An Ecological System

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations released, in 2006, a publication which looked over the environmental impact of livestock on the planet. The conclusions found from that report are that up to 70% of grazing land is considered degraded, livestock contributes in CO2 approximately 18% of the climate change, and livestock accounts for about 37% of methane emissions.As we continue to find out the extent of the effects of these things, we must take these things into consideration. Presently, however, the conclusions found from this report among others the impact on the environment is substantial and at unsustainable levels for the near and far future.

The environmental impacts of a diet based in animal products is well documented and is the source of much debate. According to a report from the United Nations ' Livestock 's Long Shadow (2006),“[t]he livestock sector emerges as one of the top two or three most significant contributors to the most serious environmental problems, at every scale from local to global.” For those committed to reducing their negative impact on the environment, one solution would be to transition to a vegetarian or vegan/plant-based diet. Its not ethical to prescribe one way of being for environmentalists all over the world, especially when considering potential cultural differences. However, most committed environmentalists should attempt to adopt a vegetarian or vegan diet. This is because (1) animal products are an inefficient source of protein in terms of environmental impact, (2) the greenhouse gas emissions from an animal product-based diet is significantly higher than a plant-based diet and (3) animals are part of the environment and their treatment is as important as the treatment of the planet as a whole.

Studies with staggering statistics have shown how much of a negative impact producing meat for consumption is having on this planet. “It takes more than 2,400 gallons of water to produce 1 pound of beef, while producing 1 pound of tofu only requires 244 gallons of water (PETA).” Factory farms create manure which produces runoff and is one of the leading causes for the pollution in rivers and lakes. This also poses an issue for the air that people are breathing. “Studies have shown that [animal waste] lagoons emit toxic airborne chemicals that can cause inflammatory, immune, irritation and neurochemical problems in humans” (Foer). Another issue is the land that is being wasted. Threats like deforestation become a reality when crops are being used to feed animals and not humans directly. Only 4 million acres are being used to grow plants that go directly to humans, while 56 million acres are being used to grow feed for animals, and this is in the United States alone (PETA). Vegetarianism is an option that promotes better health and a positive environment for

Developmental psychologist Urie Bronfenbrenner first introduced the Ecologicial Systems model in the 1970’s. Bronfenbrenner argued that to understand human development, the environment in which the person belongs must be understood (Bronfenbrenner, U.1979). The Ecological Systems model concentrically depicts how a person’s development is influenced by their wider environment. In the original model there were four ecological levels in the system, however in 1979 Bronfenbrenner added an additional fifth level (Bronfenbrenner, U. 1994). With the developing person in the centre, the five progressive levels of environment include the microsystem, mesosystem, exosystem, marcosystem and the chronosystem.

Life history strategy The position a population of 5. What organisms are at the base of a food chain or food web? 6. What role do decomposers play? What organisms function as decomposers in most communities? 7. Can two species have the same niche in a community? Why or why not? 8. What is parasitism? What are some examples of parasitism? 9. What is the difference between commensalism and mutualism? 21.3 Energy Flow in Ecosystems 10. All organisms need energy in order to grow, reproduce, and perform the activities necessary for survival. Where does this energy come from ultimately?

Animal agriculture is the leading cause of species extinction, water pollution, habitat destruction, and other issues (Center for Biological Diversity, 2014). How could this be? This is because about 94% of the US population are meat eaters and the industry does not tell you what happens behind their closed

While vegetarianism has been proven to help environmental, health, and animal rights impacts, some people believe it to be too extreme. While vegetarianism claims to be helping the environment, there may be environmental problems associated with non-meat products. Stated before, animal agriculture produces greenhouse gas emissions. The farming of soybeans, which vegetarians fulfil their protein needs with, also has environmental impacts (Coogan,T.). Due to the increase in vegetarianism, there has also been an increase in the demand for soybean farming. Soybean farms have taken over many rainforests and diverse ecosystems (Coogan,T.). Ultimately, the creation of soybean farms destroys biodiversity. Biodiversity is necessary for ecosystems to

Lea kemle 5th hour ELA 10 Vegetarianism “I could never be a vegetarian” people say to me often, however if they considered the impact that it makes in the lives of people and animals then maybe people would put in the effort to become a vegetarian. People should eat less or no

To eat a cow or not to eat a cow, that is the question. Americans eat more meat than people in any other country. But eating meat causes air pollution, water pollution, and may cause health problems. People should become vegetarians to prevent these problems. First, becoming a

By raising the animals, they seem to release more methane gas into the environment than what scientists thought. One way to fix this situation is to be a vegetarian, but only for about five days a month. We don’t have to be a full time vegetarian, but at the same time, this way of consuming meat can also improve our environment. We will be able to force the livestock industries to reduce their products, and therefore, we can reduce the amount of methane gas released into our environment. This practice is easy to do, and Thay also mentioned in his book that a lot of people have been practicing to be a vegetarian, and some of them claim that they will cut off at least 50 % of the meat they eat.

Cows are destroying our planet?! According to Margaret Lundberg they are. In Lundberg’s essay “Eating Green” the author states her belief “that our personal and global health [are] tightly interconnected, and what benefits one will benefit the other” (Lundberg 570). Lundberg than goes on to explain why a vegetarian diet will restore the environment. She lacks a realistic solution for her American meat-obsessed audience. Lundberg also used unreliable sources to over emphasize the effects that the meat industry has on the environment as well as shows no evidence that a vegetarian diet is actually good for the environment.

Whitney Lauriston article discuss and gives 5 reason why to go vegan to save the planet rating to my topics. I agree with her because tells the importance we should consider of going vegan to save environment. Veganism can offer good benefits not just to environment but to our health. I also learned that livestock pollution can be very harmful to us humans. Livestock Factory releases many harmful toxics gas to the air that we breathe in. We can form tumors that may be dangerous if not treated early.

Various proposals exist to eliminate and/or reduce the impact animal agriculture entails on climate change. The report released by the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations suggests alternatives to the various sectors to the livestock industry. They propose better efficiency so, “...a larger portion of the energy in the animals’ feed is directed toward the creation of useful products (milk, meat, draught power), so that methane emissions per unit product are reduced.” (qtd. in Shields 363). The Humane Society International also developed some solutions the overall population can contribute to reduce climate change issues in the environment. One suggestion is promoting a higher population of people with plant-based diets in order to reduce the environmental impact of greenhouse gas emissions. The Humane Society International also ties this suggestion to an overall improvement for not only animal welfare, but public heath too. (“The Impact of Animal Agriculture” n.p.).

By definition, sustainability is the quality of not being harmful of the environment or depleting natural resources, and thereby supporting long term ecological balance. This word can essentially be the exact opposite of how animal agriculture works. Raising of livestock is unsustainable due to the vast amount of land use it requires and also the amount of people we need to feed. As the demand for meat increases due to the growing population, so does the demand for land. “Not only is the higher population driving the demand, people are consuming more meat individually. In the past 50 years alone, per capita consumption of meat has increased from 17 to 39 kilograms per person and global meat consumption will double by 2020” (Wolfson). There just isn’t enough room on this earth to continue animal agriculture at the rate that it is going. In “Cowspiracy,” the films narrator, Anderson, states “216,000 more people are born to the planet every day. You need per day, 34,000 new acres of farmable land, it’s not happening.”

     One cannot omit the fact that there are some global economical problems caused by mass meat consumption, such as starvation. Cattle are fed soybeans, corn, and other grains that could be eaten directly by people. You can feed a cow 16 pounds of food, and only one pound becomes meat that people can eat. The other 15 pounds are waste. It has been proved that decreasing global meat production by 10% would allow us to feed additional 60 million people. I am convinced that it is a strong argument why all people should become vegetarians.