"Step It Up" to Fight Climate Change |
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October 30, 2007
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Industrial animal agriculture generates large quantities of greenhouse gases. |
On Nov. 3—one year before the next presidential election—individuals across the United States will take action to fight global warming and climate change, coming together for the common good of the planet and all its inhabitants.
The climate action group Step It Up is calling on individuals to organize rallies in their communities as part of its second National Day of Climate Action.
Calling for Change
They're asking members of Congress to show true leadership in responding to the threats posed by global warming and climate change.
Crucial Steps
Under the banner of the "1 Sky" campaign—a diverse coalition of citizens and public interest groups—local organizers and participants will advocate three key objectives:
- Cut carbon 80 percent by 2050 (freeze climate pollution now, and cut at least 80 percent by 2050 and 30 percent by 2020)
- No new coal (a moratorium on new coal-fired power plants)
- Green jobs now (5 million green jobs conserving 20 percent of our energy by 2015)
Step It Up's first National Day of Climate Action on April 14 was a great success, with more than 1,400 events in all 50 states—bringing together tens of thousands of Americans.
Animal Agriculture's Role in Climate Change
By organizing or participating in a rally on Nov. 3, you can not only join thousands of others in demanding action from our national leaders but also help to draw attention to the impacts meat, egg and dairy production are having on climate change [PDF].
In 2006, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations reported that animal agriculture is responsible for 18 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions, measured in CO2-equivalent—and found that this is a greater share than that of the transportation sector. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has linked rising emissions of methane and nitrous oxide to the trend towards confining pigs and dairy cows in larger facilities and to changes in the poultry industry—including an overall increase in the U.S. poultry population.
Diet Matters
So it is critical that any discussion of climate change include consideration of the ways in which our consumption habits are contributing to the problem. By refining, replacing, and reducing our consumption of meat, egg and dairy products, we can help to curb greenhouse gas emissions while also improving the lives of farm animals.
To organize or join a Step It Up action in your community, please visit www.StepItUp2007.org.
Related Links
Saving the Planet and Animals—One Bite at a Time
Animal Agribusiness and Earth Day
Rachel Carson and Factory Farming
EPA Offers Large Producers Amnesty on Clean Air Act Violations
Marks Dairy Farm Pays for Manure Spill
Marks Dairy Farm Manure Spill Threatens Environment and Public Health
Factory Farms: Polluting the Environment and Getting Away with It
Helping the Planet...One Bite at a Time
