Environmental activist John Beske attacked the agriculture industry Thursday for its negative impact on the environment and for silencing the voice of family farms.

Beske spoke to a group of 24 people in Harris 107 during a lecture co-sponsored by the animal-rights group Justice for All and Students for Ecological and Environmental Development.

Beske is the co-founder and creative director of Sustain, a multimedia communications group that works with environmental activists to promote their causes.

He stressed the environmental problems and destruction of family farms associated with industrial agriculture’s production of animal products such as hogs, chicken and fish.

Beske said large-scale agriculture companies take the minimum amount of effort to keep animals alive, while family farmers build relationships with their animals and treat them well.

He added that when family farms fail, corporations buy their land cheaply and turn it into factory farms.

“Small-time farmers can’t keep up with this,” Beske said.

Industrial agriculture’s effects on the environment also have been significant, Beske said. He said 14 million fish have been killed by a form of algae, a by-product of large-scale hog farm waste. Once surface water carries the waste to nearby streams, the algae is eaten and changes into something similar to an amoeba that eats fish from the inside.

Beske also provided the audience with more facts about industrial agriculture. For example, Beske said industrial agriculture is the top consumer of fuel, more than cars. He also said that half of the U.S. land mass is used for meat production.

A cow uses 12,500 gallons of water in the production of one pound of beef, Beske said. A vegan could leave a shower running forever and not use as much water as is wasted by the average American diet, he said.

Beske also commented on mad cow disease, saying that it has not been detected in the United States because it does not show in the system until after the age of 2. Cows in the United States do not live that long, Beske said, while in Britain ranchers raise cattle for up to 6 years.

“(You) should always eat organic whenever you can,” Beske said.

Beske also discussed the problem of over-fishing in the world’s oceans. The difficulty of catching fish has resulted in the creation of fish farms where a company will dig a lagoon and put in as many fish as it can hold and harvest them. Beske said there is now a dramatic disparity between these produced salmon and wild salmon.

They are “two completely different animals,” he said.

Beske said that many times fish will escape fish farms and breed with wild salMonday, reducing the genetic purity of the population.

Beske also attacked the fast-food industry, calling it an “environmental nightmare.” He said that more gas is used now because people can eat in their cars. Also, the industry produces a great deal of litter that goes into landfills.

The best things someone can do for the future of the environment, Beske said, is eat a plant-based diet and use a bicycle instead of a car.

Beske ended the lecture by challenging the audience to “keep up the struggle.”

Speech freshman Maya Kuper said, “I didn’t really know what to expect, but I’m glad I came. This guy knows what he’s talking about.”

Weinberg junior Steven Rozenski, Justice For All co-president, said he thinks Beske gave an important message for anyone who cares about the environment. Rozenski said meat destroys the environment and was grateful Beske addressed that viewpoint.