|
Environmental Statistics
Automobile
 |
Driving your car is likely the most polluting thing you do in a day.
Burning 1 gallon of gasoline generates 20 pounds of carbon dioxide. The
average round-trip drive-alone commute distance is between 27 and 47
miles. Using the most conservative estimate, the average car commuter
generates about 7,350 lbs. of carbon dioxide a year.
Carbon Dioxide Information Analysis Center
of the
U.S. Dept. of Transportation Bureau of Transportation Statistics |
Farming
| Every day we lose more than 3,000 acres
of productive farmland to sprawling development. Today, more than 75
percent of our fruits and vegetables are produced near urban areas,
directly in the path of development.
The American Farmland Trust |
Food
|
Several scientists have put the FDA on notice about the potential dangers
of genetically engineered foods, but instead
of responsible regulation, the FDA's policy on
genetically altered foods is to treat them no different than naturally
produced foods; they will not be safety tested; they will not carry labels
stating that they have been genetically engineered. The FDA has placed the
interest of a handful of biotechnology companies ahead of their
responsibility to protect public health. By failing to require testing and
labeling of genetically engineered foods, the agency has made consumers
unknowing guinea pigs for potentially harmful, unregulated food
substances.
Organic Consumers Association; Dr. Philip Regal,
Professor of Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior at University of Minnesota;
Andrew Kimbrell, Executive Director of the
International Center for Technology Assessment |
Pesticides
| Conventional cotton, which is grown in
over 50 countries around the world, accounts for 25% of worldwide
insecticide use and is a major source of pesticide problems. |
| There are 107 active ingredients known
as possible or probably human carcinogens, and only 19 of them have been
cancelled.
Reto Engler, senior science advisor, Health Effects Division, Office of
Pesticide Programs, US EPA, Oct. 1992. |
| It takes 10 years to ban a pesticide
in the US using present procedures.
US EPA Pesticide Registration Progress Report, January 1993. |
| Approximately 300,000 pesticide
related illnesses among farm workers in the USA each year.
OTA, Washington, DC, April 1990. |
Population
|
Currently nearly 78 million people are added to the World's population
each year. The current explosion of our planet's population leads to the
conversion of natural lands for living space and increased consumption --
severely stressing the ecosystems that have traditionally supported human
societies. Ultimately at risk are the air we breathe, the water we drink,
the soils and seas that feed us, and the living creatures that give us
medicines and countless other products.
U.S. Census Bureau, Conservation
International |
Waste
| 5
percent of the world's population lives in the U.S., but Americans produce
50 percent of the world's waste.
National Recycling Coalition |
Water
|
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates pesticides contaminate
the groundwater in 38 states, polluting the primary source of drinking
water for more than half the country's population.
EPA |
|
Less than 1 percent of the water on the earth is fresh water. Already,
nearly half a billion people around the world face fresh water shortages.
That number is expected to grow to 2.8 billion by 2025. The United States
has plenty of fresh water (for now) but groundwater is being used at a
rate 25 percent greater than its replenishment rate. In addition, as more
pollutants are added to our water systems there will be even less fresh
water available for safe consumption.
Global Stewards |
| 50% of the US Population is supplied
with drinking water from groundwater.
US Geological Survey National Water Summary 1984. |
| 46% of US counties contain ground
water susceptible to contamination from agricultural pesticides and
fertilizers.
US Department of Agriculture, Washington, DC, June 1987. |
|
|
