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In the u.s. we consume fifty two point

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two billion pounds of meat per year. On

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average that means that each person eats

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around two hundred and seventy pounds of

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meat every year. The global meat market

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more than doubled from 1980 to 2000 and

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is projected to double again. That's a

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lot of meat. But have you ever thought

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about the impact that your hamburger has?

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Livestock production is the cause of

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many environmental issues including

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increased greenhouse gas emissions

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deforestation decreased biodiversity and

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greatly increased water intake. Humans

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are doing more and more to alter the

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natural environment by displacing native

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species polluting waters creating dead

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zones in the Gulf and raising the global

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temperature. One of the most significant

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contributors to the global human

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footprint is actually livestock

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production. No other human activity comes

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close to using as much land as livestock

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does. Over one-third of all land on earth

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is currently utilized for livestock

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raising or feed crops and by 2050 the

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land required to support livestock

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production will increase by 30 to 50

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percent. So why does this matter? Habitat

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loss is the number one cause of species

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extinction and biodiversity loss on the

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planet because the livestock is the

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biggest contributor to habitat loss it

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has huge impacts on native species. The

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more land used for cattle, pigs and other

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livestock and the land used to grow

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their feed the fewer native ecosystems

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that still remain. Particularly at risk

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are biodiversity hotspots. These are

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regions notable for their incredibly

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high diversity of plants and animals

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crucial for maintaining a healthy

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ecosystem. Within the next few decades

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the majority of the world's population

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will live in the incredibly bio diverse

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tropics increasing livestock production

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and ecosystem destruction. Rainforests

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like the Amazon even fall prey to the

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industry as more than 75 percent of all

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the deforestede Amazon land is now

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used for livestock pasture and feed

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production. Livestock production also

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uses a massive amount of water. Over 50

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gallons of water are used to produce one

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pound of beef. That's like giving your

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dinner three showers

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In terms of the total water footprint or

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the total volume of fresh water used to

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produce a product for human consumption

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27 percent of it is related to livestock

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for comparison only four percent of the

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footprint is from at home use. The

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livestock industry also affects global

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climate change. The global temperature of

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the earth has increased 1.8 degrees

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Fahrenheit since the 19th century and

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could increase by as much as two point

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five two more in the next. This is

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resulting in ecosystem and crop

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destruction, decreased food and water

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resources and more extreme weather

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While frequently the focus of climate

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change action centers around co2

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emissions methane is actually 21 times

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more effective at trapping heat in the

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atmosphere than co2 is. This means it's

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more conducive to global warming. The

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main source of methane emissions?

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livestock. In total roughly 50% of

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greenhouse gas emissions stem from the

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meat industry including not only

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emissions from livestock themselves but

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also the technology used to support them

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even with the complex problems that

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livestock production causes the

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solutions may in fact be simple. Studies

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have shown that once cattle are removed

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from riparian systems they quickly

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restore themselves. Three years after the

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removal of grazing cattle from the Heart

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Mountain National Antelope Refuge

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pronghorn populations had more than

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doubled fair soil decreased by 90% and

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native Aspen and vegetation returned 

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Native ecosystems currently prey to

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livestock grazing may be able to be

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restored passively if we simply remove

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the livestock. Have you ever considered

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limiting your personal meat intake?

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Transforming the way we eat could help

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to solve global food shortages and help

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us to cope in the face of population

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growth and climate change. If we remove

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livestock production entirely and

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replace that land with crops meant for

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direct human consumption we could

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increase the food calories available by

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as much as 70% and if we substitute meat

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with soy we can reduce biomass

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appropriation by more than 90 percent

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Research also reveals the benefits of

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eating less meat. When you move from a

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meat to vegetarian diet you reduce your

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individual water footprint by more than

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30 percent. Even if every American just

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eliminated one meal of chicken per week

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and replaced it with vegetarian foods

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the carbon dioxide saved would be

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equivalent to that

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of taking half a million cars off

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the streets. Even the smallest of dietary

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changes can have significant

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environmental impacts

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