Editing Veganism (section)

===Environmental veganism===
{{further|Environmental vegetarianism|Environmental impact of meat production|Vegan organic gardening}}
[[File:Land-use-of-different-diets-Poore-Nemecek.png|thumb|right|The amount of globally needed agricultural land would be reduced by three-quarters if the entire population adopted a vegan diet.<ref name="Carrington2018">{{cite news|last=Carrington|first=Damian|date=31 May 2018|title=Avoiding meat and dairy is 'single biggest way' to reduce your impact on Earth|work=[[The Guardian]]|url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/may/31/avoiding-meat-and-dairy-is-single-biggest-way-to-reduce-your-impact-on-earth|access-date=12 March 2019|quote=A vegan diet is probably the single biggest way to reduce your impact on planet Earth, not just greenhouse gases, but global acidification, eutrophication, land use and water use. It is far bigger than cutting down on your flights or buying an electric car}}</ref>]]Environmental vegans focus on [[Conservation (ethic)|conservation]], rejecting the use of animal products on the premise that [[fishing]], [[hunting]], trapping and farming, particularly [[factory farming]], are environmentally unsustainable. According to a 2006 United Nations [[Food and Agriculture Organization]] report, ''[[Livestock's Long Shadow]]'', around 26% of the planet's terrestrial surface is devoted to livestock grazing.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/is-the-livestock-industry-destroying-the-planet-11308007/|title=Is the Livestock Industry Destroying the Planet?|last=Bland|first=Alastair|date=1 August 2012|website=[[Smithsonian (magazine)|Smithsonian]]|archive-url=https://archive.today/20180303135407/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/is-the-livestock-industry-destroying-the-planet-11308007/|archive-date=3 March 2018|url-status=live|access-date=3 March 2018|quote=The global scope of the livestock issue is huge. A 212-page online report published by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization says 26 percent of the earth's terrestrial surface is used for livestock grazing.}}</ref> The report also concluded that livestock farming (mostly of cows, chickens and pigs) affects the air, land, soil, water, [[biodiversity]] and [[climate change]].<ref>[http://www.fao.org/docrep/010/a0701e/a0701e00.htm Steinfeld et al. 2006], 3, 74.</ref> Livestock consumed 1,174&nbsp;million tonnes of food in 2002—including 7.6&nbsp;million tonnes of fishmeal and 670&nbsp;million tonnes of cereals, one-third of the global cereal harvest.<ref>[http://www.fao.org/docrep/010/a0701e/a0701e00.htm Steinfeld et al. 2006], 12, 42. The roots, vegetables and pulses are mostly [[cassava]], potatoes, sweet potatoes, cabbage, [[Cooking banana|plantain]], peas, and beans.</ref> [[Paul Watson]] of the [[Sea Shepherd Conservation Society]] called pigs and chicken "major aquatic predators", because livestock eat 40 percent of the fish that are caught.<ref name="environmental" />

A 2010 UN report, ''[[Priority Products and Materials report|Assessing the Environmental Impacts of Consumption and Production]]'', argued that animal products "in general require more resources and cause higher emissions than plant-based alternatives".<ref name="UNEP2010">[https://web.archive.org/web/20120616221700/http://www.unep.org/resourcepanel/Portals/24102/PDFs/PriorityProductsAndMaterials_Report.pdf ''Assessing the Environmental Impacts of Consumption and Production''], International Panel for Resource Management, United Nations Environment Programme, June 2010.</ref>{{rp|80}} It proposed a move away from animal products to reduce environmental damage.{{efn|[[United Nations Environment Programme]] (2010): "Impacts from agriculture are expected to increase substantially due to population growth, increasing consumption of animal products. Unlike fossil fuels, it is difficult to look for alternatives: people have to eat. A substantial reduction of impacts would only be possible with a substantial worldwide diet change, away from animal products."<ref name=UNEP2010/>{{rp|82}}}}<ref>{{Cite news|last=Carus|first=Felicity|date=2 June 2010|title=UN urges global move to meat and dairy-free diet|work=The Guardian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2010/jun/02/un-report-meat-free-diet|url-status=live|access-date=3 March 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180303145344/https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2010/jun/02/un-report-meat-free-diet|archive-date=3 March 2018}}{{pb}}[http://www.unep.org/Documents.Multilingual/Default.asp?DocumentID=628&ArticleID=6595&l=en&t=long "Energy and Agriculture Top Resource Panel's Priority List for Sustainable 21st Century"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161019230121/http://www.unep.org/Documents.Multilingual/Default.asp?DocumentID=628&ArticleID=6595&l=en&t=long|date=19 October 2016}}, United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), Brussels, 2 June 2010.{{pb}}For an opposing position, [[Simon Fairlie]], ''Meat: A Benign Extravagance'', Chelsea Green Publishing, 2010.</ref>[[File:Wynes Nicholas CO2 emissions savings.svg|thumb|250px|Reduction of one's carbon footprint for various actions. A plant-based diet in this study referred to a lacto-ovo vegetarian diet. Vegan diets are known to have lower carbon footprints.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Scarborough|first1=Peter|last2=Appleby|first2=Paul N.|last3=Mizdrak|first3=Anja|last4=Briggs|first4=Adam D. M.|last5=Travis|first5=Ruth C.|last6=Bradbury|first6=Kathryn E.|last7=Key|first7=Timothy J.|title=Dietary greenhouse gas emissions of meat-eaters, fish-eaters, vegetarians and vegans in the UK|journal=Climatic Change|date=11 June 2014|volume=125|issue=2|pages=179–192|doi=10.1007/s10584-014-1169-1|pmid=25834298|pmc=4372775|bibcode=2014ClCh..125..179S }}</ref>]]
A 2015 study determined that [[Holocene extinction|significant biodiversity loss]] can be attributed to the growing demand for meat, a significant driver of [[deforestation]] and habitat destruction, with species-rich habitats converted to agriculture for livestock production.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Machovina |first1=Brian |last2=Feeley |first2=Kenneth J. |last3=Ripple |first3=William J. |title=Biodiversity conservation: The key is reducing meat consumption |journal=Science of the Total Environment |date=December 2015 |volume=536 |pages=419–431 |doi=10.1016/j.scitotenv.2015.07.022 |pmid=26231772 |bibcode=2015ScTEn.536..419M }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Morell |first1=Virginia |title=Meat-eaters may speed worldwide species extinction, study warns|url=https://www.science.org/content/article/meat-eaters-may-speed-worldwide-species-extinction-study-warns |journal=Science |date=11 August 2015 |doi=10.1126/science.aad1607 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last= Woodyatt |first=Amy |date=26 May 2020 |title=Human activity threatens billions of years of evolutionary history, researchers warn |url=https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/26/world/species-loss-evolution-climate-scn-intl-scli/index.html |work=[[CNN]]|access-date=27 May 2020|quote=Research showed that among the biggest threats to threatened species was eating meat, Gumbs said.}}</ref> A 2017 [[World Wildlife Fund]] study found that 60% of biodiversity loss can be attributed to the vast scale of feed crop cultivation needed to rear tens of billions of farm animals, which puts enormous strain on natural resources, resulting in extensive loss of lands and species.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Smithers|first=Rebecca|date=5 October 2017|title=Vast animal-feed crops to satisfy our meat needs are destroying planet|url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/oct/05/vast-animal-feed-crops-meat-needs-destroying-planet|url-status=live|work=The Guardian|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180303143952/https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/oct/05/vast-animal-feed-crops-meat-needs-destroying-planet|archive-date=3 March 2018|access-date=3 March 2018}}</ref> In 2017, 15,364 world scientists signed a [[World Scientists' Warning to Humanity|warning to humanity]] calling for, among other things, "promoting dietary shifts towards mostly plant-based foods".<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Ripple |first1=William J. |last2=Wolf |first2=Christopher |last3=Newsome |first3=Thomas M. |last4=Galetti |first4=Mauro |last5=Alamgir |first5=Mohammed |last6=Crist |first6=Eileen |last7=Mahmoud |first7=Mahmoud I. |last8=Laurance |first8=William F. |title=World Scientists' Warning to Humanity: A Second Notice |journal=BioScience |date=December 2017 |volume=67 |issue=12 |pages=1026–1028 |doi=10.1093/biosci/bix125 |doi-access=free |hdl=11336/71342 |hdl-access=free }}</ref>

A 2018 study found that global adoption of plant-based diets would reduce agricultural land use by 76% (3.1&nbsp;billion hectares, an area the size of Africa) and cut total global [[greenhouse gas emissions]] by 28%. Half of this emissions reduction came from avoided emissions from animal production including [[methane]] and [[nitrous oxide]], and half from trees re-growing on abandoned farmlands that remove carbon dioxide from the air.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Poore|first1=J.|last2=Nemecek|first2=T.|date=1 June 2018|title=Reducing food's environmental impacts through producers and consumers|journal=Science|volume=360|issue=6392|pages=987–992|bibcode=2018Sci...360..987P|doi=10.1126/science.aaq0216|pmid=29853680|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref name="Carrington2018" /> The authors conclude that avoiding meat and dairy is the "single biggest way" to reduce one's impact on Earth.<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |date=27 November 2014 |title=Indian Vegan Society |url=https://ivu.org/members/IndianVeganSociety.doc |access-date=22 August 2021 |publisher=Indian Vegan Society |quote=A vegan always tries to avoid any cruelty and undue exploitation of all animals including humans and protect the environment.}}</ref>

The 2019 [[IPBES]] ''[[Global Assessment Report on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services]]'' found that [[industrial agriculture]] and [[overfishing]] are the primary drivers of the extinction crisis, with the meat and dairy industries having a substantial impact.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-48169783|title=Humans 'threaten 1m species with extinction'|last=McGrath|first=Matt|work=[[BBC]]|date=6 May 2019|access-date=3 July 2019|quote=Pushing all this forward, though, are increased demands for food from a growing global population and specifically our growing appetite for meat and fish.}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last= Watts|first=Jonathan|date=6 May 2019 |title=Human society under urgent threat from loss of Earth's natural life|url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/may/06/human-society-under-urgent-threat-loss-earth-natural-life-un-report|work=[[The Guardian]] |access-date=3 July 2019|quote=Agriculture and fishing are the primary causes of the deterioration. Food production has increased dramatically since the 1970s, which has helped feed a growing global population and generated jobs and economic growth. But this has come at a high cost. The meat industry has a particularly heavy impact. Grazing areas for cattle account for about 25% of the world's ice-free land and more than 18% of global greenhouse gas emissions.}}</ref> On 8 August 2019, the IPCC released a summary of the 2019 special report which asserted that a shift towards plant-based diets would help to mitigate and adapt to climate change.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Schiermeier |first1=Quirin |title=Eat less meat: UN climate-change report calls for change to human diet |journal=Nature |date=8 August 2019 |volume=572 |issue=7769 |pages=291–292 |doi=10.1038/d41586-019-02409-7 |pmid=31409926 |bibcode=2019Natur.572..291S |s2cid=199543066 |doi-access= }}</ref>

A 2022 study found that for high-income nations alone 100 billion tons of carbon dioxide could be removed from the air by the end of the century through a shift to plant-based diets and re-wilding of farmlands. The researchers coined the term ''double climate dividend'' to describe the effect that re-wilding after a diet shift can have.<ref>{{Cite news|date=2022-01-10|title=Veg diet plus re-wilding gives 'double climate dividend'|work=BBC News|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-59941016|access-date=2022-01-21}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Sun|first1=Zhongxiao|last2=Scherer|first2=Laura|last3=Tukker|first3=Arnold|last4=Spawn-Lee|first4=Seth A.|last5=Bruckner|first5=Martin|last6=Gibbs|first6=Holly K.|last7=Behrens|first7=Paul|date=January 2022|title=Dietary change in high-income nations alone can lead to substantial double climate dividend|url=https://www.nature.com/articles/s43016-021-00431-5|journal=Nature Food|volume=3|issue=1|pages=29–37|doi=10.1038/s43016-021-00431-5|pmid=37118487 |s2cid=245867412|issn=2662-1355}}</ref> But they note: "We don't have to be purist about this, even just cutting animal intake would be helpful. If half of the public in richer regions cut half the animal products in their diets, you're still talking about a massive opportunity in environmental outcomes and public health".<ref>{{Cite web|title=How plant-based diets not only reduce our carbon footprint, but also increase carbon capture|url=https://www.universiteitleiden.nl/en/news/2022/01/how-plant-based-diets-not-only-reduce-our-carbon-footprint-but-also-increase-carbon-capture|access-date=2022-01-21|website=Leiden University|date=10 January 2022}}</ref>

A 2023 study published in ''[[Nature Food]]'' found that a vegan diet vastly decreases the impact on the environment from food production, such as reducing emissions, water pollution and land use by 75%, reducing the destruction of wildlife by 66% and the usage of water by 54%.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Carrington |first1=Damian |title=Vegan diet massively cuts environmental damage, study shows |url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/jul/20/vegan-diet-cuts-environmental-damage-climate-heating-emissions-study |access-date=20 July 2023 |work=[[The Guardian]] |date=20 July 2023}}</ref>