Mankind Must Find A Way To Survive, Or Become Extinct

This quandary has motivated billionaire Elon Musk, creator of Tesla and SpaceX, to layout a vision of Mars colonization with as many as 1 million people. There are already volunteers that want to be among the first to go to Mars and stay. But if a rocket could hold 100 people, it would take a thousand ships the better part of a lifetime to move 1 million people to Mars. So why do it?

As Elon himself explains, there are but two future paths. One is to stay on Earth and eventually there would be a cataclysm and Earth with all of its inhabitants would cease to exist. The other way is to become a multi-planet race, thus ensuring the human race would continue even if the Earth gets wiped out.

Of course it could be argued that a third option would be to use those billions of dollars to create an Earth defense system to try to save humanity on Earth, which is also a good point. However, if we don't begin now to get to Mars, we limit the number of responses that we have when the catastrophe occurs. Mars colonization needs to get started because it would take hundreds of years before a Martian colony could become independent.

But in another respect, a population tragedy has already occurred and we are over late preparing for it.

The optimum sustainable number of people for Earth is between 3 and 4 billion. In 2012 we hit 7 billion, two years earlier than previous estimates. By the 2050s the population will be between 8.5 billion and 12 billion, that's just 35 years away.

We are not able to feed the people that we have now. People are living on top of each other in the cities, sometimes a hundred floors high. The quality of the food that we now produce has a fraction of the vitamins and nutrients that we had a hundred years ago. People are fighting for a home. Big fights like Syria and the middle east, and little fights like the Chicago turf wars.

As the population grows, so will the number and intensity of problems and violence.

World population estimates from 1800 to 2100,

based on "high", "medium" and "low"

United Nations projections in 2015 and

UN historical estimates for pre-1950 data

A project started several years ago has developed a solution to the problem of over-population just as Elon Musk has for a future cataclysmic event, the solutions is colonization. However, this colonization program is right here on Earth. A pilot project into ocean colonization was begun in 2014 when a couple of think tank activists got together to see if this type of project could be undertaken by the people that would have the most to gain by having a place to go.

One such innovative project is called The Marinea Project, the details of which can be found on their website at marinea.org

In brief, it is an attempt to create a floating village in a shallow part of the ocean beyond the boarders of any country. It would be protected in part by small islands too small for habitation but large enough to act as a wave brake. The pilot project will consist of existing technology refitted to begin the colony. A large construction barge already refitted for human habitation, will be the center for the Village at Sea. It will house a large general store, a restaurant and bar, a fueling station for boaters, hotel and some office space for the project.

A second addition to the first phase of the Marinea project is to purchase other barges or possibly a small cruse-ship that will be turned into a larger hotel, theater and shops, freeing up space on the barge. This pilot project into ocean colonization could be started by a stroke of the pen for Elon Musk or any number of wealthy people today, however, the strength of these types of projects are in the people that will be using them. The whole project is intended to be funded by the future residents of Marinea and members of the association.

In the beginning most of the residents will live in their own boats and just use the village to resupply their families needs. Where a Martian colony would have to provide for the residents right from the start, a village at sea has everything going for it already.

You can breath the air, something that can't be said about some Earth cities as well as forMars. People have been living in boats in marinas for years and years. The Chinese have perfected the live-aboard boat which are called junks, which is strange because there is nothing junky about them. Houseboats can be found in almost every lake, and are quite comfortable.

The current problem with living on a boat is that you have to take everything with you so there is not enough room to stay out to sea for very long. But if you had a floating store and other businesses found in a regular village, then life at sea would be preferred to living on land. It cost a lot less and unlike land based residences, you can move and take your home with you. Really nice boats can be purchased for less than $250,000, about the price of the average home in the US. However, there are no property taxes or state taxes, and even though Americans are currently obligated to pay income taxes no matter where they live, the first $100,000 is deductible since you are living outside the country.

Marinea is also recruiting members to be the founders of what will become the first ocean country and there are already a number of members and volunteers to help the project become a reality, as there is also for the Mars project. However, instead of needing the billions to colonize Mars, it will only cost somewhere in the vicinity of $15 million to fund the entire first phase of the Marinea Project.

Phase two was to design sea-safe floating homes to go along with the new floating marina, however one of the founding members of the Marinea Project has already begun this in Panama. (see Ocean Builders). The village will look more like a village and less like an assortment of ships and boats. A Venice in the Caribbean is close to what the founders have in mind for the phase 2 design. Learning from actual experience in the first two phases, phase three will be designed for deep ocean.

It is only by utilizing all of our resources that mankind can hope to survive long enough to reach Mars and the stars.

marinea.org / Bob Llewellyn / January2021