Animal production and the environment: a new challenge for animal specialists

This paper describes briefly the global environmental problem, dimensions the contribution of animal production to the environmental problem, discusses some alternative ways to diminish the ecological and natural resources deterioration processes, states the significance of the human factor as the primary motor force in the process of changes which could help to improve the human-animal-environmental system. The Earth Summit on Environment and Development held in Rio de Janeiro in June 1992 was a United Nations' sponsored Conference which demonstrated the extent of the world's concern on the environmental deterioration of our Planet. On the face of unquestionable evidences of the deterioration of the global natural resources and environment, the exhortation and defense of a sustainable agricultural development process appears as an unavoidable imperative which is receiving growing individual and institutional support. Animal production among other important human activities does not scape the need for reevaluation about its real impact on the environment. This must be done thoroughly, that is, it must go beyond the typical cost-benefit analysis used as the key in mind that in addition to the great quantity of natural renewable and non renewable resources that this activity requires from the environmental surroundings, it yields unavoidable organic and metabolic wastes. Among these, the urine, feces, and gases (CO2, CH4) are being considered each time in a more critical way as air, water and soil pollutants as well as their direct contribution to the greenhouse effect. Finally, some considerations are made about the human perception of the global environmental problem and pleads for the urgent need to redefine our present value scale in society to allow the guarantee for a satisfactory life not only for the present generations but also the appropriateness of the environmental conditions for the existence of future generations