Number According to estimates by the Fédération Cynologique Internationale (FCI) and the European Commission, the number of dogs in Europe has increased by almost 200% in eight years, and the total number of dogs has already reached 73 million. There are currently 9.3 million dogs in SpainThis figure exceeds that of children under 14 years of age.
Pets provide companionship and essential moral support for many people. But these also have effects on the climate.
“Dog owners should know that a large part of their personal CO2 footprint is produced by their pets,” says Matthias Finkbeiner, an expert from the Technical University of Berlin, who published a study on the impact of pets on the environment in 2020. .
As is clearly seen, the effect depends on the size of the animal. A large dog can produce half the carbon emissions per year that at most one living person on the planet should produce.
CO2 emissions up to 2,830 kilometers by car
Take special care A dog produces emissions equivalent to driving around 2,830 kilometers in a year.According to calculations by ESU-services, a Switzerland-based company focused on environmental consultancy.
According to the advisory in question, a dog Produces approximately 1,020 kilos of CO2 per year for different reasons: food, road transportation to hiking areas, accommodation, equipment, veterinary care, etc.
However, given that other similar studies have taken into account in this calculation the origin and production of the food, as well as its packaging and transportation, as well as environmental contamination of urine and feces and subsequent cleaning of the food, the impact may be even greater. roads.
They also consume a Large amounts of water, both for own consumption and for cleaning the animal itself as well as bowel movements in ‘inappropriate’ places in the house. Using plastic bags to remove feces from the streets also increases the pollution caused by plastic waste if the plastic waste is not recycled properly.
The average dog produces approximately 2,000 liters of urine and one tonne of feces throughout its life, causing over-fertilization of the environment in cities. However, most environmental and climatic impacts are feed. There are even studies claiming that pets are often overfed. According to experts, 59 percent of dogs are overfed.
Dogs also destroy forests
Moreover, although it may seem incredible to us, our dogs are also causing the destruction of forests. It’s like this because Approximately 50 million hectares of land in the world are devoted to pet food production.According to calculations by the University of Edinburgh. The production of animal protein-based feed emits enormous amounts of greenhouse gases (GHG).
And the number of pets in homes continues to increase. Of the more than 70 million dogs registered in Europe, approximately 9 million are in Spain. These animals, along with cats, “produce 0.30% to 1.20% of our country’s total emissions annually.”», according to a study at the University of Alcalá de Henares calculating the carbon footprint of pets.
Reference work: https://ebuah.uah.es/dspace/handle/10017/41448
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Contact address of the environmental department:krisclimatica@prensaiberica.es
Source: Informacion
James Sean is a writer for “Social Bites”. He covers a wide range of topics, bringing the latest news and developments to his readers. With a keen sense of what’s important and a passion for writing, James delivers unique and insightful articles that keep his readers informed and engaged.