WHY GO VEGAN

Environmental Impact of a Vegan Diet Versus a Carnivorous Diet

What we eat can have a major impact on our environment. For example, ,meat and dairy production takes a major toll by polluting fresh water and land, polluting the air, causing deforestation, destroying habitats, emitting greenhouse gas emissions, and much more. Veganism—a diet that excludes all animal products is not only about animal welfare or physical health, but also about the health of our planet (home) as it is much more sustainable. A vegan diet has less of a negative impact than a diet that consists of meat and other animal products as it requires less greenhouse gas emissions, pollutants, methane, deforestation, etc. Switching to a plant-based diet is one of the most effective ways that you can reduce your individual impact on the environment and live more sustainably; in fact, even the UN states that plant-based diets are a major opportunity for mitigating and adapting to climate change and recommend that all governments implement policies that reduce meat consumption in their countries or regions.

Carbon Footprint  

            Your carbon footprint is the net total of greenhouse gas emissions generated by your actions. What your diet consists of is one of the biggest contributors to your carbon footprint. Simply by going vegan, you could reduce your carbon footprint by up to 73%! How could a simple diet change have this big of an impact? Well, every single step of the production process for meat, dairy, and other animal products requires a lot of greenhouse gases. Some of these production processes include the clearing of forests for animal pasture and feed, the waste produced by the animals, the transport emissions, etc. Humans could also cut methane emissions, another greenhouse gas, by 45% if they shifted toward a plant-based diet. What about nitrous oxide? Well, animal waste is a huge contributor to nitrous oxide emissions. Factory farms produce so much animal waste that ends up in freshwater, the ocean, soil, etc. and ends up releasing nitrous oxide that pollutes our atmosphere and accelerates climate change. Going plant-based would put an end to factory farms and the horrible practices that occur in them leading to suffering of all beings.

Energy

            Meat and dairy production require a massive amount of processing; therefore, requires a massive amount of energy. It takes about 31.5 kilowatt-hours of energy to produce one pound of beef. This is a bit below the amount of energy a fridge uses to run for a whole month! Plant-based foods require much less energy.

Water

            We all know that clean water is essential for our survival. If we consume and use freshwater faster than it can naturally replenish, we risk drought and global water shortages. Agriculture accounts for 70% of global water use. Growing feed for livestock accounts for 41% of the water used for agriculture and it takes around 460 gallons of water to make a one-quarter pound beef patty. This is equal to taking about 23 showers! Switching to a vegan diet would reduce your water footprint by up to 55%.

Pollution

            Aside from polluting the air with greenhouse gases, the meat and dairy industry also pollutes the planet with massive amounts of animal waste. This is much deeper than one might believe it to be as the nitrogen and phosphorus in the animal waste will contaminate our oceans and water ways, chemically react with the water, and create zones where oxygen levels are too low for anything to survive but algae. For example, there are millions of miles of the Gulf of Mexico that no longer have any marine life due to pollution from animal agriculture. These zones are labeled “dead zones.”

Oceans

            On top of animal agriculture polluting the ocean and creating dead zones, the amount of greenhouse gas emissions released into the atmosphere have and will continue to raise ocean temperatures and kickstart ocean acidification. Ocean acidification is when the chemistry of ocean water changes and makes it uninhabitable to marine life. Ocean acidification destroys entire reef ecosystems. This is extremely dangerous for all life on earth. Again, switching to a plant-based diet reduces your carbon footprint by up to 73%. By making this switch you would not be contributing to massive amounts of carbon being released into the atmosphere and destroying ecosystems.

Deforestation

            One third of the Earth’s landmass is used for raising animals that are going to be killed for consumption. To have this much land to use, many forests are destroyed. Deforestation releases stored carbon into the atmosphere and accelerates climate change. On top of this, many species also lose their home and biodiversity is lost. The Amazon is facing mass deforestation and the biggest driver of this is animal agriculture. The Amazon houses over 10% of the Earth’s biodiversity and acts as a carbon sink. Half of the Amazon’s carbon is stored in the soil and the other half is in its trees which hold about 20% of all the carbon captured by vegetation across the planet. When these trees are cut down for animal agriculture, the biomass releases this stored carbon into the atmosphere. This is also extremely dangerous for all life on earth. We see that meat and dairy consumption encourages the disruption of our planet’s natural cycles and ecosystems, so participating in a plant-based diet is actively choosing to not support these horrible processes.

Soil Erosion

            Deforestation for animal grazing and animal feed also erodes nutrient-rich top soil which makes plants unable to grow. Farmers who grow corn and soy for animal feed also erode soil by over cultivating it in order to produce as much feed as they can for as cheap as they can. This does not allow the soil to recover and restore its nutrients which, over time, destroys the soil. Switching to a plant-based diet allows the soil to heal and replenish itself as well as free up land that was used for meat production. This would allow environments to return to their natural rhythms and recover from the degradation they faced from animal agriculture.

Can veganism help us out of this climate crisis we find ourselves in?

            After reading this short article, one can conclude that our food system is broken, and our planet and all beings are suffering for it. However, we do have the power to create a more sustainable food system for the environment, for us, and for animals. Switching to a vegan diet is one of the most impactful changes you can make to lower your negative impact on the environment. By being vegan you would waste less, pollute less, and contribute to the fight of replenishing our planet (home).