New USDA Report on the Role of Ag in Reducing GHG Emissions

A new report entitled The Role of Agriculture in Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions, EB-15, has recently been released by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.  The report was prepared by by John Horowitz and Jessica Gottlieb, September 2010.  The document also includes forestry activities.

Agriculture could play a prominent role in U.S. efforts to address climate change if farms and ranches undertake activities that reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions or take greenhouse gases out of the atmosphere. These activities may include shifting to conservation tillage, reducing the amount of nitrogen fertilizer applied to crops, changing livestock and manure management practices, and planting trees or grass. The Federal Government is considering offering carbon offsets and incentive payments to encourage rural landowners to pursue these climate-friendly activities as part of a broader effort to combat climate change. The extent to which farmers adopt such activities would depend on their costs, potential revenues, and other economic incentives created by climate policy. Existing Federal conservation programs provide preliminary estimates of the costs of agricultural carbon sequestration.