Meat and the Environment
The Rape of Mother Earth

Paganism is a broad term but the common connection that fuses most traditions together is the concept of reverence and connection to nature. For many of us, it is more than just a reverence, its worship. Earth worship is is a practical and logical concept to Pagan's. After all, she's been here long before us, and will continue to be here long after we're gone. With that being said, it's pretty common knowledge that our Earth is in trouble. Toxic pollutants are being dumped into our air, water systems are becoming contaminat, and entire forests are disapearing at the blink of the eye. We Pagan's have been quick to speak out in the modern environmental movement pretty much since its inception. However, there is an alarming truth that far to many who "speak out" ignore; that you can't be a meat eating environmentalist.

Earth

The amount of land needed to grow animals for food is astounding. Of all the land used for agriculture on our planet, nearly 80% of it goes to raising animals food food. Animals eat the grains that are fueled through their bodies, come out the other end, and are never seen again. This highly inefficient food production method is the reason why it takes 8 pounds of grain to be turned into 1 pound of meat.

Like trees? Nearly 260 million acres of natural forrest have been destroyed to make room for grain area to feed factory-farmed animals. If you happen to be a druid, that equals out to billions and billions of tree dryads who's home was taken from them. Not to mention all the wildlife that makes its home in these ecosystems.

Eat an 8 ounce steak, and you just bulldozed part of the rainforest.

Water

Water is perhaps highest revered elements that we honor. Without water, it is impossible for anything to thrive, or even exist for that matter. Respect for the water element is respect for life. Nourish water, and your will be nourished.

Nearly half of all water in the United States goes to raising animals for food.

It takes 5,000 gallons of water to produce 1 pound of meat, while growing 1 pound of wheat only requires 25 gallons. A totally vegetarian diet requires only 300 gallons of water per day, while a meat-eating diet requires more than 4,000 gallons of water per day. You save more water by not eating a pound of beef than you do by not showering for an entire year. You save more water by not eating a pound of beef than you do by not showering for an entire year While millions of people across the globe are faced with droughts and water shortages, much of the world's water supply is quietly being diverted to animal agriculture. As the Western diet spreads to the rest of the world, even desert nations in Africa and the Middle East are pouring what little water they have into meat production.

Air

Factory farms also produce massive amounts of dust and other contamination that pollutes our air. A study in Texas found that animal feedlots in the state produce more than 14 million pounds of particulate dust every year and that the dust "contains biologically active organisms such as bacteria, mold, and fungi from the feces and the feed." The massive amounts of excrement produced by these farms emit toxic gases such as hydrogen sulfide and ammonia into the air. The EPA reports that roughly 80 percent of ammonia emissions in the United States come from animal waste.

As if the chemicals and particulate matter from animal waste weren't bad enough, the meat and dairy industries often knowingly add to the air-quality crisis. When the cesspools holding tons of urine and feces get full, factory farms will frequently get around water pollution limits by spraying liquid manure into the air, creating mists that are carried away by the wind. People who live nearby are forced to inhale the toxins and pathogens from the sprayed manure.

Fire

Fire draws a fine line between sustainable warmth, and devatating destruction. If fire is not respected, its warmth turns into a melting pot that spells bad news for our health, and the planets. The burning of fossil fuels (such as oil and gasoline) releases carbon dioxide, the primary gas responsible for global warming. Producing one calorie of animal protein requires more than 10 times as much fossil fuel input-releasing more than 10 times as much carbon dioxide-than does a calorie of plant protein. Feeding massive amounts of grain and water to farmed animals and then killing them and processing, transporting, and storing their flesh is extremely energy-intensive. In addition, enormous amounts of carbon dioxide stored in trees are released during the destruction of vast acres of forest to provide pastureland and to grow crops for farmed animals. On top of this, animal manure also releases large quantities of carbon dioxide.

You could exchange your "regular" car for a hybrid Toyota Prius and, by doing so, prevent about 1 ton of carbon dioxide from entering the atmosphere each year, but according to the University of Chicago, being vegan is more effective in the fight against global warming; a vegan prevents approximately 1.5 fewer tons of carbon dioxide from entering the atmosphere each year than a meat-eater does. The math is simple: You could spend more than $20,000 on a Prius and still emit 50 percent more carbon dioxide than you would if you just gave up eating meat and other animal products.

"Goddess, comforter, holy one,
you nourish the world from your bounty.
You are like our mother,
turning to us whenever we are troubled.
You do not rest, not at night or in the shining day.
You never fail us.
You are the only one who can untangle fate's knotted skein,
you are the only one who can pull back the planets when they threaten ill,
you are the only one who can disperse the storms of life and of the sky."
-Apuleius, The Golden Ass