Greenhouse Gas Emissions

GHG Emissions

The main reason our climate is changing is because people are adding more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.  According to the FAO, livestock farming is one of the most significant contributors to today’s most serious environmental problems.

The livestock sector accounts for 9 percent of total human induced carbon dioxide but produces a much larger share of methane emissions and nitrous oxide emissions - two greenhouse gases that have a significantly higher global warming potential than carbon dioxide.

Starting off with carbon dioxide emissions - To create a space for livestock farms, we have to cut down trees, which take in carbon dioxide and let out oxygen which is beneficial to us.  By cutting down trees we are letting more CO2 into our atmosphere.  Earth’s photosynthetic capacity has significantly reduced because of this deforestation. The largest source of CO2 emissions within agriculture is the drainage and cultivation of organic soils. When the livestock animals grow large enough, they are transported to slaughterhouses in trucks which let out even more carbon dioxide. After this, the machines used to slaughter the animals let out carbon dioxide as well. In all, the livestock industry accounts for nine percent of all worldwide human-caused carbon dioxide emissions.

The livestock industry plays a big role in methane emissions.  When these animals burp, fart, or let out manure, they are emitting lots of methane.  Make all the jokes you want, but on average, a cow lets out about 500 liters of methane every single day!  Methane’s global warming potential is twenty-one times greater than carbon dioxide.  The livestock industry accounts for thirty-seven percent of all world-wide human-caused methane emissions.

The livestock industry is also responsible for nitrous oxide emissions.  In order to grow feed for all of these livestock animals, the industry uses nitrous-based fertilizers and pesticides.  These emit nitrous oxide, of course, which has a global warming potential that is 292 times greater than carbon dioxide and the livestock industry accounts for sixty-five percent of all worldwide human-caused nitrous oxide emissions that causes acid rain.

According to FAO, total emission from livestock industry is 7.1 giga tones of carbon dioxide equivalent, that is 14.5 percent of total greenhouse gas emissions.