The Covid-19 pandemic has certainly been a challenging event for humanity to endure. Many have died, and more will die. Many more have become ill, and many more will become ill. Although we are still well in the midst of it, especially with rules and behavior relaxing despite the rise of all the variant viruses likely leading to resurgence, the pandemic will eventually pass. It’s unlikely that we will ever return to completely normal, pre-pandemic behavior. On the other hand, our pre-pandemic behavior was making most of us sick, destroying the planet and killing billions of innocent animals. Unfortunately, this viral crisis is relatively insignificant compared with the global warming and climate change disaster which continues to march on and threatens human existence on Earth.
Bill Gates was interviewed this weekend about his new climate change book “How To Avoid a Climate Disaster” but I was disheartened that he not once mentioned the most impactful, fastest and easiest way we can not only stop global warming, but reverse it.
Stop, or significantly reduce eating animals and animal products.
We focus on fossil fuels, pollution, recycling, but the facts are clear. The most conservative estimates are that the animal agricultural industry, growing, feeding, transporting and producing animals and animal products like dairy, accounts for at least 15% of all global warming and resulting climate change. This is more than what is generated by all modes of transportation, combined, world wide. This estimate, published by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN, has some glaring inaccuracies and omissions. More accurate estimates put the animal agriculture industry’s impact at more than 52% which is more than all modes of transportation, along with all buildings, power plants and industry worldwide, combined.
By reducing meat consumption, you not only reduce the production of CO2, and more importantly the much more potent global warming gases methane (34x more potent) and nitrous oxide (310x more potent), which are ONLY produced by animal ag, but by reverting croplands and destroyed rainforests from producing feed for these animals as well as grazing them, you return these lands to wild forested land which is a carbon sink. You stop production and increase reabsorption of these greenhouse gasses simultaneously. Trees are essentially 50% carbon. The impact is immediate. It’s an immediate win win.
As crazy as it sounds, if all the power plants and industry stopped working today but we continued to eat animal products at the same level, global warming would actually worsen exponentially. Ironically, some of the toxic gasses produced by industry, like sulfur dioxide, actually have a climate cooling effect, essentially making some of them neutral in terms of global warming. These are not “good” gases, they just have different damaging effects. If everyone in China started driving electric cars, environmental pollution and climate change would also dramatically rise even more since 40% of China’s power is generated by coal plants. Increased energy demands of cars would lead to more coal being burned.
Just ONE day of eating plant based results in the following positive savings:
- 1100 gallons of water (as crazy as it sounds, it take 1000 gallons of water to generate only 1 gallon of milk and 2500 gallons to generate 1 lb of beef)
- 40 lbs of grains
- 30 sq ft of rainforest
- 20 lbs of CO2
- 1 animal life
Just one meal a week doubles that. Think of what a vegan saves! If you are interested, check out this websites which calculates the savings of going plant based: https://thevegancalculator.com
I read a very eye opening fact the other day. Although much healthier for you, a vegetarian diet, which usually includes dairy and eggs, has a greater impact on global warming than if you continued to eat meat, but only at dinner, making breakfast and lunch plant-based. So cutting back is also very important.
I became vegan 5 years ago for health reasons. I’ve read and listened to a lot since then . I’ve been to conferences. I update my knowledge constantly. I have seen the benefits first hand with my own patients. As an ENT doc, I can proudly say that I have also reversed diabetes, obesity and hypertension on many patients over the years. The health benefits of plant-based diets are overwhelming and undeniable. I continue to be vegan however because it’s unethical to kill 90 billion animals a year to eat them unnecessarily and veganism is also our best hope to save the planet for our children and grandchildren.
Just cut back a little. It’s not that hard. Saying that you cannot give up something because you like it too much is the same thing that smokers, gamblers and heroin addicts say. If you can;t give something up, you need to re-examine your relationship with it.
And by the way, just because some dumb-ass Governor (Florida, Texas…) says it’s OK to open up 100% and that masks are no longer necessary, DO NOT BELIEVE THEM! They have 2 interests in mind. Money and re-election! They care little for public safety.
Stay safe and be well.
AC