Any nation can achieve a smaller, more sustainable fertility rate through a combination of social leadership, education, and non-coercive incentives for smaller family sizes.

Earlier experiments by the Chinese to relax the one-child policy (in 2014, couples were allowed two children if one parent was an only child) have produced an interesting result:  “fewer people than expected… are expanding their family.”  Even after a full year of the relaxed policy, in Beijing only 30,000 eligible couples had submitted applications for a second child – just 60% of the response expected by the government.  

According to Xinhua, a March 2015 survey of over 1,000 married women in Shanghai (all under 45 years old) found that 54% said one child is enough.  CNN found that many parents – and their extended families – fear “the financial burden another baby would bring.”  One father said:  “Having another baby would cost more for their education, housing, and such.”  The preference for smaller family sizes – or even a life without children at all – is growing.

In August 2014, I wrote a column for NPG titled “The Choice to be Childfree:  An Increasing Factor in U.S. Population Growth.”  My findings in that article also apply to the recent trend appearing in China:  “the U.S. Department of Agriculture projected that – not including college expenses – parents will spend an average of $245,340 to raise one child born in 2013.”  There are also a number of benefits to having one or no children beyond just financial gain – quality of life, free time to pursue professional or personal interests, and even protecting the environment.

There is an inherent ecological cost attached to having children.  Scientists are pointing out the serious environmental implications of having a child, and many are deciding not to reproduce – or to limit their family size – in an effort to limit their carbon footprint.

In 2008, an Oregon State University study found that in the U.S., “each child adds about 9,441 metric tons of carbon dioxide to the carbon legacy of an average female, which is 5.7 times her lifetime emissions.”

As a population organization, certainly this shift in China’s family planning policy is of concern to NPG.  With a current population of nearly 1.4 billion, any increase in China’s fertility rates will certainly add to the global overpopulation problem.  And there has been plenty of recent news on the horrific air pollution already faced by the people of China.  CNBC reported:  “The air in Beijing is so polluted that breathing it does as much damage to the lungs as smoking 40 cigarettes a day, says a new study.”  As China’s population grows, this pollution will only worsen.

This dire future will be no different for the United States – unless we work NOW to slow, halt, and reverse our population growth.

Since 1972, NPG has worked to preserve America’s environment, economy, natural resources, and quality of life.  To learn more about our goals and objectives, please review our Proposed National Population Policy.