Growing Returns

USDA plans to improve climate data and empower farmers

By / Published: July 13, 2023
Researcher tests soybean viability at lab.

A better understanding of the big climate challenges facing U.S. agriculture and forestry will create better decisions about investments, research priorities and technical assistance. Photo from USDA ARS.

The Inflation Reduction Act made historic investments in rural and agricultural climate solutions, including providing $300 million to improve measurement, reporting and verification of the climate benefits of farm bill conservation programs. This week, the U.S. Department of Agriculture shared a framework for how they intend to spend those funds over the next eight years.

These investments are much needed and will benefit farmers and the planet. But stakes are high. Implementation efforts should be prioritized to get resources on the ground as soon as possible, while also being grounded in the best science and maintaining high transparency.

USDA proposing this framework is a critical step in the process, and it gives stakeholders a chance to influence the foundation of climate-smart action moving forward. Read More »

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Climate, agriculture, and finance: exploring connections at the Fed

By / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: May 31, 2023
Maggie Monast on a panel at the The Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City’s 2023 Agricultural Symposium, “The Changing Geography of Agricultural Production.”

Maggie Monast as a panelist at the The Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City’s 2023 Agricultural Symposium, “The Changing Geography of Agricultural Production.”

The Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City’s 2023 Agricultural Symposium, “The Changing Geography of Agricultural Production,” explored the factors driving changes in where and how agricultural commodities are produced, disruptions that are leading to further geographical differences, and the role of investments and farm policy in the years ahead.

I had the honor of joining as a panelist with representatives from Farmer Mac and Rabo AgriFinance, where I shared EDF’s perspective on how climate change affects agricultural production and finance. Climate impacts on agriculture, from catastrophic weather events to temperature and rainfall variability, increase risks for farmers and their financial partners. This pattern of increasing disruption directly affects food availability, prices, and ultimately, what ends up on our plates. As one of my fellow panelists noted, “The one certainty in agriculture today is volatility.” Read More »

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New report shows climate change will impact strawberry production in Florida

By / Published: May 15, 2023

Authors: Dawn Shirreffs and Kelly Suttles

In 2022, the Florida legislature created the official designation of strawberry shortcake as the State Dessert. Key lime pie advocates may yet have a second chance to emerge victorious as important new research by Environmental Defense Fund and Two Degrees Adapt signals concern for growing strawberries in the Sunshine State due to climate change.

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Three priorities for a climate-smart farm bill

By / Published: May 15, 2023

U.S. farmers and ranchers are already living with climate change. For example, they are facing shorter windows to get seeds in the ground and higher temperatures that can dry out soil faster. At the same time, agricultural production is a factor in climate change, contributing more than 10% of U.S. emissions. Congress owes it to farmers and ranchers to write a 2023 farm bill that does three things to advance climate-smart agriculture.

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Fires are normal, and so is fire recovery – at least it used to be

By / Published: April 12, 2023

Wildfires are nothing new. In most of North America, fires are actually critical parts of a functioning ecosystem.  Recovering forests play important and often underappreciated roles as ephemeral homes for fire-adapted species, and the mosaic left behind by a fire – untouched forests, slightly dead forests, totally burnt forests – is important for regulating future fires, insect outbreaks, and as habitat.

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Agricultural banks expect climate change to pose financial risks. Here are five strategies to help them adapt.

By / Bio / Published: March 21, 2023

Climate change is projected to impact agricultural production worldwide, and 87% of agricultural finance institutions in a recent survey expect it to present risks to their business. Meanwhile, only 24% significantly factor climate change into their decision-making processes.

A new guide from EDF and Deloitte offers five strategies for agricultural finance institutions to manage climate risks and act on climate opportunities. These five strategies integrate climate into agricultural finance institutions’ existing risk frameworks and take a proactive approach to help farmers and ranchers adapt to climate change:

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A multidimensional view of ag tech’s impacts

By / Bio / Published: March 6, 2023

New research from Environmental Defense Fund, “Agriculture Technology Discovery Report,” provides a high-level overview of how four technology fields — artificial intelligence (AI), robotics and automation, biologicals and genetics — can be valuable tools in agricultural operations and contribute to four agroecological goals: reducing water use, supporting soil and plant health, controlling pests and diseases, and reducing agricultural greenhouse gas emissions.

This multidimensional lens is uncommon. Industry reports often focus on maximizing yield, and not the entire agroecological picture. Yet, using technology as a vehicle to drive both yield and ecological benefits is essential as society works to increase food production in a changing climate without increasing environmental impacts.

Here are several intersections between technology and agroecology that EDF will be exploring further. Read More »

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The importance of additionality and accurate baselines for carbon credit integrity

By / Published: March 3, 2023

Forest carbon credits may prove to be a useful tool to reduce net carbon emissions from land use and supplement overall emissions reductions. To be effective, however, carbon credits must represent real carbon storage that can be measured and attributed to the crediting system.

One of the hallmarks of a high-integrity carbon credit program is that they ensure “additionality,” meaning that the credited carbon storage or emissions reductions would not have occurred without the sale of carbon credits. Put another way, we need to ensure that landowners aren’t getting credit for conducting business as usual, and instead, all carbon credits represent net emissions reductions that can be attributed to the crediting program. It’s a scenario we’re watching play out in California’s carbon market. Read More »

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New analysis shows cover crops and no-till reduce crop insurance claims

By / Bio / Published: March 2, 2023

Soybeans in a cover crop (cereal rye).

The extremely wet spring of 2019 caused 14.2 million acres of cropland to go unplanted in the Midwest. Farmers across the region had flooded fields that kept them from getting equipment onto the fields to plant their crops. This resulted in over $4 billion of prevent-plant crop insurance claims, which assists farmers when weather conditions keep them from planting a crop altogether. Amidst these adverse weather challenges, farmers who were using cover crops and no-till reported facing less water on their fields, which allowed them to plant when their neighbors couldn’t.

A new study backs up these Midwest farmer stories with big data. Read More »

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The farm bill is a powerful opportunity for agricultural climate solutions

By / Published: February 22, 2023

U.S. farmers, ranchers and foresters will need additional tools and resources to protect their land, keep growing food on a changing planet and contribute to national efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. That’s where the farm bill comes in.

The farm bill is a critical piece of legislation that comes up every five years. It authorizes programs that provide producers with a safety net in tough times and supports them in adopting climate-friendly production practices.

As Congress begins writing the next farm bill, new recommendations from the Food and Agriculture Climate Alliance provide some of the most significant alignment on climate and agriculture policy priorities to date. Read More »

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