Although I've found some of The Independent's reporting to be questionable, particularly an article from a while back on CCD (Colony Collapse Disorder), these two recent articles caught my eye: An epidemic of extinctions: Decimation of life on earth and 'Act now to save our natural environment or Britain's most precious wildlife will be lost forever' The first article has a global focus, the second looks at the loss of biodiversity in this country. The common cause is, of course, human action. A researcher from the Zoological Society of London is quoted as saying:

"It's beyond doubt that this decline has been caused by humans."

The figures pretty much speak for themselves. Until 1800 the human population of the planet was below 1 billion. Between 1850 and 1950 the population doubled. It then more than doubled again in the next fifty years up to 2000. Predictions indicate that this growth rate will slow up to 2050, but this still leaves a mind-boggling total human population of 8.9 billion people. I look at the growth that has occurred in a mere 150 years, unprecedented in all of human history, and the insanity of it staggers me. Why, as conscious beings, would we choose to destroy the environment that gives us life by simply reproducing in this uncontrolled way? Issues such as peak oil and overpopulation are intrinsically linked. The debate around peak oil may be picking up but overpopulation seems to be an issue that few people want to touch. I don't want to see our planet destroyed, it's where I keep all my stuff.