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Meat industry damages planet more than cars { December 10 2006 } Original Source Link: (May no longer be active)    http://news.independent.co.uk/environment/article2062484.ece http://news.independent.co.uk/environment/article2062484.ece Cow 'emissions' more damaging to planet than CO2 from cars By Geoffrey Lean, Environment Editor Published: 10 December 2006 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.

madcow 739 000 pounds beef recalled 99 get salmonella st louis hospital { July 1 2003 } Abused cows cause largest beef recall { March 12 2008 } Al gore hurts environment with his diet Avian flu found in maryland chicken farm { March 7 2004 } Awareness of meat environmental damage increases { April 16 2008 } Baseball player disgusted by factory farms Beef made from cattle too sick to stand { February 2008 } Bird flu spreading un warns { January 24 2004 } Burrito chain attacks pharmaceutical meat additives [jpg] Burrito chain attacks pharmaceutical meat additives { May 20 2007 } Callaway [pdf] Chicken farms ruin oklahoma lakes and streams Chicken litter polluting oklahoma waterways with phosphorus Chicken virus surfaced texas { April 8 2003 } Chickens in rice sacks buried alive in shallow pits Cloned farm animals to provide meat and milk { June 22 2005 } Cows called major california polluters Cows pass cars as polluters in san joaquin valley { August 2 2005 } E coli recall Ecoli cows need fiber { June 6 2001 } Farm salmon high in pcbs Fastfood chain attempts to acquire free range animals { March 28 2007 } Fda approves cloned animals for eating { December 2008 } Fda approves eating clones Fda expecting to allow milk and meat from cloned animals { October 6 2005 } Fish farms are fed chicken dung Ground beef recalled after 2 coloradans sickened { August 5 2003 } Guzzling meat destroying environment { January 27 2008 } Hay fight ecoli { September 19 1998 } Hormones given to cows effect women through milk { May 20 2006 } Kidnapped girl compares herself to caged chickens Livestock are devouring our food supply { June 17 2008 } Meat industry damages planet more than cars { December 10 2006 } Meat industry hurting planet and body Meat industry violates human rights { January 26 2005 } Meat packing plants raided for illegal workers Ohio slaughterhouse tortures its cows { January 31 2008 } Outbreak { April 9 2001 } Pig farming concerns Pork farm products contained human remains Poultry disease { January 16 2003 } Quarantines 5mil chickens avian flu Sales of cloned cattle multiply They die piece by piece { April 10 2001 } US beef unwanted over seas { June 12 2008 } Whats in our cows { January 11 2004 } Files Listed: 47

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