
To rein in global warming, healthy forests and sustainable diets are key, U.N - pseudolus
https://www.latimes.com/environment/story/2019-08-08/ipcc-land-use-global-warming
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miltondts
So, almost 80% of emissions come from transportation, electricity production
and industry[1] but let's focus on diets(9%) and forests.

I'm all for better diets and better managing of forests but this is like
saying that to put out a fire we really should be concentrating on spitting on
it instead of calling the fire department.

[1] - [https://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/sources-greenhouse-gas-
emis...](https://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/sources-greenhouse-gas-emissions)

~~~
nexensis
That data is only for the US where transportation and energy usage is likely
higher per capita than other nations. It may also not take into account food
that is imported.

On the same website the EPA global stats show that agriculture and
deforestation (largely due to clearing land for cattle grazing) contributes
24% of global greenhouse gas emissions. [1]

I agree that we should be considering all areas of emissions, however diet is
something that every individual can decide to take responsibility for
immediately without having to lobby huge industries or pass new legislation.
Other choices like moving to removable energy and reducing our reliance on
transport have a lot more economic and social inertia behind them.

Millions of people are already voluntarily reducing or eliminating their meat
intake, and there are plant-based options at virtually all restaurants/chains
here in the UK. It's a trend that we should all be encouraging in my opinion,
as it demonstrates that society can willingly change its behaviour on a wider
scale when presented with reasonable alternatives.

[1] - [https://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/global-greenhouse-gas-
emiss...](https://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/global-greenhouse-gas-emissions-
data)

~~~
abdullahkhalids
I think grassroot movements and small NGOs should absolutely be focusing on
personal choices that people can make to make themselves and their communities
sustainable.

But the vast majority of government resources (money, attention and political
capital) should be expended on reigning in systematic issues, such as outlined
by GP: promoting electric vehicles, replacing all coal/oil/gas power plants,
carbon neutral shipping and commercial flights etc

The shift of the global economy to sustainability is going to bring down lots
of rich people and lots of vested interests, and replace it with other rich
people and vested interests. The former are not going to go down without a big
fight and only governments (and not individuals) are strong enough to bring
them down.

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jvanderbot
In the book Drawdown, the top 10 best ways to combat climate change are:

1\. Better refrigerant management, b/c refrigerants release significant potent
GHG

2\. Wind turbines to offset oil/gas

3\. Reduced food waste

4\. Plant-rich diet

5\. Better tropical forest health

6\. Better education for girls

7\. Better family planning options

8\. Solar Farms

9\. Silopasture (forested and mixed agriculture plots)

10\. Rooftop Solar

The list of top 50 continues cycling at about that frequency through
unexpected engineering problems (e.g., 1), social issues (e.t. 3,6), and
traditional O&G replacements (e.g., 10).

Saying this or that is the solution is just dumb. Saying it's "key" doesn't
necessarily mean it's "the only keystone", I'd hope.

~~~
nexensis
The reason it's 'key' is because adopting a plant-rich diet and reducing food
waste are pretty much the only items on this Top 10 list that any individual
regardless of location can decide to act upon right now.

Given that agriculture generates ~24% of the world's greenhouse gas emissions
including ~48% of global methane emissions, it's a good start that gets
individuals thinking conciously about their impact and encourages more action
at the grassroots level.

Of course the other issues are just as urgent but those are altered by
innovation and governments through taxes and legislation, which can be pushed
along with the support of a more climate-concious society.

~~~
jvanderbot
I read you.

There's a nit pick that rooftop solar is probably a fine individual choice,
but there are complicating factors and a high upfront cost.

------
ciconia
No, the only way to rein in global warming is to drastically reduce
consumption, and vicariously, production - of everything. The chances of this
happening are nil.

A new UN report claims water and land resources are being exploited at
"unprecented rates", and this will become worse as water supply and
agricultural yields diminish.

The next five to ten years are critical if something is to be done to stop or
attenuate climate change. Unfortunately, very few people are prepared to make
the necessary changes to their life style.

------
ganzuul
As lactose intolerant I have come to find the EU policy of vast overproduction
of dairy problematic. Milk powder is stocked like crude oil reserves and used
to influence the market, not only in the EU but also abroad. Cattle farming in
Africa can not find a foothold because European products are subsidized so
heavily using money lifted from EU taxes. Instead, they compete with
substandard yogurt made from milk powder and palm oil.

Milk powder gets added to all kinds of foods it does not belong in because it
is too cheap, and I suffer for it when something slips onto my dinner plate.
An inflamed gut leads to mental health issues, and as we now know contributes
to premature aging.

To me it looks like systematic poisoning of the food supply and I think it is
a catastrophe in the making that nobody talks about.

~~~
justin66
So basically, milk powder is the EU's equivalent of the US's problem with corn
syrup? That's rather interesting. I wouldn't even know how to use it as an
ingredient, although that's true of at least half the stuff in most packaged
foods.

~~~
ganzuul
Similar I suppose yes. I think it was in the '70s that there was talk in media
here about butter mountains, so it's not a new problem either.

Forgot to say, industrial cattle farming also uses a lot of antibiotics.
Haven't heard of superbugs escaping yet, perhaps because of competent
veterinarians.

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jweir
But wait! Maybe grasslands and grazing are better than forests - UC Davis
study:

[https://climatechange.ucdavis.edu/news/grasslands-more-
relia...](https://climatechange.ucdavis.edu/news/grasslands-more-reliable-
carbon-sink-than-trees/)

~~~
nabergh
*..."In Wildfire-Prone California"

The study says it could apply to other semi-arid environments as well.
Interesting study but the qualifier is definitely necessary.

------
growlist
_This_ is the problem:

"We buy things we don't need with money we don't have to impress people we
don't like."

...and this culture comes from the top.

~~~
pikzel
Please explain how it "comes from the top".

~~~
growlist
Marketing. Who controls that?

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distant_hat
"Sustainable diets" are often unhealthy, ultraprocessed, soy based carb heavy
stuff that kills you off early. It is possible that people dying would rein in
global warming but I'd like to pass on it. What most people need is a healthy
mix of meat, dairy, veggies, and fruits. If you are not overweight, that alone
saves a fair amount in GHG emissions.

~~~
graphitezepp
Some cultures eschew dairy almost entirely. Most of the world is lactose
"intolerant" actually. Not sure why it would be considered an important part
of ones diet.

~~~
justin66
Dairy is a key part of the diet of hundreds of millions of vegetarians. It's
undeniably important to the diet of a large portion of India's population, for
example.

A different sort of vegetarian diet might work without any dairy (I'm pretty
sure this describes some traditional Buddhist food). Not everyone uses the
same stuff.

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JoeAltmaier
I don't know, I ceased regarding the UN as a source of scientific
observations. This sounds like a PC person in an office publishing a memo.

~~~
bashy
Listen to every single other report about it then. All the same result.

~~~
JoeAltmaier
Directly contradicted by observations above. Try again.

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throwaway3627
The first half of the statement is a load of crap because forest fires will
accelerate glacial melt and climate instability. Heck, Thunderf00t just
debunked the recent Somalia virtue-signaling as completely futile. What needs
to happen is net zero carbon emissions with large-scale permanent carbon
sequestration. Tens of trillions of USD to get back to pre-industrial levels
of GHGs is affordable and vital.

\- Curtail use of fossil-fuels and animal agriculture

\- Switch from carbon-polluting Portland cement manufacturing to carbon
neutral or negative cement production

\- Iron seed the oceans to spur seaweed blooms

\- Seaweed: Salvage, closed-system burn and bury carbon emissions deep

\- Also, separate CO2 from air and bury it

\- Reintroduce large managed herds of grazing animals at the interface of
desertification to restore grassland soil health

\- Resurrect wooly mammoth hybrids in large herds to deforest arboreal tundra
back to grassland tundra to stop carbon and land loss

