News of the North

After legal pressure from environmental groups, the United States Government may soon list the polar bear as "threatened", which would force the Bush administration to acknowledge that global warming just might be caused by man-made activity, and prevent harm from being done to the bears and their habitat.

Studies have shown that with the decrease in Arctic ice, adult bears are growing thinner and there is a lower survival rate among cubs. What action would be taken to protect the bears remains to be seen, but this official recognition is a step in the right direction.

The UN's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) released a report this month on the environmental dangers of meat production. According to the report, livestock are responsible for 18% of greenhouse gas emissions - more than that of cars, trucks and planes put together.

Cattle are by far the biggest offenders. Ranching is a major cause of deforestation, and farmlands are being turned into deserts by overgrazing. Dairy cows require massive amounts of water, taking 990 litres of water to produce a single litre of milk. Fertilizers, antibiotics and feedlot waste cause health issues for humans and the land alike. And cows are major contributors of methane, one of the most troublesome greenhouse gases contributing to global warming.

The full report, entitled Livestock's Long Shadow, is available online here.

Now - we're not saying you should eat nothing but tofu over the holidays. But cutting back on your meat consumption is just one small thing you can do to keep from perpetuating the problem. As privileged humans in wealthy countries, we've come to expect that meat - whether it's beef, pork, chicken or fish - should be part of every meal. It's not good for our bodies, and it's not good for the environment - give it some thought when you're browsing that restaurant menu.

If these people were in power in Canada, this guy would be in jail, not proudly displaying the remains of the only known polar bear/grizzly hybrid on TV.....