Tag Archives: carbon

From agweb.com The future of voluntary carbon markets for agriculture is still coming into focus. As such, farmers continue to assess the landscape and weigh their opportunities. Are farmers signing up for carbon programs? Will my existing practices qualify? How much can farmers be paid? Read the answers here. Read More »

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) plans to invest $8 million to support and expand monitoring of carbon in soil on working agricultural lands as well as assess how climate-smart practices are affecting carbon sequestration. This is part of USDA’s efforts to build out a national soil carbon monitoring network, which was kicked off with soil carbon monitoring on Conservation ... Read More »

From agweb.com When Mike Estadt talks with Ohio farmers using no-till and cover crops who want to participate in carbon markets, he often tells them they are unlikely to qualify for those opportunities. “These are farmers who’ve been in no-till for 20 or 30 years, and they’ve probably sequestered all the carbon that they can,” says Estadt, Ohio State University ... Read More »

National Association of Wheat Growers (NAWG) president and Cass City, Mich., wheat farmer, Dave Milligan, testified today during a House Agriculture Committee hearing on voluntary carbon markets in agriculture and forestry. Milligan highlighted several benefits growing wheat has on the environment, such as improving soil quality, protecting the soil from erosion and reducing weed pressure when added to a crop ... Read More »

From agweb.com Corn was $3.20 per bushel when Kyle Mehmen signed his first carbon contract 18 months ago. Today, corn prices are above breakeven, which buoys his spirits. Even so, Mehmen, general manager of MBS Family Farms, based in northeast Iowa, is still bullish on carbon and has crop acres enrolled in four different programs. “Carbon markets pay for practices ... Read More »

Carbon, in the context of greenhouse gas emissions and climate change, is being talked about at all levels of government. In Washington state, the legislature has been focused this session on carbon regulation bills—a low carbon fuel standard and a cap-and-trade program. At the federal level, carbon markets are becoming increasingly front and center. In May’s issue, Wheat Life sat down ... Read More »

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) just published the 90-Day Progress Report on Climate-Smart Agriculture and Forestry. The report represents an important step toward in President Biden’s Executive Order on Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad and shift towards a whole-of-department approach to climate solutions. The Order, signed January 27, states that, “America’s farmers, ranchers, and forest landowners ... Read More »

From Progressive Farmer While Senate Democrats are confident about the ability to get a bipartisan agricultural climate bill passed, the rift remains with Republicans over USDA’s authority to spend money on a carbon sequestration program without getting approval from Congress first. Read the rest of the article here. Read More »

There’s no question that the various carbon bills being debated by the Washington State Legislature will raise the price of fuel in Washington. The question is how much will the cost of fuel go up? Affordable Fuel Washington has released a graphic that estimates if a cap-and-trade system, a state tax increase and low carbon fuel standard are passed, fuel ... Read More »

From the Capital Press The Senate moved closer last week to adopting a clean-fuels standard, amending legislation to back-up claims that phasing in biofuels would be a boon to farmers. The Ways and Means Committee called for at least one-quarter of the feedstock for biofuels used in Washington to come from Washington. Farm groups sought the guarantee. Even with it, ... Read More »