Vegetarianism: Enivornmental Issues

While the meat industry shows signs of several sustainability issues, vegetarianism has some issues of its own.

Firstly, when looking at developed countries such as Australia, many forests are already in use due to several factors. However, if more Australians want their nutritional needs to be met by only plants, even more deforestation would need to take place. Along with the problem of deforestation, there would be a significant net increase in the use of fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides (Archer, 2011). This is problematic, as the use of these chemicals, are linked to water contaminants of nitrates and phosphates. Also, another issue that should be taken into account when choosing to adopt a vegetarian diet is that many vegetable oils have a bigger footprint than animal fats (Monbiot, 2010).

 

 

 

 

 

Facts, Issues, and Solutions