– select corn with thick stalk and multiple ears
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Fig. 3-3. Gene Transfer
Adapted from Budiansky.6
“Gene gun”- recently developed “gene guns” propel gold particles coated with DNA by bursts of helium. .22 caliber blank cartridge is used to propel plastic bullet containing desirable genes. The plastic bullet impacts against stopping plate and explosively releases genes. Genes strike and pierce plant cells at more than 1400 feet a second. Leaf cells with new DNA are placed in agar dishes with growth hormones. New shoots develop with many having the desired characteristics.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Fig. 3-4 Precision Farming
Global positioning satellite (GPS) sends specific signals on location and local soil condition to receiving systems on tractors. Computers onboard tractor receive signal from GPS satellite and determine field coordinates, then adjust fertilizer dispersion.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
The Green Revolution
These advances in agricultural technologies have contributed significantly to reducing hunger in millions of people.
However, the growth of the human population in many of the lesser developed countries has exceeded the capacity of even these technological wonders in agricultural production.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Energy
Wood is being used at such a rapid pace in some LDCs that forested regions have been decimated, and the collection of wood for fuel may require several hours each day or as much as 25 percent of average income.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Energy
On the other hand, the history of fuel use in the developed nations moved from wood to more efficient fuels.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Energy
The impact of human activity on environments can be summarized by the following relationship:
I=P*A*T
Paul Errlich, Stanford
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Energy
I=P*A*T
Where:
I: the impact of human energy-related activity on the globe
P: is the population size
A: is the affluence in terms of per capita consumption
T: is the technologies to supply each unit of consumption
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Attitude and Behavior
Will we progress in a smooth transition to a world of global stability and health, or will national and personal interests prevail at the expense of the larger global community?
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Attitude and Behavior
What are the attitudes and behaviors that may have an impact on this outcome?
Tragedy of the Commons
Many members of any society will likely pass on the consequences of their destructive actions if they will benefit in the short term and receive little or no negative consequences from that action.
Garrett Harden
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Attitude and Behavior
The Pioneer
The consequences of laying waste to a land in the past were minimized by the ability of the population to emigrate.
The pioneer mentality cannot be continued indefinitely in the presence of massive population increases.
We must seek a sustainable development.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Attitude and Behavior
Declining Investment in Technologies
Government funding for organizations which are largely responsible for the Green Revolution has been falling.
The major gains in food crops experienced as part of the Green Revolution are unlikely to continue in the absence of investment in research and development.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Attitude and Behavior
Family Planning Cuts
The United States reduced overall foreign assistance in 1996 with a 25 percent decrease in USAIDs funds and a 35 percent cut in the family planning/population assistance budget.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
These cuts could result in:
220 million unintended pregnancies;
117,000 additional maternal deaths and 1.5 million women who experience permanent impairment;
9.3 million additional deaths of infants and young children.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
IMPACTS ON THE ENVIRONMENT
As the population increases the need for food increases.
As the need for food increases, land is cleared, soil is degraded, and desertification occurs.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Deforestation
Biomes include tropical rainforests, temperate forests, prairies, deserts, and arctic tundra.
The majority of tropical forest biomes occur in areas of the world at risk from overpopulation and many are being threatened with slash and burn techniques to make room for croplands.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Deforestation
Defined as the permanent decline in crown cover of trees to a level that is less than 10 percent of the original cover.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Deforestation
The Benefits of Rainforests are:
a major producer of oxygen for the global atmosphere;
the major carbon dioxide sink;
a potential source of new pharmaceuticals useful in the treatment of human disease;
and an important source of species diversity.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Deforestation
Rainforests (Fig. 3-5, 3-6)
In spite of the numerous benefits from rainforests, they are disappearing at an alarming rate.
By 1987, tropical rainforests were disappearing at the rate of 42 million acres each year, representing a loss of 115,000 acres each day.
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Fig. 3-5
Source from NASA..24
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Fig. 3-6
Adapted from NASA.24
Map that highlights the locations of some of the world’s major rainforests, including Mexico, Belize, Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Columbia, Ecuador, Venezuela, Brazil, Cote d Ivoire, Nigeria, Central African Republic, Congo, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines and Papua New Guinea
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Soil Degradation
What is soil?
Soil consists of small particles of rock and minerals mixed with a major proportion of plant and animal matter in various stages of decay.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Soil Degradation
Plants are called autotrophic because they synthesize their own food from inorganic substances.
Plants also derive nutrients from soil
Micronutrients
Macronutrients
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Soil Degradation
Loam
Soils best suited for agriculture consist of sand, silt, and some clay in a homogeneous mixture referred to as loam.
Humus
Complex organic matter that has been biologically broken down so that original plant and animal matter is unrecognizable.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Soil Degradation
Humus serves to:
retain moisture much as a sponge;
serve as an insulator to heat and cold;
and to bind and release nutrients to plants in useable forms.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Fig. 3-7 Major Soil Biomes
Map of major soil biomes. Tundra are in the top half of the globe. Taiga is in the upper third of the globe under Tundra. Temperate forest, grassland and woodland are below Taiga. Deserts are below Temperate forest and below tropical rainforests, which are sandwiched between the two prominent desert regions.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Soil Degradation
Soil Erosion
As woods are cut and fields are plowed to plant crops, soils are lost to the effects of wind and runoff water (Fig. 3-8).
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Fig. 3-8
Adapted from Turk and Turk.7
Pie Chart of soil erosion. Woods have 0.4% moisture loss and 0 tons of topsoil loss. Grass cover has 1.9% moisture loss, 0 tons of topsoil loss. Grain crops have 26% moisture loss, 86 tons of topsoil loss. Freshly tilled soil has 50.4% moisture loss, 161 tons of topsoil loss. About ¼ of the chart is labeled as “other”
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Soil Degradation
Farming techniques practiced to reduce soil erosion are:
Rotation
Fallowing
Terracing
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Soil Erosion
Globally, soil erosion claims over a billion acres every year, and 1.2 billion acres of global cropland is losing topsoil so rapidly that these acres are expected to become unproductive in the next few decades.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
The Process of Desertification
What is desertification?
Land degradation in arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid areas resulting from various factors, including climactic variations and human activities.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Desertification
About 15 billion acres or one third of the earth is dry land, and 2.5 billion (or 16 percent of the earth’s surface) of these dryland acres are hyperarid deserts where there is little or no growth.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
The Process of Desertification
Poverty and the need for food is an enormous pressure that defies a flexible land use response and leads to desertification (Fig. 3-9).
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Fig. 3-9
Once forested land in Africa
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
The Process of Desertification
The Costs of Desertification
Economic losses from desertification are calculated to be $40 billion while the cost of recovering these lands worldwide is estimated at $10 billion annually.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Wetlands – What are they?
Wetlands are those areas of land where water saturation is the major factor influencing the nature of soil development and the communities of plants and animals that live in the soil and on the surface.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Wetlands
Types of wetlands (Fig.3-10):
Swamps
Bogs
Prairie potholes
Bottomland Hardwood Forests
Estuaries
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Fig. 3.10
Source> USEPA, Office of Wetlands, Oceans, and Watershed. 40
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Freshwater Marshes & Swamps
Source> USEPA, Office of Wetlands, Oceans, and Watershed. 40
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Bogs
Source> USEPA, Office of Wetlands, Oceans, and Watershed. 40
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Prairie potholes
Source> USEPA, Office of Wetlands, Oceans, and Watershed. 40
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Bottomland Hardwood Forests
Source> USEPA, Office of Wetlands, Oceans, and Watershed. 40
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Coastal Marshes and Estuaries
Source> USEPA, Office of Wetlands, Oceans, and Watershed. 40
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Benefits of Wetlands
Wetlands purify and replenish water supplies.
Wetlands are extremely rich in biomass (the amount of plant and animal life).
Wetlands are an important source of food.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Benefits of Wetlands
Wetlands absorb large amounts of carbon dioxide from the air.
Wetlands control flooding in low-lying areas as they work like sponges
Wetlands protect coastal areas from storms.
Wetlands provide recreation and beauty.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Wetland Losses
An estimated 300,000 acres (120,000 hectares) of wetlands are drained or filled every year in the U.S.
Wetlands were considered a nuisance to farmers and settlers and these areas were filled in.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
The Loss of Biodiversity and Extinction of Species
Biodiversity refers to the range of animal and plant species and the genetic variability among those species.
Why is biodiversity important?
The greater the range of genetic variation, the more likely there will be a survivor species in the event of major catastrophies.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
The Loss of Biodiversity and Extinction of Species
Background
99% of all species that ever existed are thought to be extinct.
The Permian extinction caused 90 percent of all species in the oceans to disappear, two thirds of reptiles and amphibian families perished, and up to 30 percent of insect orders were lost.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
The Loss of Biodiversity and Extinction of Species
Background
Records of fossils show that entire groups of organisms including fish, reptiles, birds and mammals have replaced one another over long periods of time (Fig. 3-11).
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Fig. 3-11
Graph of relative number of species in correlation with millions of years ago from 330-recent. The majority of species have been reptiles, with birds and mammals arriving in the last 80 million years.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
The Loss of Biodiversity and Extinction of Species
Background
It appears that the planet is now losing more species than are being created, and that the activities of humans are the reason for a rapidly growing species extinction and loss in biodiversity.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Loss in Biodiversity
Of the 4,327 known mammal species, 1,096 are at risk, and 169 are in extremely high risk of extinction in the wild in the immediate future (Fig. 3-12)
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Fig. 3-12
Adpated from Doyle. 51
Map showing areas of the world where more than 15% of mammal species are threatened in gray, and countries with the most threatened mammal species and including 43% of the world’s population in blue. The countries are China and India with 75 species apiece, and Indonesia with 128 species.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Threats to Biodiversity
Loss of Habitat
Most significant threat to biodivesity today is elimination of habitat for agriculture and housing. Half of 300 mussel species lost in US to pollution of rivers and creation of dams.
Over-harvesting
Cod in the North Sea off New England are heavily exploited with as much 60 percent of the fishable stock being removed annually.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Threats to Biodiversity
Non-native Species
Rainbow trout never encountered “whirling disease” before the parasite was unknowingly transplanted here from Europe.
Pollution
The acidification of lakes and streams has led to juvenile recruitment failure among fish resulting in the disappearance of many species in a number of industrialized countries.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Protecting Endangered and Threatened species
Legislation first aimed at protecting wildlife in the United States was introduced as a bill in 1926.
In 1973, the Endangered Species Act (ESA) was promulgated in the United States (Fig. 3-13). The Act currently protects 1,135 speciesof plants and animals.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Fig. 3-13
Species being restored
Source> US Fish & Wildlife Service: Whooping Crane-Steve Hillebrand; Grizzly bear – Don Redfern; Bald eagle – Robert Fields; Gray wolf - USFWS
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Protecting Endangered and Threatened species
Many environmentalists praise the ESA for reducing the extinction rate of some animal species in the United States, and even increasing numbers in as many as 65 species.
Others have attacked the Act as interfering with livelihood and taking away personal property rights.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Babbitt tells Nation: Species protection Works
May 7, 1998, Secretary of the Interior Bruce Babbitt announced 29 different animals, plants and birds have recovered sufficiently to take off the ESA list.
Paul Nickerson, head of the Endangered Species Div of the Fish and Wildlife ‘s Northeast Regional Office, Hadley sees continued protection of species under State law.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
FOOD SECURITY
One of the biggest debates for the 21st century concerns whether or not the world can produce enough food to feed another few billion people.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
FOOD SECURITY
Food security is said to occur when all people have physical and economic access to the basic food they need to work and function normally.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Food Production
For nearly 40 years, the world production of grain has risen by more than 2 percent a year, but declined to scarcely 1 percent a year in the 1990s.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Food Production
Countries with critical or low food security are shown in figure 3-14.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Fig. 3-14
Adapted from Brown and Kane. 69
Countries facing critical or low food security include Peru, Bolivia, Mali, Niger, Sudan, Chad, Somalia, Central African Republic, Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Angola, Cameroon, Nigeria, Benin, Togo, Ghana, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Burkina, Mali, and Afghanistan
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Reasons for Regional Food Shortages
Food production fell behind population growth in 64 of 105 developing countries between 1985 to 1995.
The main reasons for food shortages in eastern Africa derive mainly from recent droughts followed by floods.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Reasons for Regional Food Shortages
If countries are to feed the 9 billion expected by the year 2050, Africa would have to increase production by 300 percent, Latin America by 80 percent, Asia by 70 percent, and North America by 30 percent (Fig. 3-15).
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Fig.3-15
Adapted from FAO. 10
Bar graphs for the world, Asia, Africa, Russia, and Latin America showing the percent change from 1961 where per capita food production equals 100 and the years between 1961-1994.
Russia has had the greatest decrease, Asia has had the greatest increase, and the others have maintained relatively stable over time.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Reasons for Regional Food Shortages
Growth rates in cereal production have been declining from 2.8 percent in the 1960s, to nearly 2.1 percent in 1992 (Fig. 3-16).
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Fig. 3-16
Adapted from FAO. 10
3 graphs. The first shows world growth rate in cereal production. From 1961-1969 it grew 4%, from 1970-1979 it grew 3%, from 1980-1988 it grew 1.25% , and from 1990-1996 it grew 1 %.
The second graph shows world growth rate in agricultural production. From 1961-1969, it grew 3.25%, from 1970-1979 it grew 2.5%, from 1980-1988 it grew 2.5% , and from 1990-1996 it grew 2.25 %.
The third graph shows growth rates in yields of all cereals in 93 developing countries. From 1961-1969 it grew 3%, from 1970-1979 it grew 2.75%, from 1980-1988 it grew 2.5% , and from 1990-1996 it grew 1 %.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Sources – Where will the Food Come From?
Increases in food supply must come from one or more of the following sources (Fig. 3-17):
increases in yield (tons per acre);
increases in arable land placed under cultivation;
and cropping intensity (fewer fallow periods or more than one crop per year or field).
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Fig. 3-17
Adapted from FAO. 10
Increases in food supply pie chart. 66% comes from increased yields (tons of crops harvested per acre), 21% from arable land expansion, and 13% from increasing cropping intensity (fewer fallow periods or more than one crop per year or field)
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Sources
There are scientists who believe that the ability to expand cropland is limited, and that it is disappearing in many areas of the world.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Sources
The potential for increasing agricultural land is limited by:
the significant costs of developing an infrastructure in remote areas;
the lesser productivity of these alternative areas;
and the trade-offs in environmental destruction of sensitive ecosystems.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Sources
Alternative strategies are being evaluated and promoted that are more friendly to the environment.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Sources
These strategies are:
improved irrigation systems;
structured water pricing to reduce overuse;
alternative rotation of crops;
selective pesticide use;
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Sources
These strategies are:
use of pest-resistant varieties;
improved soil testing and fertilizer application;
regional crop breeding programs;
and more education to farmers.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Food Security
Worldwide
Chronic undernutrition is a difficult and pervasive problem resulting in a food security crisis in many LDCs.
Net imports to LDCs are expected to increase from 90 to 160 million tons in the years from 1990 to 2010.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Hunger in America
More than 25 million Americans, almost 50 percent of them under 17, resort to using food distribution programs such as soup kitchens and food pantries (Fig. 3-18).
Nearly 35 million Americans live in hungry or food-insecure households.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND FOOD SECURITY - Moore
Fig. 3-18
Adapted from Roberts and Roberts. 80
4 pie charts describing the makeup of Americans using food distribution programs. The sex distribution is 62.4% female, 37.6% male. The age distribution is 46% are between 16-64, 38% are less than 15 and 16% are more than 65. The race distribution is 47.7% White, 2.1 % black, 14.6% Hispanic, 2.5% Native American, 2.5% other, and 0.7% Asian.
