The world's top destroyer of the environment.

[yesman065]

"Meet the world's top destroyer of the environment. It is not the car, or the plane,or even George Bush: it is the cow.

A United Nations report has identified the world's rapidly growing herds of cattle as the greatest threat to the climate, forests and wildlife. And they are blamed for a host of other environmental crimes, from acid rain to the introduction of alien species, from producing deserts to creating dead zones in the oceans, from poisoning rivers and drinking water to destroying coral reefs.

The 400-page report by the Food and Agricultural Organisation, entitled Livestock's Long Shadow, also surveys the damage done by sheep, chickens, pigs and goats. But in almost every case, the world's 1.5 billion cattle are most to blame. Livestock are responsible for 18 per cent of the greenhouse gases that cause global warming, more than cars, planes and all other forms of transport put together.

Burning fuel to produce fertiliser to grow feed, to produce meat and to transport it - and clearing vegetation for grazing - produces 9 per cent of all emissions of carbon dioxide, the most common greenhouse gas. And their wind and manure emit more than one third of emissions of another, methane, which warms the world 20 times faster than carbon dioxide.
Livestock also produces more than 100 other polluting gases, including more than two-thirds of the world's emissions of ammonia, one of the main causes of acid rain.

Ranching, the report adds, is "the major driver of deforestation" worldwide, and overgrazing is turning a fifth of all pastures and ranges into desert.Cows also soak up vast amounts of water: it takes a staggering 990 litres of water to produce one litre of milk.

Wastes from feedlots and fertilisers used to grow their feed overnourish water, causing weeds to choke all other life. And the pesticides, antibiotics and hormones used to treat them get into drinking water and endanger human health.

The pollution washes down to the sea, killing coral reefs and creating "dead zones" devoid of life. One is up to 21,000sqkm, in the Gulf of Mexico, where much of the waste from US beef production is carried down the Mississippi.

The report concludes that, unless drastic changes are made, the massive damage done by livestock will more than double by 2050, as demand for meat increases. "
The Independent - December 11, 2006


I found this very interesting. I thought walking to the store was helping to save the environment - Heck, now I think I should just go kill a cow.

[orthodoc]

I've seen this info before. The whole factory farm business is grossly polluting, and that doesn't take into account slash-and-burn ranching practices.

Go vegan!

[glatt]

From a purely logical point of view, eating meat is bad in many ways. But I sure love it.

[barefoot serpent]

That does not even touch on the amount of fresh water required by cattle.

[Aliantha]

I could have told you about cows before but didn't think you'd believe me.

Let's all eat chicken instead.

[Pangloss62]

I could go for a cheeseburger right about now.

[Urbane Guerrilla]

Avenge pollution -- eat a burger? :p

[bluecuracao]

That's the answer--we must eat all of them immediately.

[xoxoxoBruce]

Yes cows are bad, or rather the way they are managed is bad. In North America, cows have replaced the millions of Bison that were roaming the continent. But the cattle are managed in a way that pollutes.

Cattle produce significant methane but don't hold a candle to termites. Termites produce 11% of the naturally occurring methane. That's one hell of an untapped energy source. I wonder what the comparison is, for environmental damage from burned and unburned methane?

[yesman065]

No wonder they are all going mad.

[Tonchi]

This is having a tremendous impact on my area right now. Due to the ravenous march of construction in Southern California, the large dairy companies are relocating to Fresno and Kings county. Even after reading this report, our idiot zoning commissions kept letting them expand to literally thousands of cows at each facility, doing nothing but standing, shitting, and being milked 24/7. When the folks moving into new houses in the same counties began gagging every time they opened the door, somebody finally noticed and they are pretending to do environmental reports now, although the dairy seems to be doing the moving first and the reporting afterwards. One of them has even installed a "cooker" on his site which he claims will produce enough power from the waste (I do not say "manure" and you will know why if you have ever toured a large-scale livestock operation) to run his entire facility and have some left over to sell to the local electric companies. This month it was proclaimed that California has now surpassed Wisconsin in the production of dairy products. Lucky us

[xoxoxoBruce]

I had posted about a farm in VT installing a methane powered generator that supplied over $100,000 in electricity and $60,000 in bedding every year. That's from 500 head of cattle.

Because hot weather and milk production are not conducive, I'm surprised southern CA has taken such a jump in production.

[Griff]

Originally Posted by xoxoxoBruce

Because hot weather and milk production are not conducive, I'm surprised southern CA has taken such a jump in production.

Those operations burn up cattle at a very fast pace, unfortunately if people insist on living in a desert you will get a lot of nonsense like this. Floridas dairy industry actually buys their replacement cattle up here. It is turning into quite a business. It bears little resemblance to the PA/NY/VT farms with cows spread across the hills. Of course, these intensive farming practices are spreading and concentrating waste around here as well.

I do find it annoying/ironic that that people will move in near farms and then complain about the smell.

[Tonchi]

You would understand how little these mega-producers care about either the cows or the customers after reading something in our paper this morning. Without ever having to pass any legislation, the dairy producers and their purchased politicians have kept the price of dairy products maintained artificially high for nearly 70 years now. They just ran an independent producer out of California, after successfully blocking his sales to Walmart and other chains, because he sold at up to 20 cents less per gallon.

When I lived in Arizona in the 80s, the politicians told all the Arizona dairy producers to get rid of their herds because allegedly the subsidies which kept some of them in business were being eliminated. I don't know to what extent that came true, but hundreds of thousands of perfectly healthy dairy cows were slaughtered, although some international agencies managed to rescue some of them and ship them to desperate Third World countries (and especially Russia), so that they could upgrade their own herds and achieve better food production.

Now the expansion of dairies is back with a vengeance. Stay tuned for the coming environmental disaster as global warming makes Central California an increasingly unpleasant place for these massive herds and the accompanying water polution and insects.

[xoxoxoBruce]

Price controls and subsidies have been a way of life for the dairy industry, forever. OK, not forever, but a hell of a long time....probably back to the depression.

Milk was deemed a crucial commodity (it's for the children!!) and perishable, so it behooved the powers that be (been? were?)...uh, them, to do everything they could to keep the small dairy farmers, that ringed the cities, afloat.

Times change and so has the dairy business. Economics have driven most of the Mom & Pop operations out, in favor of corporate farms with large herds and good, safe, refrigerated, transportation. But bureaucrats being bureaucrats, and corporate farms being politically active, have kept the subsidies and price controls in place........it's for the children, don't forget.