I’ve been vegetarian for almost two years now, which for some may not be the longest time in the grand scheme of things, but I see it as a personal accomplishment for someone whose favorite dining hall meal was chicken Chesterfield. Which is essentially breaded chicken covered in cheese, mustard, and pieces of bacon.
Up until 2021, I had been eating meat pretty regularly. I was never a picky eater and basically ate whatever was put in front of me, but when it came to meat, I was always a little hesitant; some bits and pieces of it just grossed me out. But that’s not to say it ever made me turn down a beautifully grilled hot dog or a nicely seared burger. I knew that the meat and fish industries were terrible not only for the animals themselves but for our ecosystems and environment. After watching the Netflix documentary Seaspiracy, I realized the true extent of the damage these markets have on the planet and I made a promise to myself that I would try to help in any way possible.
My sister always tells me, “What will one person who doesn’t eat meat do to the planet? Do you really think you’re making a difference?” While my sister may be right in the fact that one person won’t truly have an impact on such a large-scale issue, she doesn’t realize how one person, on top of another “one person” from other families or towns or states, can alter the market economy. Think about it: 40 years ago, restaurants rarely offered vegetarian options and coffee shops only had cows’ milk; none of that fancy oat milk in sight. It wasn’t until these products and ways of life became popular among consumers that the market began to change. If enough people become vegetarian then the consumer market economy won’t have a choice but to lessen their meat and fish production and hopefully help slow down and eventually stop the drastic impact climate change has had on our planet.
We are failing our environment. The United States is one of the few countries that produce some of the highest fossil fuel emissions. 14.6 tons of CO2 emissions per capita were emitted in 2017, which is 3.3 times the global average. The Biden Administration’s signing of the Willow Project, which will allow continual oil and gas extraction in regions of the Arctic and Alaska for another 30 years will allow for the development of billions of barrels of oil over decades of our lives across the rich ecosystem of Alaska. This project along with a number of other drilling projects continues to pollute our air and drinking water and damage our planet, the only planet we have.
Watching the Seaspiracy documentary, which is more focused on the negative human impact on ocean life, and seeing Japanese fishermen kill dolphins because they’re “depleting the fish population” was what made me go vegetarian. What the documentary pointed out was that the true reason the fish population was smaller was that humans are overfishing, not because the dolphins are overeating. Ocean life has coexisted with one another for centuries and has never experienced the level of depletion it does now. The reason the fish population is decreasing is because of humans, not dolphins. And that’s infuriating to hear. I refused to sit back and do nothing. The documentary also points out the large misconception in regard to ocean waste. The “Save the Turtles” campaign, which emphasized a switch to paper straws, was largely misleading. Plastic straws only make up 0.0025 percent of the oceans’ plastic. Most of the harmful waste in the ocean comes from commercial fishing materials. Think of big nets or fishing tackle. 79,000 tons of human product waste in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch were fishing nets.
While there are many more steps I can take to help combat the horrible effects of human impact on the environment, I had to be realistic. I’m an overwhelmed college student, who doesn’t have money lying around to donate to organizations actively fighting the environmental crisis. But I knew going vegetarian was something I could maintain. It isn’t as intense as going vegan, but it helps reduce the carbon emissions caused by the meat industry and very lightly decreases the consumer demand for meat and fish.
Going vegetarian can slow climate change by lowering the human intake of meat. Holding livestock for meat consumption causes more greenhouse gasses than all the cars and trucks in the world. Not eating meat reduces the demand for meat products which will eventually reduce livestock production and therefore gas emissions. It can also help prevent habitat destruction and deforestation. With the constant demand for livestock within the meat industry the need for grazing land is always increasing, leading many companies and farmers to clear large areas of forest to ensure more room for their animals. This deforestation harms other species living in the surrounding areas and also destroys the plants we so desperately need to combat pollution.
If you’ve ever thought about going vegetarian, don’t let the fear of not knowing what there is to eat stop you. Let the fear and uncertainty of our planet’s future drive you to make conscientious decisions against environmentally harmful behaviors. I highly recommend watching Seaspiracy on Netflix. It opened my eyes to a world that large corporations are constantly trying to keep a secret. I understand not everyone is willing to give up meat; it’s a drastic lifestyle change. But even doing small things like eliminating red meat from your diet or choosing some vegetarian options every once in a while will still diminish the impact of the consumer-driven meat industry.
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