Saving the Earth, One Veggie Burger at a Time

How do you conserve energy? When I ask this question, most people think about turning off their lights, conserving water when showering or using an eco-friendlier mode of transportation. These are the methods and habits that we’ve grown up practicing, yet few people recognize a straightforward way to conserve more water, energy, and land: veganism.

According to Google Dictionary, veganism is “the practice of eating only food not derived from animals and … avoiding the use of other animal products.” The 21st century has given rise to the largest group of vegan dieters yet. You may be wondering, “How do meat and animal products negatively impact the environment so gravely?” and “Why haven’t I heard of this sooner?”       

America runs on meat. It almost feels un-American to avoid meat. Meat consumption in America is a cultural staple that, according to The Washington Post, 95% of Americans consume. However, the issue that most do not recognize while indulging in greasy, meaty foods is how detrimental eating meat is to the environment. 

Factory farms, or “farms” that produce animal meat with industrial efficiency, waste water unlike any other industry due to “animal drinking, feedlots, dairy operations, … cooling facilities for the animals and animal products such as milk, dairy sanitation, wash down facilities, [and] animal waste-disposal systems…” 

For example, one 1/3-pound hamburger requires 660 gallons of water to produce. Since every short shower only saves 10 gallons of water, passing up on a hamburger is 66 times more effective than shaving 2 minutes off your daily shower. By replacing one meaty meal with a vegan alternative, you could individually save 660 gallons of water. 

Not only does meat production destroy the environment, but animal byproducts also require a devastating amount of water. In fact, producers need 880 gallons of water to produce one gallon of milk. Similarly, a dozen eggs demand 636 gallons of water to produce. 

In addition to water conservation, every day you spend practicing a vegan diet, you conserve 30 square feet of forest land that would have been cleared to make way for more grazing fields. Additionally, daily veganism prevents up to 20 pounds of CO2emissions that would be produced by cattle. 

For the past two weeks, I have consumed a vegan diet. During this time alone, I conserved 16,500 gallons of water, 450 square feet of forest, 300 pounds of CO2 equivalent and, as a bonus, at least 16 animal lives. Transitioning to a vegan diet is a great way to be an environmental activist and to leave an impact incomparable to any other method of conservation. 

Before eating that meaty meal, I urge you to consider if the next five minutes of gustatory delight is worth the amount of pollution that you are creating. Can you substitute your milk for a nut alternative? Can you pass on the extra egg on your toast? Through veganism, an individual has the power to make a large-scale impact on climate change. 

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