TOVE: We are actually seeing the entire planet move towards what we call 『tipping points,』 the point where we lose control and no one can really tell us exactly what’s going to happen, except that it’s going to be big, it’s going be ugly, it’s going to lead to even more emissions and we are not going to be able to reverse it.
HOST: Welcome to Planet Earth: Our Loving Home. Scientific studies from around the world conclude that the cycle of producing and consuming animal products is directly responsible for the heating of our planet, and the consequences of climate change are frightening for humans, animals and the environment.
The polar ice caps are melting, sea levels are rising, droughts, floods and extreme weather events are occurring with increasing frequency and drinking water is rapidly becoming scarce.
If we do not stop this cycle, runaway climate change will become a reality, with humankind being unable to save our planet. On today’s program, we’ll examine several critical signs that show we’re on the verge of disaster and need to take immediate, rapid action to correct our current course.
Daniela (f): One of the real problems that we are facing now is the amount of people with respect to the amount of land for producing food to enable those people to live.
So, the stress that we’re putting on land and water more than anything is extremely high, because growing plants and growing food for animals is what weighs more on agriculture. And animals are basically being fed in order to feed humans.
HOST: The ２０１０ book, 『Livestock In a Changing Landscape,』 by Henning Steinfeld, Chief of the Livestock Information, Sector Analysis and Policy Branch of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization and other experts present the following sobering facts about how animal agriculture
has overtaken our planet:
• Livestock production occupies more than one-fourth of Earth's land mass
• Production of animal feed consumes about one-third of Earth's total arable land
• Only one-third of the nutrients fed to livestock are absorbed; the resulting animal waste seriously pollutes land and water
For more details on the individuals featured in today’s program, please visit the following respective websites:
Charles Hleronymi
www.Bafu.Admin.chDr. Charles Ian McNeill
www.UNDP.orgTove Maria Ryding
www.greenpeace.org／denmarkDaniela Tarizzo
www.UNCCD.int
