Livestock raising is one of the main drivers of deforestation.4(UN FAO, 2006)
Since
the 1990s approximately 90% of Amazonian deforestation has been due to
clearing land for grazing cattle or growing feed for livestock.5
In Australia, 91% of all tree clearing over a 20-year period has been done for livestock grazing.6(recent
report on a 20-year study commissioned by the Queensland government
by Mr. Gerald Bisshop, retired principal scientist of the Queensland
Department of Environment and Resources Management)
DESERTIFICATION
Desertification is caused by overgrazing and expansion of livestock crop-rowing areas.7
(TPN3 Rangeland Management in Arid Areas including the fixation of sand dunes, UNCCD, 2003)
Over 50% of the world’s soil erosion is caused by livestock, which leads to desertification.8
Some
75 billion tons of topsoil are being eroded annually due to
agricultural mismanagement, climate change, and livestock grazing. In
the United States alone, 54% of pasture land is overgrazed, with more
than 100 tons of topsoil lost per hectare per year.9
(A study presented by Professor John Crawford at the recent Carbon Farming Conference held in New South Wales, Australia)
In
2010, Iraq, China, Chad, Australia, and Mongolia, among others,
reported serious drought, with livestock grazing making conditions
worse.
Romm, J. (2009, January 26). NOAA stunner: Climate change “largely irreversible for 1000 years,” with permanent Dust Bowls in Southwest and around the globe. An online acticle on the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration [NOAA] finding. Climate Progress blog. Retrieved January 11, 2011 from http://climateprogress.org/2009/01/26/noaa-climate-change-irreversible-1000-years- drought-dust-bowls/
Drought, wildfires put Brazil under environmental emergency (2010, September 8). MYsinchew.com. Retrieved January 11, 2011 from http://www.mysinchew.com/node/44603?tid=37
Matson, J. (2010, April 21). A warming world could trigger earthquakes, landslides and volcanoes. An online acticle on Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A (Physical, Mathematical and Engineering Sciences research. Scientific American [Electronic version]. Retrieved January 11, 2011 from http://www.scientificamerican.com/blog/post.cfm?id=no-link-now-between-eyjafjallajando-2010-04-21
Global warming could turn forests from sink to source of carbon emissions. (2009, April 16). An online acticle on International Union of Forest Research Organizations [IUFRO] report. mongabay.com. Retrieved January 11, 2011 from http://news.mongabay.com/2009/0416-forests.html
Finnish Environment Institute (2010). Soil contributes to climate warming more than expected - Finnish research shows a flaw in climate models. University of Helsinki. Retrieved January 11, 2011 from http://www.ymparisto.fi/default.asp?contentid=351875&lan=en
Corwin, J.A. (2006, October 12). Russia: Siberia’s Once-Frozen Tundra Is Melting. An online acticle on Dr. Katie Walter finding. Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. Retrieved January 11, 2011 from http://www.rferl.org/content/article/1071976.html
Fitzpatrick, M. (2010, January 6). Methane release ‘looks stronger’. An acticle on Professor Igor Semiletov finding, head of the International Siberian Shelf Study [ISSS], University of Alaska at Fairbanks, USA. BBC. Retrieved January 11, 2011 from http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/8437703.stm
Ljunggren, D. (2009, July 29). Arctic tundra hotter, boosts global warming: expert. An acticle on Professor Greg Henry research, University of British Columbia. Reuters. Retrieved January 11, 2011 from http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE56S53E20090729
Return to previous Arctic conditions is unlikely (2010). National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s [NOAA] Arctic Report Card 2010 Update. Retrieved January 11, 2011 from http://www.arctic.noaa.gov/reportcard/
Hansen, K. (2010, January 27). Arctic ‘Melt Season’ Is Growing Longer, New Research Demonstrates. NASA. Retrieved January 11, 2011 from Phsyorg.com http://www.physorg.com/news183836066.html
Water flowing through ice sheets accelerates warming, could speed up ice flow (2010, November 3). University of Colorado, Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences [CIRES]. Retrieved January 11, 2011 from http://www.physorg.com/news/2010-11-ice-sheets.html
Greenland glacier calves island four times the size of Manhattan (2010, August 6). University of Delaware. Retrieved January 11, 2011 from http://www.physorg.com/news200326075.html
Lamont-Doherty (2010, June 20). New research sheds light on Antarctica’s melting Pine Island Glacier. British Antarctic Survey. Retrieved January 11, 2011 from http://www.physorg.com/news196255601.html
Stracansky P., (2010, November 13). Fast Melting Glaciers Threaten Biodiversity. Inter Press Service [IPS] / International Federation of Environmental Journalists [IFEJ] / UNEP/ CBD. Retrieved January 11, 2011 from http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=53552
Hance, J. (2009, November 2). Goodbye, snows of Kilimanjaro. An article on Proceedings of the National Academy of Science [PNAS] report. mongabay.com. Retrieved January 11, 2011 from http://news.mongabay.com/2009/1102-hance_kilimanjaro.html
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