The in-depth assessment presented in this document of the various significant impacts of the world’s livestock sector on the environment is deliberately termed Livestock’s long shadow so as to help raise the attention of both the technical and the general public to the very substantial contribution of animal agriculture to climate change and air pollution, to land, soil and water degradation and to the reduction of biodiversity.
Advocates of “regenerative ranching” methods claim they’re slashing the carbon footprint of the ranching industry — but they’re actually propping up a scam that Big Ag is bankrolling.
Over 3 billion hectares of lands worldwide are grazed by livestock, with a majority suffering degradation in ecological condition. Losses in plant productivity, biodiversity of plant and animal communities, and carbon storage are occurring as a result of livestock grazing. Holistic management (HM) has been proposed as a means of restoring degraded deserts and grasslands and reversing climate change.
PDFs of the entire book can be found here: https://cattle.publicland.us/
Waste of the West is for people who care about nature. As much as an eye-opening educational tool, it is a call to action. Waste of the West is, and probably will remain, the most complete account of public lands ranching ever assembled. With easy-reading text and more than 1000 photos, drawings, cartoons, graphs, and charts on 602 (8.5" x 11") pages, Lynn Jacobs explores every facet of this obscure yet vitally important issue.
Stream Dynamics on FaceBook
“All water is connected,” the Lake said. “All water is in constant communication with all other water . . . The waters of the world are one – one consciousness holding the world in liquid embrace. What you do to any part of the waters affects them all.” Starhawk
©2026 Stream Dynamics, Inc.
Design and maintenance by Sky Jacobs
