------------------------------------------------- BACKGROUND INFORMATION: SUMMARY OF LIVESTOCK'S IMPACT ON THE ENVIRONMENT (SOURCE: 2006 UNITED NATIONS FAO REPORT, LIVESTOCK'S LONG SHADOW) Livestock- MAJOR Contributor of Pollution: *37% of all human-induced Methane *65% of all human-induced Nitrous Oxide *9% of all human-induced Carbon Dioxide *64% of human-induced Ammonia (NH3) Livestock- MAJOR Contributor of Food Shortage: *uses 36% World grain *uses 74% World soy Livestock - MAJOR Contributor of Clean Water Shortage (SOURCE: STOCKHOLM INTERNATIONAL WATER INSTITUTE) *20% of all water goes to industries *10% of all water goes to households *70% of all water goes to producing food: -1 POUND OF LETTUCE: 23 gallons of water -1 POUND OF WHEAT: 25 gallons of water -1 POUND OF APPLES: 49 gallons of water -1 POUND OF CHICKEN: 815 gallons of water -1 POUND OF PORK: 1,630 gallons of water -1 POUND OF BEEF: 5,214 gallons of water ADDITIONAL COSTS OF LIVESTOCK FARMING: LAND: -*Livestock farming land takes up 70% of all agricultural land, and 30% of world's ice-free terrestrial surface. 70% of the Amazon rainforest is currently being occupied by pastures; feedcrops occupy a large sector of the remaining 30%. ENERGY: -*The livestock sector requires 16 times more fossil fuel energy than other sectors of agriculture. Livestock is increasingly being fed with grains and cereals that could have been consumed by humans, converting only up to 33% of its nutrients for our consumption. NATURAL RESOURCE DEGRADATION: -*U.S. livestock sector alone produces 900 million tons of manure annually. Immense lagoons used to store waste are known to heavily degrade the surrounding air and water, creating dead zones within our clean bodies of water. Livestock speeds up the process of water shortage exponentially. *------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------* Livestock's external social cost result in an inefficient and unnecessary land, resource, and energy usage as well as extreme environmental deterioration and depletion. A significant reduction in the livestock industry is essential for the cause of saving our environment. I SUPPORT THE PROPOSITION OF LIVESTOCK PRODUCTION REDUCTION MANDATING A SIGNIFICANT REDUCTION OF THE LIVESTOCK INDUSTRY VIA MEANS OF ELIMINATION OF ANNUAL LIVESTOCK SUBSIDIES AND/OR IMPLEMENTATION OF TAX ON LIVESTOCK PRODUCTS FOR THEIR SIGNIFICANT EMISSION LEVELS DURING PRODUCTION. *------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------* This petition will be mailed to local governmental officials, state governmental officials, and national governmental officials in the United States quarterly each year. (PETITION SOURCE: University of California, San Diego - Student Organization: Vegetarian Environmentalist Group. For more information, please email [email protected])