Livestock have a surprisingly big impact on global emissions

“It’s a silent but deadly source of greenhouse gases that contributes more to global warming than the entire world transportation sector, yet politicians almost never question it, and environmental lobbyists and other green activist groups seem unaware of its existence,” reports the Los Angeles Times. “Livestock are a leading source of greenhouse gases. Why isn’t anyone raising a stink?”

In “Livestock’s Long Shadow,” the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations reported that raising and processing cattle, hogs, poultry and other animals produces 18 percent of greenhouse gases; by comparison, just 13 percent comes from trucks, cars and other transportation. (2) Carbon dioxide and all the bad things we do with fossil fuels is what we hear about, not that cows and other ruminants such as sheep, goats, and buffaloes, are walking gas factories that take in fodder and besides putting out carbon dioxide also contribute methane and nitrous oxide. The livestock sector generates 65 percent of human-related nitrous oxide, which has 296 times the Global Warming Potential of carbon dioxide. Most of this comes from manure. And it accounts for respectively 37 percent of all human-induced methane (23 times as warming as carbon dioxide), which is largely produced by the digestive system of ruminants, and 64 percent of ammonia, which contributes significantly to acid rain. (3) What can you do as an individual? Become a vegetarian! A University of Chicago study examined the average American diet and found that all the various energy inputs and livestock emissions involved in its production pump and extra 1.5 tons of carbon dioxide into the air over the course of a year, which could be avoided by a vegetarian diet. The researchers found that cutting out meat would do more to reduce greenhouse gas emissions than trading in a gas guzzler for a hybrid car. (4)

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However, as with many other environmental issues these days, there are many other folks in the world trying to catch up to the rest of us and India is a good example to use. India is no longer a majority vegetarian nation. Only about 40 percent of India’s 1.2 billion people identify themselves as vegetarian. It’s India’s fast-expanding middle class that is driving growing demand for meat, eggs, and dairy products like ice cream and cheese, as well as milk, which are a part of most Indians’ diet. For many middle class Indians, owning a television, driving a car, wearing Western brand clothing, and eating meat have become symbols of affluence, independence, and modernity. To satisfy domestic consumption, and with an eye on export markets, India has joined the livestock revolution. It has a large and growing population of farmed animals and intensification in how they are utilized, in the Western mold, is underway. (5) India’s emissions of methane from livestock are larger than any other country’s. Reflecting recent high rates of economic growth, India’s emissions rose more than 50 percent between 1994 and 2007. And, emissions of methane from India’s nearly half a billion cows, buffaloes, sheep and goats rose almost 20 percent between 1994 and 2003. Emissions have risen further in recent years as the population of cows and buffaloes continues to increase. (5) India is just one example of the developing world trying to catch up to the rest of us. So, you can put in all those curly light bulbs, drive all the Priuses you want , and become a vegetarian. India just ate that for breakfast and China will eat the next round of conservation for lunch. References

1. “Killer cow emissions,” Los Angeles Times, October 15, 2007
2. Henning Steinfeld, et al., “Livestock’s Long Shadow,” Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Rome, 2006
3. Christopher Matthews, “Livestock a major threat to environment,” FAO Newsroom, November 29, 2006
4. Gidon Eshel and Pamela A. Martin, “Diet, Energy and Global Warming,” Earth Interactions, 10, 1, 2006
5. Mia MacDonald and Sangamithra Iyer, “Veg or Non-Veg? India at the Crossroad s,” Brighter Green, December 2011