Future shock: forecasting a grim fate for the Earth

In recent years, much attention has focused on the potential environmental effects of global climate change, but other anthropogenic impacts might be even more important. A new study by Tilman et al. highlights the threat posed to natural ecosystems worldwide by increasing agricultural development. Over the next 50 years, model projections suggest that rates of habitat destruction, water consumption and emission of agricultural pollutants will increase drastically. Such changes will be greatest in developing nations, which sustain a disproportionately large fraction of the Earthʹs biological diversity.