11 Facts About Factory Farms and the Environment

Welcome to DoSomething.org, a global movement of millions of young people making positive change, online and off! The 11 facts you want are below, and the sources for the facts are at the very bottom of the page. After you learn something, Do Something! Find out how to take action here.

1. About 10 billion land animals in the United States are raised for dairy, meat, and eggs each year.^[The Humane Society of the United States. "An HSUS Report: The Welfare of Animals in the Meat, Egg, and Dairy Industries." Web Accessed April 18, 2015.]
2. Factory farming accounts for 37% of methane (CH4) emissions, which has more than 20 times the global warming potential of CO2.^[The Humane Society of the United States. "Animal Agriculture & Climate Change." Web Accessed April 18, 2015.]
3. Manure can also contain traces of salt and heavy metals, which can end up in bodies of water and accumulate in the sediment, concentrating as they move up the food chain.^[Natural Resources Defense Council. "Pollution from Giant Livestock Farms Threatens Public Health." Web Accessed April 18, 2015.]
4. When manure is repeatedly overapplied to farm land it causes dangerous levels of phosphorus and nitrogen in the water supply. In such excessive amounts, nitrogen robs water of oxygen and destroys aquatic life.^[Natural Resources Defense Council. "Pollution from Giant Livestock Farms Threatens Public Health." Web Accessed April 18, 2015.]
5. Burning fossil fuels to produce fertilizers for animal feed crops may emit 41 million metric tons of CO2 per year.^[Koneswaran, Gowri, and Danielle Nierenberg. "Global Farm Animal Production and Global Warming: Impacting and Mitigating Climate Change." Environmental Health Perspective, 2008.]
6. Globally, deforestation for animal grazing and feed crops is estimated to emit 2.4 billion tons of CO2 every year.^[The Humane Society of the United States. "Animal Agriculture & Climate Change." Web Accessed April 18, 2015.]
7. Corn, wheat, and rice, the fast-growing crops on which humanity depends for survival, are among the most nitrogen hungry of all plants.^[National Graphic Society. "Fertilized World." Web Accessed April 18, 2015.]
8. Large-scale animal factories often give animals antibiotics to promote growth, or to compensate for illness resulting from crowded conditions. These antibiotics enter the environment and the food chain.^[The Humane Society of the United States. "Animal Agriculture & Climate Change." Web Accessed April 18, 2015.]
9. Factory farms contribute to air pollution by releasing compounds such as hydrogen sulfide, ammonia, and methane.^[Natural Resources Defense Council. "Pollution from Giant Livestock Farms Threatens Public Health." Web Accessed April 18, 2015.]
10. The US Department of Agriculture estimates that confined farm animals generate more than 450 million tonnes of manure annually, 3 times more raw waste than generated by Americans.^[The Humane Society of the United States. "Animal Agriculture & Climate Change." Web Accessed April 18, 2015.]
11. The waste lagoons on Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs) not only pollute our groundwater, but deplete it as well. Many of the farms use the groundwater for cleaning, cooling, and drinking.^[Natural Resources Defense Council. "Pollution from Giant Livestock Farms Threatens Public Health." Web Accessed April 18, 2015.]