Meat Production Industry and Environmental Concerns
The Meat Production Industry and Concerns For the Environment
Currently there exists many concerns about the direction that the people of the world are moving towards solving environmental problems. Growth in the meat production industry and corresponding manure production has contributed to concerns over air and water quality. If the meat production industry does not yield to more strict regulations pollution will lead to the eventual loss of livestock production from a given community, as well as environmental damage. Land use planning should provide an opportunity for the livestock producers to work with the environment to develop an approach that is fair, equitable, and contributes to an improved livestock industry.
A relative concern many governments are faced with is how to feed the world with the least amount of side effects. The creation of a more realistic meat production industry will require better integration of livestock with crop production, and improvement of current land management. These improvements will lead to a more localized system of production and supply to the relative economy of the meat industry to the geographic area. These changes, associated with a more direct approach of addressing the livestock-sector policies, would transform the livestock economy while alleviating the environmental damages caused by the industry (Durning and Brough 41).
Although improvements have been made in many countries a greater call to action is required. Many environmental improvements could be seen in less groundwater depletion, agricultural-chemical pollution, and methane and ammonia emissions (Durning and Brough 42).
Within many rural and agricultural communities there is the belief that the continued intensification of agriculture and meat production has degraded and will continue to degrade the environment. This concern over the impact of meat production and agriculture on the environment is occurring at a time when there are continuing shifts in the views of the community. For issues such as the growth and development of livestock facilities there growing concerns where and how these facilities are established. At the same time there is a need to ensure fair regulations, and adequate protection of the interest of the farm community and individual farmers. If there is going to be an appropriate balance between agriculture, the environment, meat producers and community interests, farmers are likely to face increasing harassment and corresponding legal action over issues related to air and water contamination....