[greenclub] What would you Ask Them? Vote by Oct 8.
Robert J. Haw
https://presidentialopenquestions.com/?sort=-votes
Rankings:
#10 - 15897 Votes What is your plan to combat climate change & build a green economy?
Many people here in the U.S. and around the world feel climate change is the most important issue facing humanity. Our children's futures are at stake. We need to make changes now!
Submitted by: Linda R. from MO
Sept. 28, 2016, 10:36 a.m.
Issue area: Environment
#17 - 10817 Votes Is Climate Change a national security issue? Why or why not?
Many leading security experts view climate as the most important security issues for the coming decades.
Submitted by: Michael P. from CA
Sept. 27, 2016, 11:53 a.m.
Issue area: Foreign Policy & Military
#8 (climbing fast) - 17003 Votes As president, What are the steps you will take to address climate change?
Climate change is the greatest existential threat facing the country and the world today. What are three things you will do as President to address the challenges posed by a warming planet?
Submitted by: Joseph M. from DCSept. 27, 2016, 12:06 p.m.
Issue area: Environment
Kalmus, Peter M (398K)
I was surprised to see that the third most popular question in the “environment” category comes from misinformation in the influential documentary, Cowspiracy (which is based on the worst kind of pseudoscience). It’s nowhere near 51%; more like 15%. But at least the pseudoscience, while laughable, is precise at the 1% level. Because it’s always better to have precise pseudoscience.
Will you reduce support for animal agriculture to counter climate change?
The U.S. is set to miss its 2025 environmental targets. Given that animal agriculture produces 51% of greenhouse-gas emissions, will you protect the environment by promoting a plant-based lifestyle?
Dawn, Cara (HQ-RA000)
Peter,
I think that the 15% estimate is the livestock contribution, but wonder if the higher numbers might also include destruction of habitat for produce farming, release of carbon from soil, loss of forests that could capture carbon, fuel emissions to farm, process, & transport produce, etc?
Cara
Montgomery, James F (3444)
Recent (July 2016) info from United Nations.
Food production accounts for approximately 30 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions.
The authors cite ruminant livestock as contributing one-third of agricultural methane emissions—methane is a greenhouse gas which is 27 times more powerful than carbon dioxide. According to the report, “livestock supply one-third of protein for human consumption, but drive approximately 80 percent of non-CO2 emissions.
Note this is just ruminant livestock, I didn’t immediately find info on non-ruminant livestock contributions to GHG emissions.
Jim
Kalmus, Peter M (398K)
The reason I share all this with you is because I’m genuinely surprised that a large enough fraction of the general public actually believes the 51% figure, as to get a question referring to it as “given” in the Top 30. I apologize for hijacking Rob’s originally post (thanks Rob, I did vote), but I try to take opportunities to shed light on the ignorance of Cowspiracy.
The 15% estimate does its best to include everything. (It does include CO2 emitted from burning and clearing forests to make space for livestock and livestock feed. And yes, much of livestock emission is from methane, mainly cow burps, interestingly.) It’s a complex and uncertain estimate. It depends on uncertain soil carbon science, where you place the boundaries of the system, etc. Based on my current understanding of the two FAO reports underlying this estimate--one on ruminants, the other on chickens and pigs--the truth probably lies somewhere between 10% and 20%. Still a huge number. Livestock is a big part of the problem, just not 51%-worth.
A while back I read the “scientific paper” Cowspiracy was based on. The authors should be embarrassed. It has several glaring flaws, as you will see for yourself if you spend ten minutes reading it. If you want a summary of the main problems you can look here: https://newint.org/blog/2016/02/10/cowspiracy-stampeding-in-the-wrong-direction/ (This article also contains a link to the actual paper.) It was deeply irresponsible and dishonest of the filmmaker, Kip Anderson, to apparently not even do an hour’s worth of homework on the state of the scientific knowledge and instead cherry pick his evidence based on his ideological preconceptions. But I guess that’s pretty much par for the discourse in the US these days.
Peter