Growing Returns

Pill holds promise for reducing fertilizer’s unwanted side effects

By Rebecca Shaw / Bio / Published: December 15, 2014

Future fertilizer pill would detect signals from plant roots to reduce nutrient losses. Photo credit: Liz Bokt

Can a little pill solve the problem of fertilizer waste? It sounds futuristic, but it could become a reality in the next 10 years, according to recent article on AgWeb.com.

The article highlighted new developments in nanotechnology aimed at creating a “fertilizer pill” that could detect chemical signals from plant roots and release nitrogen according to those signals. The pill would allow for nitrogen to be released on an as needed basis, thereby reducing fertilizer waste byproducts that are harmful to the environment.

Although fertilizer has undeniable benefits for crop yields, excess fertilizer that runs off into our waterways is damaging to rivers, oceans and the climate.

Posted in Climate Resilience / Tagged agriculture, Climate, climate change, ecosystems, farmers, fertilizer, food production, food security, nanotechnology, nutrient efficiency, nutrient pollution, sustainable agriculture, technology | Comments are closed

Five things to like about California’s proposed rice protocol

By Robert Parkhurst / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: November 5, 2014

EDF's work on the rice protocol was featured in an article from The Fresno Bee: California Rice Farmers Could Get Pollution Credit. Photo credit: California Ag Today.

EDF’s work on the rice protocol was featured in The Fresno Bee: California Rice Farmers Could Get Pollution Credit. Photo credit: California Ag Today.

The California Air Resources Board (ARB) has been developing the first crop-based protocol that will allow U.S. rice growers to participate in California’s cap-and-trade program. The final draft of the standards – a product of meticulous research and stakeholder input – is now out for review.

There’s a lot to like in the draft, which demonstrates the ARB’s diligence in developing a greenhouse gas reduction program that is good for both farmers and the wildlife that depend on rice fields for habitat. Here are my five highlights:

1) It creates a new revenue stream for farmers: Rice farmers across the U.S. can volunteer to implement one of three methods included in the protocol – dry seeding, early drainage, or alternate wetting and drying – to reduce their greenhouse gas footprint. In doing so, they will be able to generate offsets to sell in California’s carbon market, providing revenue for growers while contributing to the state’s clean air goals.

Spreading compost on the range can earn ranchers new revenue

By Sara Kroopf / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: October 16, 2014

Improving the soil helps ranchers and the climate. © rui vale sousa / Shutterstock Images.

Rangeland ecosystems cover approximately one third of the land area in the United States and half the land area of California. What if that vast domain could be utilized to combat climate change, and ranchers could get paid for land management practices that keep more carbon in the soil and enhance production?

That’s the direction we’re going, thanks to a new carbon accounting standard approved today by the American Carbon Registry. The new protocol allows ranchers who reduce their greenhouse gas footprint by applying compost to their fields to earn credits that can be traded on the voluntary carbon market.

Climate benefits

The standard is supported by research conducted by the Silver Lab at the University of California, Berkeley, which shows that applying a half inch of compost to rangeland soils removes greenhouse gases from the atmosphere at the rate of half a ton per acre each year.

Also posted in Carbon Market / Tagged #compost, agriculture, American Carbon Registry, Carbon Offsets, climate change, compost protocol, drought, ecosystems, food waste, forage production, GHG mitigation, Marin Carbon Project, ranching, rangelands, Silver Lab, soil health, sustainable agriculture, University of California Berkeley | Read 1 Response

What is climate-smart agriculture?

By Rebecca Shaw / Bio / Published: September 25, 2014

You may have heard by now about “climate-smart agriculture.” It’s the catchphrase that came out of the United Nations Climate Summit this week and the reason I was in New York to participate in a panel discussion on how to achieve food security for a growing population in a climate-changing world.

More than 20 governments and 30 organizations announced they would join the newly launched Global Alliance for Climate-Smart Agriculture, which aims to enable 500 million farmers worldwide to practice climate-smart agriculture. This is wonderful. But what does it mean in practice?

My colleagues and I have been asking ourselves this question since the concept was originally introduced by the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization in 2010. Over the past four years, we’ve done some hard thinking on which practices, precisely, will get us to a point where we can keep pace with the food demands of a growing global population and increase the resiliency of our food systems to the harsh impacts of climate change.

Five reasons to care about climate change and agriculture

By Rebecca Shaw / Bio / Published: September 4, 2014

Rebecca Shaw is an expert panelist at the 2014 Society of Environmental Journalists conference in New Orleans, talking about “Feeding Eight Billion People in a Warming World.”

You may have seen the recent news about the potential impacts of drought on craft breweries like Lagunitas. Or the articulate Mother Jones headline – Lay Off the Almond Milk, You Ignorant Hipsters. Talking about climate change in terms of beer and almond milk isn’t a bad strategy for capturing the attention of thirsty Americans, but it’s not just our favorite beverages that are at risk.

Climate change poses a number of potential threats to the global food system, namely because of the impacts to agriculture. Here are five reasons why everyone from beer drinkers in California to bean farmers in Latin America should care about climate change and agriculture.

1. Rising temperatures could burn a hole in your wallet. The 2014 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report found that, with average temperature increases of 3 to 4ºC, we will see large negative impacts on farm yields and severe risks to food security. Not only are food markets sensitive to climate extremes, but food prices are expected to rise anywhere from 3 to 84 percent by 2050.

Reducing risks to corn production requires a supply chain solution

By Suzy Friedman / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: July 14, 2014

Photo: © John Rae

Corn is our country’s biggest crop economically and takes up nearly one-third of U.S. cropland. It is a pillar of our food production system – a key ingredient in everything from drinks, sauces and snack foods to dairy products, fuel and meat.

So when news about corn’s risky future pops up, we should all take note, and the entire agricultural supply chain should work toward solutions.

Water & Climate Risks Facing U.S. Corn Production, produced by the nonprofit sustainability advocate Ceres, is the latest analysis to sound the warning bell.

Last year U.S. corn growers harvested a record 14 billion bushels of corn, making them among the most productive farmers in the world (this year’s harvest is expected to be huge as well). But climate change and groundwater depletion are threatening to undermine corn’s success as global demand increases. Inefficient fertilizer use is compounding the problem.

Also posted in Supply Chain / Tagged agriculture, Ceres, Climate, commodity crops, corn, drought, ecosystems, fertilizer, Field to Market, grains, Smithfield, supply chain, Walmart | Comments are closed

Climate change a risky business for America’s agriculture

By Rebecca Shaw / Bio / Published: June 30, 2014

Economists estimate that Texas’ continuing drought has cost farmers up to $8 billion so far. [ScottOlsson/Getty]

Nobody escapes climate change, especially not farmers.

The report released this week by a group of prominent and politically diverse business leaders and public officials stood out, in part, because of the alarming losses it forecasts for America’s agricultural industry.

This matters to all of us, because commodity agriculture is big business in the United States, putting food on our plates every single day.

The new fall crop for rice farmers: carbon offsets

By Robert Parkhurst / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: June 23, 2014

rice-300x2001 This September, a new crop will be made available to rice producers: carbon offsets.

The California Air Resources Board (CARB) took another important step forward last week when it published the latest draft standard for the development of carbon offsets. The standard lays out the steps a producer needs to take in order to sell his new crop. Once it is approved, producers will be able grow and sell it as a new revenue stream.

So how does this work?

Rice fields are flooded as a part of growing this worldwide staple. It’s necessary for its growth. However, when water comes in contact with organic matter, the organic matter decomposes, generating methane – a strong greenhouse gas. By reducing the amount of methane generated through rice cultivation, a farmer can generate a carbon credit that can be sold to companies to offset their carbon emissions.

What are the practices that produce credits? Read More »

Also posted in Carbon Market / Tagged AB32, CARB, methane, rice, sustainable agriculture | Comments are closed

Fertilizer-efficiency credits seed the market for agricultural offsets

By Robert Parkhurst / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: June 18, 2014

tractor Fertilizer use is key to increasing the productivity necessary for farms to feed rising populations. However, not using the right amount in the right place at the right time is one of the biggest threats to a stable climate. Nitrogen fertilizer not used by crops emits nitrous oxide, a heat-trapping gas 300 times more powerful than carbon dioxide. It also contaminates water supplies, causes algae blooms downstream and erodes soil health.

So, it was welcome news last week when the first greenhouse gas credits for fertilizer efficiency made their debut in the North American carbon market.

Also posted in Carbon Market / Tagged AB 32, agriculture, American Carbon Registry, Carbon Offsets, Climate, ecosystems, Michigan State University, nitrogen, Scientific American | Comments are closed

Smithfield Foods, world’s largest pork producer, works with EDF to cut emissions

By Maggie Monast / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: May 22, 2014

Corn is a common hog feed

First, the facts: We will have 9 billion people on the planet by 2050. That’s 2 billion more than we have today – stretching Earth’s land and water resources to meet nutritional needs in a dramatically changing climate.

In the United States, the Environmental Protection Agency calculates that agriculture is the fifth-largest source of greenhouse gas emissions, contributing 8 percent of total GHGs. Fertilizer use and soil management are responsible for half of those emissions.

Next, the challenge: Many farmers encounter difficulties in determining the precise amount of nitrogen fertilizer their crops need. It gets tricky. Using too little fertilizer can limit crop production. Too much fertilizer pollutes water and emits a potent greenhouse gas called nitrous oxide, which is 300 times more powerful than carbon dioxide.

The stark reality is that crop production must increase approximately 70 percent by 2050 to feed our growing human population. We cannot choose between agricultural productivity and sustainability — we must have both. Read More »

Also posted in Carbon Market / Tagged ecosystems, feed grain, fertilizer, nitrogen, pork, Smithfield Foods, sustainable agriculture, Walmart | Comments are closed