Growing Returns

How Congress can ensure voluntary carbon markets work for farmers and the environment

By Callie Eideberg / Bio / Published: September 23, 2021

Voluntary agricultural carbon markets, although currently in their infancy, have the potential to increase adoption of climate-smart agriculture practices by generating new revenue streams for producers who cut emissions or sequester carbon, while also increasing climate resilience.

Voluntary carbon markets, however, currently involve multiple carbon registries and protocols for different types of emissions reduction and carbon removal practices, with variable measurement and accounting approaches. This variation means that farmers, other credit developers and purchasers risk investing in poorly quantified and potentially reversible climate benefits.

Congress and the U.S. Department of Agriculture must act now to help ensure voluntary agricultural carbon markets work for farmers and the environment. Today, I testified before the House Agriculture Committee about three ways that they can best do this. Read More »

Posted in Uncategorized / Tagged carbon markets, climate resilience, climate-smart agriculture, sustainable agriculture | Comments are closed

Top 5 priorities for USDA to support climate-smart farms and forests

By Callie Eideberg / Bio / Published: April 30, 2021

“America’s farmers, ranchers, and forest landowners have an important role to play in combating the climate crisis and reducing greenhouse gas emissions, by sequestering carbon in soils, grasses, trees, and other vegetation and sourcing sustainable bioproducts and fuels.”

— President Biden’s Executive Order on Tackling the Climate Crisis

President Biden’s Executive Order on Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad directed Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack to seek public input on the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s strategy for supporting climate-smart agriculture and forestry.

Here are the top five priorities that USDA should be focused on. Read More »

Posted in Uncategorized / Tagged carbon markets, climate crisis, ecosystems, sustainable agriculture, tom vilsack, USDA | Comments are closed

3 ways the Growing Climate Solutions Act will help farmers and rural communities thrive

By Callie Eideberg / Bio / Published: April 27, 2021

More than forty senators have co-sponsored the reintroduced Growing Climate Solutions Act — the first major piece of bipartisan legislation to help ensure that farmers, ranchers and foresters benefit from being part of the climate solution.

The bill has a real chance of becoming law this year — a sign of hope for collaboration on climate on Capitol Hill. It advanced unanimously out of the Senate Agriculture Committee and has growing bipartisan support in the House of Representatives.

Here are three ways this bill advances agricultural climate solutions, with benefits that extend far beyond the farm. Read More »

Posted in Carbon Market, Climate Resilience / Tagged agricultural carbon markets, agricultural climate solutions, climate-smart agriculture, Growing Climate Solutions Act, sustainable agriculture | Comments are closed

Farmers and environmentalists team up to push Congress to act on climate

By Callie Eideberg / Bio / Published: November 19, 2020

Agricultural and environmental advocates have joined forces to push Congress to act on climate change. The new Food and Agriculture Climate Alliance developed more than 40 joint policy recommendations for making farms, ranches and forests more climate resilient, harnessing the power of natural climate solutions.

Environmental Defense Fund, American Farm Bureau Federation, National Council of Farmer Cooperatives and National Farmers Union co-chair the alliance, and membership has expanded to include FMI-The Food Industry Association, National Alliance of Forest Owners, National Association of State Departments of Agriculture and The Nature Conservancy. Read More »

Posted in Climate Resilience / Tagged agriculture, Climate, Congress, FACA, Food and Agriculture Climate Alliance, resilience, sustainable agriculture, USDA | Comments are closed

Corn farmers endorsed climate policies. Here’s what you need to know.

By Callie Eideberg / Bio / Published: August 13, 2020

The National Corn Growers Association (NCGA), which represents the interests of 300,000 U.S. corn farmers, recently approved more than a dozen climate policies as part of the policy positions its members vote on twice a year. In doing so, NCGA affirmed that climate change is real, and farmers are part of the solution. Read More »

Posted in Uncategorized / Tagged climate smart ag, corn, corn farmer, ecosystems, National Corn Growers Association, NCGA, sustainable agriculture | Comments are closed

Congress just took two actions to boost climate resilience in agriculture

By Callie Eideberg / Bio / Published: June 8, 2020

Many farmers have been feeling climate impacts on their operations through more variable rainfall, warmer nights, and shifting planting and harvesting windows. These impacts only compound other uncertainties in the agricultural economy.

Policies that help reduce production risk and increase yield resilience are good for farmers and the farm economy. Conservation practices like cover crops and fertilizer optimization can do both, while also providing broader benefits like emissions reductions or water quality protections.

Congress recently took two important, bipartisan steps to reward farmers for being part of the climate solution. Here’s how these policies will help build climate resilience for U.S. agriculture.

Posted in Uncategorized / Tagged bipartisan, climate change, Cover Crop Flexibility Act, farmers, Growing Climate Solutions Act, sustainable agriculture, USDA | Read 1 Response

3 must-haves for USDA to cut agriculture’s environmental footprint in half

By Callie Eideberg / Bio / Published: February 25, 2020

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s new Agriculture Innovation Agenda sets a promising and necessary goal: Cut the environmental footprint of U.S. agriculture in half by 2050. The agency aims to achieve this in part through lower greenhouse gas emissions, improved water quality and increased soil health.

Meeting this objective will not only benefit the people who rely on American farmers and the natural resources they steward. It will also make agriculture part of the solution and build climate resilience on the front lines – America’s farms.

Farmers are coming off one of the most difficult growing seasons on record, and more extreme and variable weather is becoming the norm. Boosting climate resilience to reduce production risk has never been more essential.

But for USDA to effectively deliver on this goal, it will need to arm itself – and farmers – with robust data, science and economics. Here are three ways that USDA can boost its climate roadmap to put U.S. agriculture on the path to success. Read More »

Posted in Uncategorized / Tagged Agriculture Innovation Agenda, climate resilience, Department of Agriculture, sustainable agriculture, USDA | Comments are closed

How the farm bill changes the future of climate and water conservation

By Callie Eideberg / Bio / Published: December 12, 2018

The Senate and House passed the 2018 farm bill in overwhelmingly bipartisan votes of 87-13 and 369-47, respectively. The bill is now headed to the White House to be signed into law before the end of the year.

In many ways, this farm bill conference report maintains the tradition of incremental improvement that has always defined farm bills. Big-ticket programs like the Conservation Reserve Program, Conservation Stewardship Program and Environmental Quality Incentives Program will continue to garner headlines.

But the bill also takes important steps to begin to shape the future of conservation in this country. Many smaller provisions in the fully funded conservation title open the door to new approaches that address water quality and climate change challenges that aren’t bound by a single farm’s borders.

Here’s what farmers and environmentalists need to know about new focus areas and approaches in the farm bill’s conservation title.

Posted in Climate Resilience / Tagged climate-smart agriculture, ecosystems, farm bill, Partnerships, public-private partnerships, soil health, sustainable agriculture | Read 4 Responses

5 reasons why the Senate farm bill is a conservation powerhouse

By Callie Eideberg / Bio / Published: June 27, 2018

The Senate votes this week on the farm bill – an $867 billion piece of legislation. Within the bill’s 1,200 pages are big advances for conservation, technology and innovation.

In addition to the bill maintaining full funding for the conservation title, here are five reasons why producers, consumers and environmentalists should celebrate the Senate farm bill and champion the inclusion of these key provisions in the House and Senate compromise bill.

Posted in Uncategorized / Tagged conservation, conservation solutions, crop insurance, data, ecosystems, EQIP, farm bill, innovation, investment, NCGA, policy proposal, public private collaboration, soil health, stewardship, sustainable agriculture, USDA, wildlife | Read 1 Response

What to watch for during today’s farm bill markup in the House

By Callie Eideberg / Bio / Published: April 18, 2018

The House Agriculture Committee meets today to begin markup on the 2018 draft farm bill. While markup is only the first step of a long process, it will tell us a lot about the road ahead.

The farm bill provides the largest source of federal funding for conservation on private lands – and with 70 percent of U.S. land privately managed, the farm bill is a major driver of efforts to improve water and air quality, increase wildlife habitat and build drought resilience.

While much of the focus will be on whether the Conservation Stewardship Program will be folded into the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), here are six additional conservation items to keep an eye on during markup. Read More »

Posted in Uncategorized / Tagged Conservation Reserve Program, Conservation Stewardship Program, ecosystems, Endangered Species Act, Environmental Quality Incentives Program, farm bill, house agriculture committee, Natural Resources Conservation Service, RCPP, Regional Conservation Partnerships Program, Secretary of Agriculture, sustainable agriculture, technical assistance, USDA, USDA NRCS | Comments are closed