Do you consider yourself an Environmentalist?

[Kiwedin]

On November 28-29th, 2015, over 2'300 events (marches, rallys, protests) were planned in order to show leaders and delegates in Paris that the world is paying attention and is taking a stand for more action in terms of climate change. It also came to my attention that most people attending these events did not know what industry was the leading contributer of greenhouse gasses. As expected, people's answers were "transportation", which is incredibly sad since they were attending a climate change march and would be expected to know the basics of the cause they were supporting. I always knew the answer was somewhat of an "elephant in the room", but I never realized that it was actually completely invisible.

Considering that 4 out of 5 Americans consider themselves environmentalists or at least sympathetic to environmentalists (https://www.ti.org/BandN.html), I thought that it was time to do a myTake on the topic of diet and the impact it has on the environment, since animal agriculture is the leading cause of greenhouse gas emissions. I think that it's important to spread this information so that people can then make their own educated decisions on what industries they choose to support or boycott. It's also come to my attention that there are many people who believe climate change is a hoax on this website, so lucky for you, this post does not only relate to climate change, but rather the state of the planet as a whole. I'm also aware that some people simply do not care, and to them I say;

We kill the planet, we kill ourselves. It's really that simple.

I've compiled a series of facts about animal agriculture and accompanying sources in an easy to read list, but GaG does have a limit of 20 links per myTake. Links that are missing can be found at https://www.cowspiracy.com/facts/ .

Enjoy!

Greenhouse Gasses:

- Livestock and their byproducts account for at least 32,000 million tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) per year, or 51% of all worldwide greenhouse gas emissions. https://www.worldwatch.org/node/6294 and https://www.animalfeedscience.com/article/S0377-8401(11)00517-7/abstract

- Livestock is responsible for 65% of all human-related emissions of nitrous oxide – a greenhouse gas with 296 times the global warming potential of carbon dioxide, and which stays in the atmosphere for 150 years.

- Cows produce 150 billion gallons of methane per day - a greenhouse gas that is 25-100 times more destructive than CO2 on a 20 year time frame.

- Even without fossil fuels, we will exceed our 565 gigatonnes CO2e limit by 2030, all from raising animals. Oppenlander, Richard A. Food Choice and Sustainability: Why Buying Local, Eating Less Meat, and Taking Baby Steps Won’t Work. . Minneapolis, MN : Langdon Street, 2013. Print.

Water:

- Animal agriculture uses 500 times more water than fracking. https://www2.epa.gov/sites/production/files/documents/HFStudyPlanDraft_SAB_020711.pdf and https://bioscience.oxfordjournals.org/content/54/10/909.full

- Growing feed crops for livestock consumes 56% of water in the US. www.cspinet.org/EatingGreen/pdf/arguments4.pdf

- The amount of water it takes to make 1 pound of beef varies from 440-8000 gallons of water.

- 477 gallons of water are required to produce 1lb. of eggs; almost 900 gallons of water are needed for 1lb. of cheese.

- 1,000 gallons of water are required to produce 1 gallon of milk.

- 5% of water consumed in the US is by private homes. 55% of water consumed in the US is for animal agriculture.

- Animal Agriculture is responsible for 20%-33% of all fresh water consumption in the world today.

Land:

- Livestock or livestock feed occupies 1/3 of the earth’s ice-free land. https://www.fao.org/newsroom/en/News/2006/1000448/index.html

- Livestock covers 45% of the earth’s total land. https://cgspace.cgiar.org/bitstream/handle/10568/10601/IssueBrief3.pdf

- Animal agriculture is the leading cause of species extinction, ocean dead zones, water pollution, and habitat destruction (over 15 sources to back this up, too many to post on this myTake).

- Livestock operations on land have created more than 500 nitrogen flooded deadzones around the world in our oceans. https://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2014/20140804_deadzone.html

- The earth is currently going through the largest mass extinction in 65 million years (animal agriculture leading cause of species extinction). https://advances.sciencemag.org/content/1/5/e1400253.full

- 1/3 of the planet is desertified, with livestock as the leading driver.

Waste:

- Every minute, 7 million pounds of excrement are produced by animals raised for food in the US.

- A farm with 2,500 dairy cows produces the same amount of waste as a city of 411,000 people. https://nepis.epa.gov/Exe/ZyNET.exe/901V0100.TXT?ZyActionD=ZyDocument&Client=EPA&Index=2000+Thru+2005&Docs=&Query=&Time=&EndTime=&SearchMethod=1&TocRestrict=n&Toc=&TocEntry=&QField=&QFieldYear=&QFieldMonth=&QFieldDay=&IntQFieldOp=0&ExtQFieldOp=0&XmlQuery=&File=D%3A%5Czyfiles%5CIndex%20Data%5C00thru05%5CTxt%5C00000011%5C901V0100.txt&User=ANONYMOUS&Password=anonymous&SortMethod=h%7C-&MaximumDocuments=1&FuzzyDegree=0&ImageQuality=r75g8/r75g8/x150y150g16/i425&Display=p%7Cf&DefSeekPage=x&SearchBack=ZyActionL&Back=ZyActionS&BackDesc=Results%20page&MaximumPages=1&ZyEntry=1&SeekPage=x&ZyPURL

- 130 times more animal waste than human waste is produced in the US – 1.4 billion tons from the meat industry annually. https://www.gao.gov/archive/1999/rc99205.pdf

Oceans:

- 3/4 of the world’s fisheries are exploited or depleted due to the fishing industry.

- We could see fishless oceans by 2048. https://www.sciencemag.org/content/314/5800/787

- As many as 2.7 trillion animals are pulled from the ocean each year.

- For every 1 pound of fish caught, up to 5 pounds of unintended marine species are caught and discarded as by-kill. https://www.fao.org/docrep/W6602E/w6602E09.htm

- As many as 40% (63 billion pounds) of fish caught globally every year are discarded.

- Scientists estimate as many as 650,000 whales, dolphins and seals are killed every year by fishing vessels.

- 40-50 million sharks killed in fishing lines and nets.

Rainforest:

- Animal agriculture is responsible for up to 91% of Amazon destruction. https://www-wds.worldbank.org/servlet/WDSContentServer/WDSP/IB/2004/02/02/000090341_20040202130625/Rendered/PDF/277150PAPER0wbwp0no1022.pdf

- The leading causes of rainforest destruction are livestock and feed crops.

- Up to137 plant, animal and insect species are lost every day due to rainforest destruction. https://www.savetheamazon.org/rainforeststats.htm

- 5.2 times more land in the Amazon rainforest has been cleared for animal agriculture (136 million) than for palm oil (26 million). https://www.pecad.fas.usda.gov/highlights/2013/06/indonesia/ and https://rainforests.mongabay.com/amazon/amazon_destruction.html

-1,100 land activists have been killed in Brazil in the past 20 years for speaking up against the animal agriculture industry. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/apr/08/brazilian-murder-dorothy-stang

The Impact You Can Make:

- Land required to feed 1 person for 1 year; Vegan: 1/6th acre; Vegetarian: 3x as much as a vegan; Meat Eater: 18x as much as a vegan. Robbins, John. Diet for a New America, StillPoint Publishing, 1987, p. 352

- 1.5 acres can produce 37,000 pounds of plant-based food or 375 pounds of meat.

- A person who follows a vegan diet produces the equivalent of 50% less carbon dioxide, uses 1/11th oil, 1/13th water, and 1/18th land compared to a meat-lover for their food.

- Each day, a person who eats a vegan diet saves 1,100 gallons of water, 45 pounds of grain, 30 sq ft of forested land, 20 lbs CO2 equivalent, and one animal’s life. Oppenlander, Richard A. Less Meat, and Taking Baby Steps Won’t Work. Minneapolis, MN : Langdon Street, 2013. Print.

Watch Cowspiracy: A Sustainability Secret to learn more, now available on Netflix, YouTube, and for purchase on their website.

Following a plant-based lifestyle may not be the only way to help the environment, but it is the biggest and most immediate impact you can make in your own daily life. It's just crazy to me how I used to always take short showers (still do) thinking I was making a difference in saving water, but then I would go eat a burger (taking on average 660 gallons of water to make) and waste enough water to take 32 showers.

Hope you guys found this myTake educational :).

[BeeNee]

I recycle, I compost and garden, and I used to use my own bags at the grocery until it got to be annoying with the self check out not recognizing the bags. I'm no environmentalist. I think I would be hard pressed to find a true one anywhere near me, but more power to them. Bottom line, we can all do better, but its changing horrible habits, actually making effort, putting the time and effort in, that gets those good results that frankly, none of us either feels obligated to do, or feels its more an imposition to do them when everyone else we see is also not doing the right thing. I will say things like this, reading this, always make you think and put thoughts in your mind to try and do better for yourself and the environment.

[Kiwedin]

Just because things aren't super convenient and the rest of the world isn't doing them, doesn't mean you should let that affect you and your values. I guess it just depends on how much you care though.

[BeeNee]

That's exactly my point and the reason for my explanation of why there aren't more environmentalists, true ones, running around out there. We are creatures of convenience, humans. I didn't recycle until my neighborhood dropped off a recycle can on my driveway one day. Why? Because I don't fancy having to lug all my cans and bottles 30 minutes out of my way to some recycle plant every week which wastes gas and time, yet plop it right on the drive and someone else picks it up, and there you have it, an entire neighborhood of recyclers. It's not just about how much you care that will solve our environmental issues. You have to give even the lay person, easier ways to do things that they literally don't have to think about if you intend to ever get people en mass to change their habits.

[Kiwedin]

Yet there needed to be enough people requesting recycling bins in your neighbourhood in the first place. It seems to me, that you'd rather wait for other people to do the important work rather than attempt to make a difference yourself. That's totally fine though, it takes a certain kind of person to stand up against what he/she believes is wrong. Unfortunately for the planet/animals/humanity, not enough people do.

[BeeNee]

You say: "that's totally fine though, it takes a certain kind of person to stand up against what he/she believes is wrong." Why bother writing this entire take then if it's fine? Grow a back bone already! Change in this world is a process that doesn't happen over night. I roll my eyes at people like you who try to tell people they don't care, b/c they don't put 100% effort into one cause. There are a million issues in this world, and I challenge you to solve all the world's problems. Go ahead. I'll wait. Clearly I care. I wouldn't recycle or garden or try to turn off lights, etc. if I didn't. If you want to prepare people to fight for this planet, you have to get off the high horse, and start talking solutions because YOU alone cannot save the planet. I've given you a few examples of the issues with environmentalism and your solution is to throw up your hands and wish more people cared. How is that working out? Is the planet all saved yet because only you think you care?

[BeeNee]

Come, come, now. If you want to enact change and move things along, be prepared to face opposition and to get your hands dirty in challenging broken systems and finding solutions to problems with getting people motivated to help this planet. If all you want is to sit back and do what just you can do, then, you are absolutely right. Everything is fine. No one need read this take.

[Kiwedin]

You're only getting angry right now because I think you know that there's some truth to what I've said. My post wasn't about how people should completely uproot their lives and devote themselves to one cause, but to give a suggestion on how you can live the most eco-friendly without having to change a single thing besides your diet. All it takes is buying the plant-based alternatives to the foods you are already eating and consuming more whole, fresh, plant foods. You have nothing to lose by making that shift, and only compassion, health, love, and environmental sustainability to gain. I'm not throwing my hands up, but I am aware that not everyone is going to change, not everyone wants to change, and there's not much I can do. I can't force you to make ethical decisions, but I can educate and raise awareness, so that's what I'm doing. Am I being condescending by insinuating that you don't care enough to take a stand against what's wrong, perhaps, but it's also 100% true.

[BeeNee]

I'm sorry that you seem totally confused about this or my comments on the environment and why it is as a whole, there are not more environmentalists. You want me.. and others... to eat fresh veggies for a healthier planet from a store. I have an entire garden in my own backyard filled with carrots, tomatoes, corn, oranges, lemons, pears, herbs, strawberries, and various flowers which I've grown for years now. Literally the first thing I told you in my first comment is that I garden, yet according to your mythical truth, I don't seem to care about the environment enough, or try enough, or whatever it is you've imagined. Gardening and composting is quite important to me as I cook quite often and goes above and beyond what most people, including yourself, on the planet who live in cities do, and yet, again, I've done nothing at all to help the planet in your mind. I know it can be hard to understand others POV's sometimes, but its an important step in the education of others.

[Kiwedin]

That really is great, but unfortunately, the animal agriculture industry is destructive enough to outweigh much of any other effort we make. Going vegan reduces your footprint by 87-94% depending on whether or not you buy organic. An omnivore who bikes, gardens, takes short showers, recycles, composts, buys organic, local, free-range etc. still only reduces their footprint by 8%. It's not that you aren't trying hard enough, just putting your effort into things that don't make much of a difference in the grand scheme of things.

[BeeNee]

By your own words you said: "All it takes is buying the plant-based alternatives to the foods you are already eating and consuming more whole, fresh, plant foods," and now you're informing me that, again quoting you here, "putting your effort into things that don't make much of a difference in the grand scheme of things." I don't buy plant based foods, I grow my own, so how is this now suddenly not making an impact. I'm not sure even you know what you're advocating for, so I'll just leave you to whatever it is you think you're trying to convince people to do.

[Kiwedin]

... The whole point of this point was to encourage people to boycott animal agriculture, because buying from and supporting these companies cancel out nearly all other efforts to be as environmentally sustainable as possible.
"All it takes is buying the plant-based alternatives to the foods you are already eating and consuming more whole, fresh, plant foods" means that instead of buying meat, eggs, and dairy, replace those foods with more plant-based options.
"putting your effort into things that don't make much of a difference in the grand scheme of things" means that your gardening, as great as it is, does not make up for buying from the meat, dairy, and egg industry as it is the most damaging industry on the planet. Putting your effort into composting, gardening, etc. does not make a difference in comparison to the damage that your imposing on the environment by supporting animal agriculture. You've completely misunderstood me.

[BeeNee]

1. I'm lactose intolerant and don't drink milk 2. why do you keep talking about eating meat? I don't eat meat 3. You are the worst type of person to speak on topics like this, because again, you don't listen to anyone but yourself. Let me attempt to educate you. If you want to see change, you don't start by antagonizing the people you are trying to see change from and telling them any efforts they make are useless and not going to solve anything. This is where we have finally rounded back to my original statements about why there are not more environmentalists. Remember, you do not live on this planet alone and so you obviously will need the help of a vast majority of people to see changes for the betterment of this planet, so all this, "I don't think you care enough for me personally" will not make the rivers cleaner, the air fresher, or various damaging industries go away.

[BeeNee]

You have to get over your own needs and ego and listen to those of opposing views so that as a community that we all belong to on planet earth, we can start working together to see changes we all desperately need. This applies to any cause or group that works on changing something that is wrong, or bad, or needs help in this world. You are clearly a passionate person, but you cannot let your passion get in the way of trying to get people to see your side of things. That's the mistake a lot of activists make and people who see the wrongs of this world. Now, you can take that for what it is, or leave it. That's your choice. Really best of luck to you in your cause, and hopefully you'll listen more to those in the future who don't always agree with you so you can figure out better solutions to get them to see your point other then just throwing hands up and saying no one cares but you, because that's not true. A lot of people do or want to, but change for a lot of people takes time.

[Kiwedin]

LOL You never mentioned you were already vegan. That's what this whole thing is about. I was just trying to get across that is makes the biggest and most immediate difference in the environment, and that nothing else really compares. Smh lol.

[BeeNee]

That may be true, but again, what I want to get across to you is that you shouldn't just immediately discredit or give up on other people who for instance only recycle, or only turn off the lights when not in use, or buy organic. That person is doing something, and something is much much better than nothing. You can wish the world were all vegan, but that's not going to happen. It's not actually a real viable solution to the earth's problems that enough people are willing to commit to. I really hope that drills into your brain more than anything. You will turn off more people to your cause then bring them to it, if you feel as though this is the one and only solution. An environmentalist is a person who is concerned with or advocates the protection of the environment. No where in the definition does it say that you can only be one if you are Vegan.

[Kiwedin]

You're right, I do let my emotion and passion for this cause get in the way sometimes, but I still don't agree that one can be an environmentalist and support the number one most destructive industry on the planet. Otherwise it just seems hypocritical to me.

[chuppachup]

Nice MyTake. I like to consider myself an environmentalist but I'm a massive hypocrite if I do but it's good to learn some facts.

[ssholesia]

Yes, I consider myself as a environmentalist :)
I don't protest everyday, but still, I have my own WWT plant with my husband. And we use the best technologies and equipment for waste water treatment. Over here: https://ekoton-corp.com Starting with aeration systems, ending with penstocks ;)

[BroDudeBro]

I am not an environmentalist, though I do recycle and I walk to most places and if I need to use motor vehicles, I use public transport (but those vehicles use diesel).

[Kiwedin]

The fact that transportation accounts for 13% of greenhouse gas emissions and animal agriculture is responsible for 51% doesn't bother you?

[BroDudeBro]

Any damage to our ecosystems bothers me but I don't know what I can do to help minimize the effects of animal agriculture. I am not too educated on this matter, so if you have any information I am all eyes.

[BroDudeBro]

Oh I am not going vegan because I tried to be a vegetarian and my health suffered as a result. I found myself feeling a lot healthier with a balanced diet of fresh meat, fruit and vegetables.

[Kiwedin]

It's wonderful that you care at the very least, I guess. However, going vegan requires some research when it comes to nutrition. I will be studying Dietetics in University, but I have taken many nutrition courses in college and know plenty about vegan nutrition if you'd like any advice. Vegetarians do often have poorer health because dairy does block the absorption of many nutrients, iron being a major one, but that problem simply solves itself once a person goes vegan. A plant based diet does take a bit of an adjustment and education, so often first-timers do not succeed. If it means a lot to you to be as green as possible, perhaps you'd give it another shot?

[BroDudeBro]

I can certainly have a look at some vegan meals and I don't consume large quantities of meat, but I will cut down where I can and I may consider switching to Almond milk if that makes any possible positive changes.

[Kiwedin]

Baby steps. My change was very gradual as well, but I have absolutely no regrets. If you ever need any advice, I'd be happy to help :).

[BroDudeBro]

Thank you, I will. :)

[Other_Tommy_Wiseau]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bFEoMO0pc7k

filler

[Zorax]

Of course, I'm a vegetarian ;)

[Entity]

No, I am not.