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I’ve heard it said many times that you can’t be an environmentalist and still eat meat. Vegetarianism remains a big debate in the green world, and it’s one that gets people on both sides of the aisle extremely fired up. Vegetarians have facts about the environmental impacts of factory farms on their side, but meat eaters vehemently proclaim that consuming animal flesh isn’t necessarily harmful.

As a long time vegetarian, I’m a bit biased in this argument. Though my original reasons for going veg were more about the fact that I couldn’t stand the thought of eating an animal – and that I just plain didn’t like the taste of meat – as I learned more about how factory farms in this country operate, I began to realize that my choice was one that contributes to the health of the planet as well.

Factory farms are among the worst polluters in the world, generating mind-boggling quantities of waste rife with bacteria, diseases, pharmaceuticals and other contaminants. Manure is stored in huge holding ponds which too often burst their boundaries and unleash this toxic sludge upon surrounding land, destroying ecosystems and fouling waterways. Ranching is also a major driver of deforestation worldwide, and overgrazing has turned a fifth of all pastures and ranges into desert.

And, beyond these pressing environmental concerns, animals are closely confined in disgusting conditions without access to sunlight and fresh air or even the ability to stand up. They are fed hormones and antibiotics to stave off diseases caused by these very conditions and to promote faster growth (not to mention the mutilation and cruel slaughtering methods many are subjected to). All of this means the meat you’re getting is, shall we say, less than top quality.

Many meat eaters tout ‘sustainable, free-range’ alternatives as the environmentally-friendly way to continue consuming animals. Many such farms proclaim that their animals have more room to roam, get lots of sunlight and generally live happier, healthier lives before ending up on your plate – but such claims are often smoke and mirrors. Friends of Animals explains why. If you’re careful, you can find farms where the ‘free-range’ claim is actually backed up by reality, but it usually takes some digging.

Personally, I believe that this still isn’t quite enough, especially considering the fact that cows emit a vast amount of methane, a greenhouse gas, into the atmosphere. The impact of these emissions is greater than that of CO2 from cars! There wouldn’t be so many cows on the planet if there weren’t such a demand for them as food.

In this modern world, I don’t need meat to be happy and healthy and that’s the bottom line for me. Going vegetarian is a personal choice, and one that I wouldn’t try to force upon anyone else. But as a steward of the earth, even if you can’t bring yourself to cut meat out entirely, choose (actual) free-range meat or at least cut back on the amount you consume.

Of course, there are environmental impacts to nearly all of the foods we consume. What’s most important is to be mindful of the sources of everything we eat, how it was raised or grown and how far it has to travel to our tables.

Want to learn more about the environmental impact of factory farms? Get the facts at FactoryFarm.org, Oxfam America and The Sierra Club.