Reader urges ag environmental changes

I'm proud that Iowa is the second biggest producer of wind energy in the country. But burning fossil fuels for electricity isn't the only threat to climate change from Iowa.

Agriculture is often overlooked in the climate change debate, but it contributes nearly 10 percent to our total carbon emissions. There are almost 87,000 farms in Iowa, making emissions from agriculture a significant portion of Iowa's carbon footprint.

With so many hog farms in the state, manure contributes significantly to carbon emissions. But most emissions from agriculture come from the intensive way we grown crops like corn and soy.

I have always been against the way industrial agriculture in Iowa affects our environment on every level. I shouldn't have to explain why clean drinking water an important issue to the citizens of Iowa; it affects everyone as well as animals and the ecosystem.

Climate change is a present danger. We need to keep promoting clean energy like wind power, but we're missing a huge part of the problem if don't also address the emissions from agriculture.

And, so, I urge Tyson Foods, the one company with the most power to influence our agricultural system, to take action to address the carbon pollution coming from its supply chain - from the way it raises it's animals to the way it grows the feed it gives them.

Sydney McDonald

Des Moines