August 4, 2015
USDA’s Building Blocks for Climate Smart Agriculture & Forestry
In May 2015, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced a comprehensive and detailed approach to support farmers, ranchers, and forest land owners in their response to climate change. The framework consists of 10 building blocks that span a range of technologies and practices to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, increase carbon storage, and generate clean renewable energy. USDA’s strategy focuses on climate-smart practices designed for working production systems that provide multiple economic and environmental benefits in addition to supporting resilience to extreme weather, reduced emissions and increased carbon storage.
In executing the new initiative, USDA will use authorities in the 2014 Farm Bill to provide incentives and technical assistance to farmers, ranchers, and forest land owners.
To read more about this initiative, please go to http://www.usda.gov/documents/climate-smart-fact-sheet.pdf.
On July 27, Cargill and a dozen other major U.S. corporations committed to helping the Obama administration combat climate change.
Alcoa, Apple, Bank of America, Berkshire Hathaway Energy, Coca-Cola, General Motors, Goldman Sachs, Google, Microsoft, PepsiCo, UPS, and Walmart also are in on the American Business Act on Climate Pledge. The goal of the effort is to cut nearly 6 billion tons of carbon pollution through 2030, an amount equivalent to taking all the cars in the U.S. off the road for more than 4 years.
The effort amounts to at least $140 billion in new low-carbon investment and more than 1,600 megawatts of new renewable energy, in addition to company-specific goals to cut emissions by as much as 50 percent, reduce water intensity by as much as 15 percent, purchase 100 percent renewable energy, and pursue zero net deforestation in supply chains.
To read more about this announcement, please go to https://shar.es/1sQdgI.
On Monday, October 12, at 7 p.m. in McCain Auditorium, Greg Page, Executive Chairman of Cargill, will be delivering a Henry C. Gardiner Global Food Systems Lecture about climate change and the effects on agriculture and manufacturing in the Mid-West. Please put the lecture on your calendars.