Recently, a lot of news has been coming up regarding polar bears feeding on dolphins. Dolphins do not generally form a part of the diet of a polar bear but scientists have found out recently that there have been more than a few incidents where polar bears have been found to be feeding on dolphins. Research says that even though dolphins are found in the Arctics in the summer months, they have never been observed there during any other time of the year when the sea is covered with ice. However, with increasing global warming, there has been a strong retreat of ice which is why the dolphins might have wandered that far off during winters and fallen prey to hungry polar bears. Sad isn't it? Wait. It does not end there.
This is where the twist is. I found in an article that us non vegetarians are substantial contributors to global warming by virtue of our immense appetite for lip smacking steaks, Tandooris, kebabs and all the other hundreds and thousands of non-vegetarian delights. Surprised? So was I. Apparently, animal agriculture is responsible for 14.5% of the global greenhouse gases. Over the years, large areas of forests have been cleared for animal grazing. Also, it consumes a major portion of the freshwater resources while contributing to air and water pollution. How many of us would have imagined while enjoying a big piece of mutton or a delicious pork chop that the contents of our plates would, somewhere far away, be changing the menu for a polar bear's dinner. Well. unfortunate as it is, it is true. Now the important question is how many of us are strong enough to do something about this. We have all in some occasion talked about global warming and how it should be reduced. How many of us are actually ready to take up this challenge of giving up our beloved non-vegetarian diets for the planet? It is a small step but yet for some of us a very difficult one. I do not know if I am strong enough to be able to do it immediately but I earnestly hope some of you reading this are.
Have you seen this chart? It shocked me the first time I saw it, and I actually had to check other sources before I could fully believe it.
ReplyDeleteI haven't given up meat, but I eat much less of it than I used to. And some meat is more sustainable than others.
Baap re. This looks worse than I thought. Well, hostel has a great role to play in reducing my meat intake. But being able to quit meat, well, I have to try to start trying.
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