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Did you ever think about: How Food Waste impacts our planet?
Climate Changing
Carbon Dioxide
Both carbon dioxide and methane are very harmful greenhouse gases that contribute to global warming and climate change. by creating new farmland in order to grow more food, trees are cutting down and lands are clearing. As a result, the photosynthesis process that replaces carbon dioxide with oxygen is decreased (יורד), this leads to increasing (עלייה) of carbon dioxide levels; a harmful gas, which accumulates within the atmosphere leading to bad climate changes.
Methane Gas
Oliver (2007) mentioned that when we waste food, the food goes to the landfill and rots, after a while it starts to produce methane gas, a greenhouse gas that is up 25 times more harmful and potent to the atmosphere than carbon dioxide (CO2). This methane gas breaks down the ozone layer and contributes to Global warming. food waste is responsible for adding 3.3 billion tonnes of greenhouse gases to the planet's atmosphere (Oliver, 2007).
So, think about this!
A single head of lettuce can take up to 25 years to decompose in a landfill, giving off harmful methane gas the whole time (FAO, 2012).
Deforestation
According to National Geographic (N.G.), deforestation means cutting or clearing trees or forests over a large area for the facilitation of human activities. Such as, creating new farmland in order to grow more food. It is a serious environmental concern, since it can result in many problems, such as:
The loss of biodiversity (גיוון ביולוגי של בעלי חיים).
Disturbances in the water cycle.
Damage to natural habitat (בתי גידול).
Soil erosion (שחיקת אדמה).
Deforestation is also a major contributor to global warming and climate change.
the causes for deforestation:
Trees are cut to provide lands for Agriculture.
A fuel for different human activities.
(N.G., 2019)
Pollution
A landfill, also known as a dump or garbage place or ground, is a site for the disposal of waste materials. landfills are a major source of pollution. About 94% of the food we throw away ends up in landfills, which breaks down at a very slow rate and remains a problem for future generations. The main problems with landfills are harmful greenhouse gases that we mentioned earlier and Leachate. leachate is a liquid formed in the landfill. This liquid is highly toxic and can pollute land, ground and water. The decaying (רקוב) food produces acidic chemicals which combine with liquids in the waste to form leachate and landfill gas (Hall et al., 2009).
After we have learned about Food Waste & the Environment, let's move on to learn about Food Waste & the Economy!
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