Decreased population will decrease the rate at which resource is consumed.
Option C.
Step-by-step explanation:
Rate of resource utilization depends on the demand for resources among a population. The demand increases with the increase in population who actually uses the resource to increase their comfort.
With the increase in population and increased desire for resources, the rate of consumption of resources is increased. Decreased cost of harvesting the resources will led to wastage of resources, which will again increase the demand again.
So, decrease in population will only decrease the demand for resources. This will actually decrease the rate for the resource harvesting.