GLOBAL WARMING SOLUTION

It’s critical that we bring down our greenhouse gas(GHG) emissions now. Dr. James Hansen, one of the world’s leading climate scientists and Director of NASA’s Goddard Institute of Space Studies recently said in an interview: “Yes, we’re really running out of time… this next year or two years are the critical time period."

And in June this year, research by international climate scientists revealed grave news: “The world faces a growing risk of "abrupt and irreversible climatic shifts" as fallout from global warming hits faster than expected.” Though we definitely need to transition from our dependency on coal to renewable, sustainable energy, it takes several hundred years for the carbon dioxide that is already in our atmosphere to break down and dissipate. And meanwhile planetary warming keeps rising because we’re not limiting other greenhouse gases that can abate climate change much quicker than carbon dioxide reductions. There is hope. We can quickly reduce our impact on planetary heating by focusing on limiting the shor-tlived greenhouse gases (GHGs) like methane. Reducing the short-lived GHGs will substantially slow down global warming over a short period of time - this is what needs to happen. Methane in particular has a very short atmospheric life. If we stopped all our methane emissions now, the methane currently in the sky will disappear within less than 20 years and that would reduce a substantial amount of warming effect.

According to the United Nation’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, methane has a warming impact 72 times that of carbon dioxide over a 20 year time frame. Limiting this gas is relatively inexpensive and will produce rapid results.

In Australia, sources of methane are derived from a variety of sectors but the one that produces the most is Agriculture; 58.7% of Australia’s emissions are from animal agriculture. The methane from this sector is mainly caused by the digestive processes of cows and sheep also known as enteric fermentation.

As well as being major contributors to global warming, livestock farming and feedlots have extensive impacts on our Earth’s resources:

Deforestation
o In Queensland, 96% of land cleared in 2006 was for animal grazing.

Water Scarcity
o Meat production, particularly ‘feed’ production for livestock consumes large amounts of critically important water resources.

Land Degradation
o About 70% of all grazing land in dry areas is considered degraded, mostly because of overgrazing, compaction and erosion caused by rearing of animals for their meat.

Water Pollution
o More than 2 billion tons of animal manure was produced worldwide during the late 1990s. Assuming an average nitrogen content of around 5%, this makes 100 million tons of nitrogen finding its way into our water systems.

Loss of Biodiversity
o Tropical forests hold half of the world’s species which are becoming extinct at an alarming rate due to deforestation for meat production. Not to mention the energy resources used to transport, refrigerate and process livestock into meat, and not forgetting the black carbon generated from deforestation specifically resulting from livestock grazing. Black carbon may only stay in the atmosphere for a short amount of time but is an incredibly potent climate warming agent.

Avoiding the Tipping Points
It’s essential that we avoid the tipping points identified by climate scientists – climatic thresholds that are irreversible once exceeded. Surpassing these tipping points will lead to catastrophic climate events such as unprecedented food and water shortages, massive changes in weather patterns, and the further melting of ice sheets that could introduce unforeseen rates of rise in sea level. Focusing on reducing carbon dioxide emissions Even if we could shut down all the coal-fired power stations tomorrow a problem arises in that these power stations generate, as well as carbon dioxide, sulphate aerosols, which have an immediate cooling impact. They lessen the impact of CO2 emissions from coal-fired power stations. Taking out this cooling effect without a quick reduction in other GHGs at the same time, could rapidly lead to an even hotter planet, running the risk of crossing dangerous tipping points. By focusing on reducing methane and nitrous oxide emissions now, we can avoid going over these tipping points, buying us more time to transition to renewable energy.

What You Can Do
In light of the planetary emergency we face, the single most effective thing that individuals can do right now to bring down net GHG emissions that doesn’t cost the earth is, go vegan. If changing to a vegan diet is considered difficult at present then the next effective thing to do is:

* Eat less meat. Choose to eat vegan meals at least twice or more times per week. The less animal products consumed the greater the impact on rapidly reducing our net GHG emissions. If we are to save our world and ourselves from the impending dangers of runaway climate change we need to act as quickly as possible.

VEGETARIANISM IN RELIGION

Christianity

Thou shalt not kill. ~ Exodus 20:13, Holy Bible

It is contrary to human dignity to cause animals to suffer and die. ~Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2418

Those who eat meat break the Five Constant Virtues.

1. Killing animals to satisfy our taste is inhumane.

2. Killing animals, causing separation in their family, in order to feed our relatives are unrighteous.

3. Making befoul food offering from animal meat to the deities is disrespectful.

4. Praising the eating of animals as if it is God‟s gift so as to justify the killing of animals is unwise.

5. Lure and trick animals into the snare is untruthful. Worldly people must keep the five constant virtues; breaking these intentionally is to break the moral principles.

And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat.

~ Genesis, Holy Bible

VEGETARIANISM IN RELIGION

Buddhism

I forbid all meat eating, regardless of whether the animal dies naturally or is killed. I have never allowed my disciples to eat meat, and I will not allow in the present or future.

~ Shakyamuni Buddha, Lankavatara Sutra

All tremble at violence; all fear death. Putting oneself in the place of another, one should not kill nor cause another to kill. ~ Shakyamuni Buddha, Dhammapada

One is not a great one because one defeats or harms other living beings. One is so-called because one refrains from defeating or harming other living beings.

~ Shakyamuni Buddha, Dhammapada

All Buddhas and Bodhisattvas essentially practice the principle of great compassion. The suffering of living beings brings forth their great compassion. From this great compassion emerges the great wisdom, and with this great wisdom, they attain the ultimate enlightenment. ~ Shakyamuni Buddha, Avatamsaka Sutra

People who eat meat are destroying the great merciful seed of their own Buddha nature, and any sentient beings seeing them would leave them. Therefore, all Bodhisattvas (spiritual practitioners) must refrain from eating the flesh of sentient beings as this will incur boundless sin.

~ Shakyamuni Buddha, Brahmajala Sutra

Hurt not others with that which pains you yourself. ~ Buddhist Sutra Udanavarga 5,18

All the saints abhorred eating blood or flesh…. Celestial beings never go near people who eat meat as their mouth always has a foul smell…. Meat is not good, meat is unclean; meat eating generates evils and destroys merits and blessings. All the saints denounce eating meat!

~ Shakyamuni Buddha, Lankavatara Sutra

So with a boundless heart should one cherish all living beings, radiating kindness over the entire world, spreading upward to the skies, and downward to the depths, outward and unbounded.

~Metta Sutra, “Loving-kindness”

“Bodhisattvas (spiritual practitioners) should discern that all meats are from the filthy bodes, which are combined by pus, blood, dirtiness, red-bindu (Bright Drop)s, white-bindus of the parents. Thus, discerning the dirtiness of meat, Bodhisattvas should not eat meat.”

~ Lankavatara Sutra

“All meats are like the dead bodies of human beings…. the cooked meats are as stinky and feculent as the burned dead bodies, so how could we eat such things?”

~ Lankavatara Sutra

“Meat eating can increase desires, meat eaters are greedy….For the instinct of protecting and cherishing life, there is no difference between human and animal….

Anyone who wants to eat meat should first discern the pain of cutting his own body, and then discern the pains of all living beings, and then give up meat eating.”

~ Lankavatara Sutra

“Meat eaters have so many countless offences, thus vegetarians have masses of countless merits and virtues.”

~ Lankavatara Sutra

“Now in this Lankavatara Sutra I say, at all times, all kinds of meats are inedible, unexceptionally. Mahamati, I forbid meat eating not only for one time, I mean that both in present and future, meat eating is forbidden.”

~ Lankavatara Sutra

A disciple of the Buddha must not deliberately eat meat. He should not eat the flesh of any sentient being. The meat-eater forfeits the seed of Great Compassion, severs the seed of the Buddha Nature and causes [animals and transcendental] beings to avoid him. Those who do so are guilty of countless offenses.

~ Brahmajala Sutra

All men tremble at punishment, all men fear death. Likening others to oneself, one should neither slay nor cause to slay. ~ Dhammapada Sutra

A state that is not pleasing or delightful to me, how could I inflict that upon another?

~ Samyutta Nikaya v. 353

One planet. One chance.

If the future of the world depended on me, what would I do?

This wondrous planet is our Earthly home. From our animal co-inhabitants, to the lush rainforests and life giving soil, we cherish all these as gifts from our creator. It is a common theme in the world’s major faiths that during our temporary stay here, we should be good stewards of Mother Earth - leading a balanced life while following a spiritual path. Not only must we nourish our spirits but we share the responsibility to care for nature and our fellow beings. In light of recent scientific evidence, stressing the grave state of our planet caused by climate change, this important message is ever more meaningful.