Animal, Agriculture, And Agriculture

In the past century there has been a substantial change in the way human beings raise and keep animals meant for food. While in the past there were great numbers of widely spaced small individual farms, now there are relatively few, but extremely large industrialized farms. And as the numbers of animals kept and slaughtered for human consumption increases, these industrialized farms, known as Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations or CAFO's, are having more and more of an impact on the environment and people around them. The concentration of animals causes a major problem with the waste products they produce, as well as the gases, chemicals, and other types of byproducts. And the increased use of antibiotics in the animals is beginning to have a profound effect on the health of not only the environment but the communities that exist around these industrialized farms. CAFO's, and their secondary industries, are also a large consumer of oil, gasoline, and other fuels which can have an indirect, but devastating effect on the environment. Luckily there are some who have come to recognize the problems, and potential future problems, involved in this type of animal farming and have begun to inform the public to the dangers these farms pose. And in response to this information, the public is beginning to force changes in the way these CAFO's operate and the impact they have on the environment and

Some ‘Neigh-sayers’ believe that manure is diluted into water and is relatively harmless, but a recent experiment on rainbow trout, researched by Michael East, displays that even in a ten gallon tank with recirculating water that is given 1 milliliter of manure given on a biweekly basis can severely hinder trouts overall growth. At a dose of 5 millimeters biweekly, the trout surprisingly lost weight over the course of a month and perished. This experiment also depicts that the control group and the 1 millileter group ate approximately the same amount of food, but the control group gained almost double the weight of the 1 millileter treated group. This experiment shows the drastic change from a small dosage to a large dosage because the 5 millileter group only ate about half of the food given to them and lost an average of 1.5 grams per fish over the one month period. The results from this experiment show that even a small amount of manure that enters a body of water can cause serious health issues for the creatures inhabiting that area. Manure causes a

Texas Parks and Wildlife. (n.d.). Environmental Concern for Texas. Retrieved February 07, 2018, from https://tpwd.texas.gov/landwater/water/environconcerns/

The world has a need for meat, and it is almost obsessive. Most cultures typically consume some sort of domesticated animal in agriculture. Whether it is cows, chicken, lamb, deer, turkey, or fish, many people are not educated to the fact that the alternative diets are better for their health. There are different animal products for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Hundreds if not thousands of diverse chain restaurants dedicated to meat consumption.There are also many different holidays around the world such as Thanksgiving and Christmas where meat is consumed. With affordable prices and an acquired taste, it is likely to be a lifelong habit. There are vast miles of subsidized agricultural land dedicated to the cultivation of animals. According to Amir Khan, staff writer for U.S.News, reporting on the American Meat Institute, Americans consume, “57 pounds more meat than they were in the 1950s”(Khan).

The Duck Creek watershed in Scott County, IA is currently facing high levels of Escherichia coli (E. coli) bacteria contamination. This pollution has put the watershed on the impaired waters list for the state of Iowa. The impaired waters list is a comprehensive list of every waterway in a state that has a contamination problem according to EPA regulations (insert source for impaired waters explanation & EPA regulations). Much of the pollution that can be found in the Duck Creek watershed is coming from nonpoint source (NPS) pollution. Nonpoint source pollution significantly contributes to the deterioration of water quality due to the difficulty in identifying, assessing and controlling the sources of this type of pollution (citation Wang). This pollution is caused by runoff moving over the land. It picks up and carries away natural and human-made pollutants, finally depositing them into lakes, streams, rivers, wetlands and even our underground sources of drinking water (citation SCSWCD). Examples of nonpoint sources in the watershed could include failing septic systems, livestock access to streams, pastures full of manure, fertilizers applied to crops, miscellaneous urban sources such as gasoline or oil, pet waste, and wildlife (citation SCSWCD). Another source of NPS pollution is that conventional urban storm

In spite of increasing data which points towards the unsustainability of our meat industry, a report called the “Factory Farm Nation,” published by the Food and Water Watch, indicates that the U.S. meat industry has continued to grow over the last decade.

It is cited that the largest contributors to water pollution are power plants, pulp, paper and paperboard mills, slaughterhouses and poultry plants.5 In smaller farming operations, contamination is considered “non-point source” because the animal waste and fertilizer of farming are brought into the soil and washed away by rain and into the water supply.6 These

Beef accounts for so much water usage and methane emissions and carbon dioxide and greenhouse gasses and it all contributes to global climate change. We are killing our planet because we like the way meat tastes. It is crucial we leave the old ways behind so that we may embrace the new lifestyle that is caring about the world and doing something about it. It is crucial that everyone understands what they are doing to themselves when they eat processed foods. It is important to recognize severely hormone treated meat as the carcinogen

The freshwater that is available for use is becoming more contaminated with each use. The Clean Water Act of 1972 put in order more regulations in regards to wastewater and the dumping of it into rivers and lakes. Multiple-step filtration systems have been used since then to better remove toxins from wastes before it enters freshwater. In a personal interview with Moe Crabtree, Nature Resource Specialist for the Washington Department of Natural Resources, I learned some measures taken to keep water clean. Her common job is to setup timber sales which includes much precaution of rivers and streams. I asked her- “In what ways do you have to avoid water contamination?” she replied, “we have to divert culverts at minimum one hundred feet from

In Los Angeles, at least 20% of fishes died from stormwater runoff. Who’s next? Repeatedly, stormwater runoff has indicated its negative consequences. From the bacteria in feces, to the chemical waste, stormwater has been made a hazard to all life on earth. Platypi, fish, frogs, and other marine life are in an immediate danger by the pollution. The pollution consisted of fecal coliforms and fecal streptococci, which are bacterias in organism waste. In addition, there 's lawn pesticides, and motor oils that are deadly. Water inundates humankind, making this an unavoidable conflict. However, creative solutions of managing the runoff has been proved successful. The solution appears as a green infrastructure, defined as a network system that helps manage water, or in this case, stormwater runoff. On the other hand, there has been recommendations of using public awareness as a solution, but this is only a key factor to a larger concept. In her article, “Water Works” Cynthia Barnett conveys how using these creative solutions such as the green infrastructure, is considerably more beneficial than the traditional ways of reducing water all together. She suggests that living differently with water, compared to reducing water, will benefit the nation greatly in their water dilemma. In addition, she believes that the pollution of stormwater harms Pacific killer whales, coho, and salmon. In agreement, I also believe that the pollution threatens the marine life. Hence, the management of

These potential costs come in the form of environmental hazards and damages, such as contaminated water and air pollution (Walsh, 2013)2. EPA estimated in 2004 that 20% of man-made air pollutants from methane were a result from livestock, primarily cows (Air quality)3. Poor sanitation of animal waste has also been linked to food contamination and outbreaks of salmonella, E. coli and various other food-borne illnesses. In April 2009 through August 2010, a strain of Swine Flu, H1N1, was believed by scientists to have originated in industrialized farms overcrowded with pigs (Farm sanctuary, 2016)4. This pandemic was believed to have killed as many as 18,000 people according to the CDC. The overuse of antibiotics and growth hormones used to protect livestock from the rampant spread of disease, due to cramped quarters, and to help beef up production, are also beginning to show strong correlations to an increase in several cancers, antibiotic resistant “super bugs”, early onset of puberty in children, depression, brain damage, respiratory issues, birth defects, miscarriage and obesity (Other health risks of the meat industry)5. The costs to sanitize water and treat illness is tremendous and only

The United States agriculture makes up for more than two-thirds of our nations water footprint. That huge water footprint is primarily due to the tremendous amount of water needed to grow the grass and feed that a cow eats over its lifetime. This also includes the Cattles drinking water, cleaning, and processing. Those who are greatly affected by the lack of water in their states, particularly in the west coast, feel that the amount of water consumption needs to be reduced significantly. According to the National Geographic, “the water it takes to produce the average American diet alone—approximately 1,000 gallons per person per day. This is more than the global average water footprint of 900 gallons per person per day for diet, household

Remediating Agricultural Water Contamination: Problem, Solution, and Barriers Paper Student Name COMM 2367 MWF 9:10 Instructor Name September 29, 2012

Water is a resource that has always been available to us, and I feel as a society we have taken it for granted for many generations. While I was doing the research for this water conservation essay, it opened my eyes to the importance of my generation to preserve the remaining aquifer. Although I don’t reside in Southwest Kansas, I have very strong ties to this area of Kansas where the family farm is located. The impact of not preserving water will not only affect our family farm in Grant and Stevens county, but also the cattle that graze on the grass in the pasture. Along with our pasture, we have farm ground that is irrigated to raise silage, corn, and wheat; which is sold to feed yards in the area for cattle. Without water, the impact

This issue interests me because of the potential impacts the waste of water for agriculture has on vulnerable populations of people with already limited capital needed to access food and water as prices continue to go up. Historically, communities of color are hit hardest by policies and practices favoring capitalists in the neoliberal system under which we live. The growing trend of privatization of water coupled with decline in the economic stability of the U.S. has the potential to severely decimate low- income communities of color in the years to come. This issue impacts the environment as a whole due to the reckless waste of valuable water. According to a research study conducted by Tilman, Gassman, Matson, Naylor & Polasky (2002), The increasingly unsustainable methods associated with meat production, pose a huge threat to food production and ecosystems at large. Specific environmental health issues related to industrial meat production include water pollution/waste and climate change.