Change to an organic vegan diet
can stop 80% of global warming
Water Usage
An individual who just once gives up one pound of beef saves more water than not showering for six months.
Moreover, according to a report by UNESCO up to 16,000 litres of water are necessary to produce one kilo of beef. That' s 80 bathtubs of water! Today, 1.1 billion people have insufficient access to clean drinking water. Climate change along with growing populations will increase scarcity in the foreseeable future.
http://www.water4all.org/files/uho_0309_unesco-wasserbericht.de.pdf
http://webworld.unesco.org/water/wwap/wwdr/wwdr3/tableofcontents.shtml
http://www.greenpeace.ch/themen/klima/../unser-taegliches-fleisch-gib-uns-heute
Producing grains, legumes or fruits and vegetables saves greatly on water. According to Waterfootprint.org, for example, it takes 1,800 litres of water to produce 1 kilo of soy beans, 1,300 litres of water for 1 kilo of wheat, 700 litres of water for one kilo of apples and 130 litres of water for a kilo of lettuce. Compared with using 13,000 litres per kilo of beef, growing vegan food is far more efficient.
http://albert-schweitzer-stiftung.de/aktuell/wasserverbrauch-in-deutschland
http://www.waterfootprint.org/?page=files/productgallery
It is therefore no surprise that a meat-eater consumes approximately 13 times more water daily than a vegan (15 141 litres compared to 1 135 litres for a person who consumes vegan nutrition.)
http://myveganworld.de/21/03/2010/am-meisten-wasser-verbraucht-man-beim-essen-und-trinken
Greenhouse gas emissions
Cattle raising is responsible for approximately four-fifths of deforestaion of the Amazon Rainforest (cutting trees for pasture and raising feed crops.) Concentrated animal livestock operations produce huge amounts of carbon dioxide which is released into the atmosphere. Meanwhile, the deforested terrain is no longer able to absorb carbon dioxide, which leads to a worsening of global warming.
http://www.nzz.ch/nachrichten/wissenschaft/klima_amazonas_1.4108440.html
http://www.regenwald.org/regenwaldreport.php?artid=225
Domesticated animals are the single largest source of methane, a greenhouse gas that (over a 20 year time span) traps at least 72 times more heat than CO2.
Carbon dioxide stays in the atmosphere for thousands of years; methane for around 12 years only. Therefore in the short term, methane does much more damage, but ending intensive animal agriculture will quickly bring global warming in check.
http://www.fao.org/newsroom/en/news/2006/1000448
http://sos-klimawandel.info/beitraege/91-brook.html
Because concentrated animal livestock is responsible for over 50 % of greenhouse gases in the world, a vegan diet could reduce those emissions by half!
http://cordis.europa.eu/fetch?CALLER=NEWSLINK_EN_C&RCN=32164&ACTION=D
http://www.worldwatch.org/node/6294
Organic Farming
Organic farming uses less energy and water than conventional methods of growing foods. It does not use pesticide or chemical fertilizer; it is much more sustainable for the environment and protective for our health.
Organic agriculture also uses less fossil fuel: this in turn lowers the production of greenhouse gases.
A vegan diet with food that is grown organically is the most effective contribution to ending climate change.
