Underpopulation : Australia

Question 1

Define underpopulation

Answer 1

Not enough people to maximise the available resources. The country could support more people.

Question 2

Define physical and human resources

Answer 2

• Physical Resources - natural resources. E.g iron and coal reserves, oil off the south coast. Huge amount of land - more people could live there.
• Human resources - man made service in society. E.g. schools, hospitals, public transport, electricity supply, jobs.

Question 3

Causes of underpopulation :

1) Low population growth rate due to low birth rate

Answer 3

• Women have education and careers, therefore marry later and have less kids
• Contraception is cheap and easily available and legal abortions
• Sexual education reduce teenage pregnancy ,and family planning clinic
• Lower infant mortality
• Pensions and old people’s homes - children are not needed to look after parents in old age
• Birth rate : 12.5 per 1000
• Fertility rate : 1.8 per woman

Question 4

Causes of underpopulation :

2) Lots of natural resources

Answer 4

• Australia covers 5% of the world’s total land mass
• Lots of resources ( wood / oil / coal / natural gas )
• Same size as the USA, but only 25.2 million people and 300 million in USA
• Australia earns $195 billion through exports . Mostly earn by coal, iron ore, gold, meat, wool, alumina, wheat, machinery and transport equipment.
• Huge potential for solar and wind power

Question 5

Causes of underpopulation :

3) Harsh climate + environment

Answer 5

• Only 63% of Australia’s land are used for human use
• 70% are classified as arid / semi-arid ( less than 500mm of rainfall a year )
• Most of the land is used for grazing
• Forest fires are very frequent due to dryness, and lakes and streams also frequently dry up
• High levels of discharge, floods increase grazing land for livestock
• Boom and bust cycle ( up and down of gross domestic product )
• Periodic droughts mean the amount of water needed to support population growth is unpredictable

Question 6

Consequences of underpopulation :

1) Social

Answer 6

• Closure of key services due to lack of demand ( particularly in rural areas )
• Schools and hospitals may close
• Public transport systems may close, and new ones may not develop because of the lack of people to support them, which increases people’s reliance on cars, and cause air pollution and adds to global warming ( e.g. CO2 )
• In the countryside, rural areas, people need to travel a large distance to get to schools, hospitals, etc.
• Less innovation and development ( brain power )
• Weakened national defence

Question 7

Consequences of underpopulation :

2) Economic

Answer 7

• Small working population + a shortage of workers.It leads to lower optimum productivity, and so leads to restriction of economic growth
• Wastage of Resources. Not able to exploit all resources, meaning most parts of the outback ( desert ) is underutilised / undeveloped.
• Difficult to attract foreign investment
• Less people paying tax - worsens economy
• Desertification ( fewer people to cultivate land )

Question 8

Consequences of underpopulation :

3) High levels of inward migration

Answer 8

• High levels of inward migration
• Australia is attractive to foreign immigrants, and this can lead the locals into feeling that their culture is threatened ( losing of culture )
• Foreign immigrants mean a variety of languages, so communication may become a problem
• Foreign economic development. Foreign companies involved in economic activities because the country doesn’t have a big enough population to support a large corporation

Question 9

Consequences of underpopulation :

4) Aging population

Answer 9

• Caused by low birth rate and longer life expectancy
• Smaller working population ( 43% of the labour force is due to retire in the next 20 years )
• Increase in dependency ratio
• Need to have tax to pay for old age pensions. Increase in tax rates, because those in retirement pay lower income taxes because they are not working
• Government has to pay for increase in healthcare

Question 10

Consequences of underpopulation :

5) Positives

Answer 10

• Can export surplus resources ( e.g. food, energy, mineral resources )
• High incomes, high levels of technology, good living conditions
• Lots of open space, less pollution, large areas of unspoiled natural environments
• Strong economy and low employment attracts an influx of skilled workers

Question 11

Solutions to underpopulation :

Answer 11

• Attract migrants by relaxing VISA rules, and the government targeting skilled workers, especially from around Asia.
• Pro natalist policies. Giving benefits to those with more children
• Desert. Underwater reservoirs ‘aquifers’ have potential to provide fresh water to desert regions. Irrigation and fertilisation systems as well as aquifers could make the desert more suitable to farming. Solar and wind development would bring jobs to the desert