--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We're not just polluting a river and…" description: "\"We're not just polluting a river and killing a couple of top predator animals; we're eradicating the krill, the necessary algae. We're dismantling the ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c75/anohni-11622_animals_we-re-not-just-polluting-a-river-and-kil_242262.jpg" --- # We're not just polluting a river and killing a couple of… ![“We're not just polluting a river and killing a couple of top predator animals; we're eradicating the krill, the necessary algae. We're dismantling the insect and amphibian worlds. We're going for the building blocks.” quote by Anohni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c75/anohni-11622_animals_we-re-not-just-polluting-a-river-and-kil_242262.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c75/anohni-11622_animals_we-re-not-just-polluting-a-river-and-kil_242262.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c75/anohni-11622_animals_we-re-not-just-polluting-a-river-and-kil_242262.jpg) > “We're not just polluting a river and killing a couple of top predator animals; we're eradicating the krill, the necessary algae. We're dismantling the insect and amphibian worlds. We're going for the building blocks.” [Anohni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anohni/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human activity destroys ecosystems from the smallest algae to top predators, threatening the planet’s foundation. **In simple terms:** We damage the whole web of life. Key Takeaway Protect every level of nature. Themes environment interdependence extinction Mood urgent somber Type activist educational When to use this quote - policy advocacy - sustainable practices - education campaigns Key Concepts ecosystem biodiversity food chain Questions to Reflect On - What small actions can you take today? - How can societies value invisible organisms? A Different Perspective Solutions are complex and costly. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Animals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animals/) [Building blocks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/building-blocks/) [Climate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/climate/) [Couple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/couple/) [River](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/river/) ## Related quotes > [“He is the insect that uses your precious petals as a resting spot. 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Everybody, that is, except for Guih Kyom the dung…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/by-the-time-they-got-back-the-lights-were-all-out-and-everybody-was/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [“As I accepted my death and dissolution into God's love, the insectoids began feeding on my heart, devouring the feelings of love and surrender.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-strassman/as-i-accepted-my-death-and-dissolution-into-god-s-love-the-insectoids/) [Rick Strassman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-strassman/) > [“If you're an insect, then you're a mayfly. Here for a day and then gone... It's always been that way. We're here, and then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-yancey/if-you-re-an-insect-then-you-re-a-mayfly-here-for-a-day-and-then-gone/) [Rick Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-yancey/) > [No insect hangs its nest on threads as frail as those which will sustain the weight of human vanity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-wharton/no-insect-hangs-its-nest-on-threads-as-frail-as-those-which-will/) [Edith Wharton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-wharton/) > [Lobsters displays all three of the classic biological characteristics of an insect, namely: 1. It has way more legs than necessary. 2. There is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-barry/lobsters-displays-all-three-of-the-classic-biological-characteristics/) [Dave Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-barry/) > [Anyway, the title The War of the Insect Gods came before we had that ending, before we knew they had become gods. That we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-o-donoghue/anyway-the-title-the-war-of-the-insect-gods-came-before-we-had-that/) [Michael O'Donoghue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-o-donoghue/) > [Suppose that insect wings developed primarily as thermoregulators and then were used for skimming and finally flying, evolving along the way. What would they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/suppose-that-insect-wings-developed-primarily-as-thermoregulators-and/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [I can't stop moving. I'm like this weird insect. I can't sit still in real life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-wright/i-can-t-stop-moving-i-m-like-this-weird-insect-i-can-t-sit-still-in/) [Robin Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-wright/) > [I think the greatest giant insect movie ever made is 'Them!'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guillermo-del-toro/i-think-the-greatest-giant-insect-movie-ever-made-is-them/) [Guillermo del Toro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guillermo-del-toro/) > [An insect is more complex than a star..and is a far greater challenge to understand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-rees/an-insect-is-more-complex-than-a-star-and-is-a-far-greater-challenge/) [Martin Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-rees/) > [“while every insect in the Amazon lifted its head from the leaf it was masticating and turned a slender antenna in her direction. She…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-patchett/while-every-insect-in-the-amazon-lifted-its-head-from-the-leaf-it-was/) [Ann Patchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-patchett/) > [“I've been collecting bugs since I was ten; it's the only way I can stop their whispers. Sticking a pin through the gut of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-g-howard/i-ve-been-collecting-bugs-since-i-was-ten-it-s-the-only-way-i-can/) [A.G. Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-g-howard/) ## More by Anohni > [Women are women, and so are men, and the delusion that we are spiritually separate from or are about to spiritually separate from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anohni/women-are-women-and-so-are-men-and-the-delusion-that-we-are/) [Anohni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anohni/) > [We're all just waiting for our sugar lumps. That's how life has been structured for us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anohni/we-re-all-just-waiting-for-our-sugar-lumps-that-s-how-life-has-been/) [Anohni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anohni/) > [In our lifetime, we're going to see fifty percent of the world's species go extinct. We're already seeing this radical rise in the world's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anohni/in-our-lifetime-we-re-going-to-see-fifty-percent-of-the-world-s/) [Anohni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anohni/) > [At the end of the day, the sovereignty of maleness is an illusion. In essence and in origin, we are all entirely female.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anohni/at-the-end-of-the-day-the-sovereignty-of-maleness-is-an-illusion-in/) [Anohni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anohni/) > [Subjugation of women and of the Earth are one and the same.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anohni/subjugation-of-women-and-of-the-earth-are-one-and-the-same/) [Anohni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anohni/) > [The man-made apocalypse we are facing was not written in the stars; it is a notion that grew like mould from the texts of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anohni/the-man-made-apocalypse-we-are-facing-was-not-written-in-the-stars-it/) [Anohni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anohni/) > [People trust my voice. And my expertise, honestly, is not political science. It's emotion and expression and sort of presence, you know?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anohni/people-trust-my-voice-and-my-expertise-honestly-is-not-political/) [Anohni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anohni/) > [I was never going to become a beautiful, passable woman, and I was never going to be a man. It's a quandary. But the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anohni/i-was-never-going-to-become-a-beautiful-passable-woman-and-i-was/) [Anohni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anohni/) > [I was drawn to people that were expressing feeling because that was what was taboo in my family, expressing feeling. And that was what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anohni/i-was-drawn-to-people-that-were-expressing-feeling-because-that-was/) [Anohni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anohni/) > [I don't think that I'm a lone voice. I'm not even interested in being a lone voice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anohni/i-don-t-think-that-i-m-a-lone-voice-i-m-not-even-interested-in-being/) [Anohni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anohni/) > [More and more - especially the younger generation - are functioning outside the binary concept of gender. That's just next-generation stuff.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anohni/more-and-more-especially-the-younger-generation-are-functioning/) [Anohni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anohni/) > [We've been playing in the sandbox of creation for millions of years. We ruin one environment, we move on to the next - manifest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anohni/we-ve-been-playing-in-the-sandbox-of-creation-for-millions-of-years/) [Anohni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anohni/) > [In the United States, it is all about money: those who have it and those who don't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anohni/in-the-united-states-it-is-all-about-money-those-who-have-it-and/) [Anohni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anohni/) > [Rage is a really fun place to dance from - expressions of anger sublimated into something beautiful are invigorating, especially if you feel like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anohni/rage-is-a-really-fun-place-to-dance-from-expressions-of-anger/) [Anohni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anohni/) > [When we are not extracting wealth from nature, we are extracting it from the working and middle classes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anohni/when-we-are-not-extracting-wealth-from-nature-we-are-extracting-it/) [Anohni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anohni/) [Explore all 59 Anohni quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anohni/) ## More Animals quotes > [I was 3-years-old - to this day it is a vivid memory. My family and I were on a boat, catching fish. As one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-phoenix/i-was-3-years-old-to-this-day-it-is-a-vivid-memory-my-family-and-i/) [Joaquin Phoenix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-phoenix/) > [Animals know nothing of themselves, and they also know nothing of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/animals-know-nothing-of-themselves-and-they-also-know-nothing-of-the/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [Humans are animals too, but some do not like to work from expectations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mak-786/humans-are-animals-too-but-some-do-not-like-to-work-from-expectations/) Mak\_786 > [Practically all animals which move fast in a homogeneous medium have found means of giving their body a streamlined shape, thereby reducing friction to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konrad-lorenz/practically-all-animals-which-move-fast-in-a-homogeneous-medium-have/) [Konrad Lorenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konrad-lorenz/) > [“What does it mean to be a self-conscious animal? The idea is ludicrous, if it is not monstrous. It means to know that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-becker/what-does-it-mean-to-be-a-self-conscious-animal-the-idea-is-ludicrous/) [Ernest Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-becker/) > [We must love animals in such a powerful way that we should reject to eat them!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/we-must-love-animals-in-such-a-powerful-way-that-we-should-reject-to/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [I bet plants go like 'Weeeeeeeee!' whenever they're swallowed by a giraffe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-bet-plants-go-like-weeeeeeeee-whenever-they-re-swallowed-by-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It’s a small thing to help one animal, but to that one animal it’s a big thing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-baur/it-s-a-small-thing-to-help-one-animal-but-to-that-one-animal-it-s-a/) [Gene Baur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-baur/) > [We animals are the most complicated things in the known universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/we-animals-are-the-most-complicated-things-in-the-known-universe/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“All these creatures spend their time explaining, realizing happily that they agree with each other.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/all-these-creatures-spend-their-time-explaining-realizing-happily/) [Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/) > [We're not very dangerous animals; we don't have a horn like a rhino or quills like a porcupine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-fisher/we-re-not-very-dangerous-animals-we-don-t-have-a-horn-like-a-rhino-or/) [Helen Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-fisher/) > [We need, in a special way, to work twice as hard to help people understand that animals are fellow creatures, that we must protect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cesar-chavez/we-need-in-a-special-way-to-work-twice-as-hard-to-help-people/) [Cesar Chavez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cesar-chavez/) > [“Plenty of animals had pets, but few were more devoted than the mouse, who owned a baby corn snake—“A rescue snake, she’d be quick…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-sedaris/plenty-of-animals-had-pets-but-few-were-more-devoted-than-the-mouse/) [David Sedaris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-sedaris/) > [No creature can attain a higher grade of nature without ceasing to exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ananda-coomaraswamy/no-creature-can-attain-a-higher-grade-of-nature-without-ceasing-to/) [Ananda Coomaraswamy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ananda-coomaraswamy/) > [Most people are sensitized to animals through their cats and dogs, but for me it was a flounder. I used to go fishing with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-mathews/most-people-are-sensitized-to-animals-through-their-cats-and-dogs-but/) [Dan Mathews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-mathews/) [Browse all 6,813 Animals quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animals/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We're not just polluting a river and killing a couple of top predator animals; we're eradicating the krill, the necessary algae. We're dismantling the insect and amphibian worlds. 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