Wool is produced by sheep, so livestock is the foundation for producing wool. But livestock
is damaging the environment.

Effecting on climate change:
– Manure generated from livestock has contributed to the increase in atmospheric
greenhouse gasses over the last 250 years.
– The concentration of methane has increased by more than 130 percent in the U.S.
– In New Zealand, methane emissions from sheep make up more than 90 percent of the
nation’s greenhouse gas emissions. Their government proposed taxing sheep farmers to
pay for emission research, but the plan was abandoned.
Land Damaging:
– Oxford researcher studying land degradation in the Karoo, South Africa have noted
“sheep are the cause of vegetation change and oil erosion leading to the formation of
badlands”.
– In the first half of the 20th century, Patagonia, Argentina, was second to Australia in wool
production. But now is no longer a major wool producer. The practices of local sheep farmers
increased the scale of their operations and outgrew the ability of the land to sustain
them. Soil erosion in the region has triggered a desertification process as much as 93
percent of the land.
Water Pollution:
– Fecal matter contaminates waterways in areas where sheep are farmed. A case study
conducted by the New Zealand government on two medium-sized farms found fecal
contamination in the water that “exceeded levels suitable for drinking and safe
recreational use in virtually every reading since 1994, and in recent times … has well
exceeded safe livestock drinking levels ….”
– “Sheep dip” is a toxic chemical used to rid sheep of parasites and presents
disposal problems, harming the environment. A Scottish study of 795 sheep-dip
facilities found that 40 percent presented a pollution risk.
IN an incident from 1995,  a cupful of spent sheep dip, containing highly toxic
synthetic called pyrethroid cypermethrin, killed 1,200 fish downstream from where it was
dumped into a river.
Destroy the ecosystem:
– Many landowners consider kangaroos are bad for growth of sheep, and though there are
some laws governing the killing of kangaroos, on their own property, landowners kill these animals without fear of repercussions.