by Josh Sevin

• 20 percent of Earth's original forests remain undisturbed
• 13 percent of original forests in the Pacific Northwest remain undisturbed
• 1 to 2 percent of original forests in the U.S. remain undisturbed
• 2.47 acres of rainforest are destroyed each second, an area approximately the size of two U.S. football fields
• 214,000 acres of rainforest are destroyed each day, an area larger than New York City
• 78 million acres of rainforest are destroyed each year, an area larger than Poland
• 5 to 10 percent of closed tropical forest species will go extinct per decade at… Read More

• 137 species are estimated to go extinct each day
• 50,000 species are estimated to go extinct each year
• 78 species were on the original U.S. endangered species list
• 1,201 species were on the U.S. endangered species list as of October 1999
• 43 percent of endangered and threatened animals in the U.S. depend on wetlands
• 40 percent of all modern medicines are either modeled on or synthesized from natural compounds derived from various species
• 95 percent of known plant species have yet to be screened for their medicinal values
• 30 million species of plants and animals -- more than… Read More

• 8 pounds of grain are needed to produce one pound of beef
• 2,464 gallons of water are needed to produce one pound of beef
• 40 percent of grain is fed to livestock, poultry, or fish
• China's grain consumption increased by 40 million tons between 1990 and 1995 -- and 33 million of those tons were fed to livestock
• meat consumption has increased 400 percent in developing nations since 1965
• 220 million acres of U.S. land have been cleared for livestock production

Sources:
1-5 -- National Wildlife Federation
6… Read More

• a 50 percent increase in worldwide paper consumption is expected by 2010
• 115 billion sheets of paper are used annually for personal computers
• 700 pounds of paper are consumed by the average American each year
• 10,000 trees are cut down annually in China to make holiday cards
• 3 cubic yards of landfill space can be saved by one ton of recycled paper
• 77 percent of paper is recycled in the Netherlands
• 67 percent of paper is recycled in Germany
• 52 percent of paper is recycled in Japan
• 45 percent of paper is… Read More

• 20 million acres of U.S. land are covered by lawn
• 1 hour spent mowing a lawn with a gas-powered mower produces as many emissions as 50 hours spent driving an average car
• 5 percent of U.S. air pollution in summer months is emitted by gas-powered lawn equipment
• 27,000 gallons of water are needed each week to maintain an acre of lawn
• 35 percent of all household water is used to tend yards
• 32 million pounds of pesticides were used on U.S. lawns in 1994

Sources:
1 -- 50 Simple… Read More