By the 1990s humans had transformed two-fifths of the land surface.

Evidence

On a global scale, humankind has transformed 40 percent of the land surface, increased carbon dioxide levels by 20 percent, and used 50 percent of the fresh water supplies currently available. Ten to fifteen percent of land is now given over to agricultural, urban, or industrial uses. In 1995, 22 percent of recognized marine fisheries were being overfished and 44 percent were already being fully exploited. In the United States, 40 percent of the nation’s fisheries were classified as overutilized and 43 percent were fully utilized. Worldwide, an estimated 15 percent of all plant species are currently threatened with extinction. — Richard J. Lazarus, The Making of Environmental Law, 65

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Humanist technological progress assumed an environment crowded with humans at nature’s expense — Carolyn Merchant, The Death of Nature: Women, Ecology,…, 714

Broader Connections

• Humanist technological progress assumed an environment crowded with humans at nature’s expense #expands (0.80) — Carolyn Merchant, The Death of Nature, 714