Where do you see the environment in 2100?

Barring a nuclear war or any other major civilization-impacting catastrophe, do you think the environment will be better or worse than it is today?

Despite all the gloom-and-doom predictions of the hardcore environmentalists, I think that the technology we develop in this coming century will clean up the environment and reverse the trend of pollution and global warming. There's really no reason that our planet can't be just as habitable (or moreso) in 100 years as it is now.

 

my guess is that it would be in the same place as it is today

and yes, there are reasons why the planet wont be as habbitable as it is now. For example, the increasing population means we will need to produce more food, which will mean that we will be converting more fertile forestland into farmland, killing everything living on it, and eventually turning it into a useless, infertile desert.

 

Not necessarily. With some of the technological goodies that biotechnology will offer us in the coming decades, it just might be possible to make the existing farmland more fertile instead of making more farmland. Nanotechnology even raises the possibility of assemblers (machines that will build whatever you want -including food - from scratch, atom by atom) by mid-century.

 

true, but you assume that nanotechnology will be perfect. Any flaws in nanotechnology could be disasterous, especially if we begin depending on them as a food source.

Any new technology that is introduced to the environment, no matter how beneficial, will always bring with it unforeseen negative side effects.

 

I think Manhattan will be under water along with other parts of the world. Skin cancer will have vastly risen, our major crop lands of Canada USA and Russia will be too dry to farm in, etc. We can't depend on technology to save us in the long run. Something needs to be actively done in order to prevent bad things from happening. My opinion, but thats how I feel. Who wants to eat a machine assemled atom by atom apple anyway. Its bad enough that we have all the pesticides and chemicals in our food. I sure as hell would much rather eat my food that grew naturally from the ground

 

Not to be so "doom and gloom", but I have serious doubts about technology bailing us out. I work in a technology based industry and with software revisions after revisions, manufacturing flaws, poor quality control, cheap raw materials and profit based business plans I feel we are reaching a technlogical plateau, maybe not so much with pure theory, but with practical application.

 

honestly if rates of pollution and devastation of the land continue, the earth wont be livable in 100 years. The way we are raping the environment of all its natural minerals and resources, and we give in return is pollutuion, which is just intensifyinh the world global warming etc. Think its realistic, sadly.

 

Within the next 20 years or so global warming and pollution will catch up with us. Because of acid rain we will need to wear protective clothing. Many countrys will become simular to the truman show. We will live in dome citys to protect us from the uv rays and destruction which we caused. It will become a time of struggle, not unlike the 30s. Our food will all be self made, because of pollution in our soil.

Just an idea

 

I don't think the environment will be in a better shape than today, probably worse, but I'm an optimist and I think it won't be totally ruined and that we have learned to limit our destructive behavior towards it by then.

 

I don't think there would be anything good and healty left on eart.
But I wish I could be here to see it and live it.


Fer

 

Just like everything else on this planet is a cycle, so are we. Things will fluctuate. Maybe different portions of the world where vegetation can't grow will be 'fixed' so it can. Then populations will shift. Then maybe the farm land that is used will rebalance itself in due time. Its shifts I think.

I alone am satisfied enough to be lucky enough to be human being and not an animal. I can control and change my environment. I can come up with ideas for new additions and better fixtures for the earth. I like being dedicated to this planet. I like enjoying all the sensations it gives. I hope the presumed technology environment which I fully support isn't going to turn into a hard cold machine and feel heartless to the natural earth which is the first to come.

Technology might even die out when people 'cycle' and find themselves more natural or basic ways again of taking care of the earth. Be happy we are given such a cool place to live and govern. <3

 

i have hopes its just a cycle...and i dont like to rely on technology, i have visions of that destroying us lol think matrix....rather not think about it rite now, oh thats lazy of me but my brain is crumbling.

 

I agree. the environment will be in worse shape in the future because consumption is continuing to increase. Technology will make usage more efficient, but overall destruction will continue. Take for example today a gallon of gasoline is 4 to 5 times more efficient than it was 50 or 60 years ago. This is because of technology, but our overall consumption continues to rise.

The world continues with a policy of unlimited economic growth. This growth is destroying the planet. In 2100 I think there will be very little environment left, and what is left will be either unusable, too remote, or just plain too expensive. Its sad... this is why we all need to do everything we can to save the planet! change starts with the individual!

peace,
Sam

 

3 things could happen.

1. People get smart and save the planet.
2. We fuck it up so bad Earth becomes a Mars or Venus, and we all die.
3. We all die out, or are reduced to a few hundred and the Earth is a paradise again.

 

If we dont have nuclear war i can see the world being healthier and much more cleaner than today. As for global warming and nuclear catastrophes, if that happens i see nothing but brown dead trees, grass plants and animals. Nothing but a barren wasteland...

 

I think the people destroying the environment will change

We in the west will learn our lessons .The ecomomic reasons we have to use and do things that effect our planet, will just change hands...China and India possibly ??

 

There is many lessons to be learnt, and it's not about laying back and let technology fix all our mess. WE did it, it's pay back time ( but it's really unfair, many of us didn't create all this....) I don 't have a sollution, but one thing's for sure, this is not about finding a miracle way of solving this. It's about a personal and collective effort, it's about changing our priorities: Do u wanna be number one or do you have other dreams?