The U.S. Division of Agriculture’s (USDA) “climate-smart” applications are sometimes climate-neutral, and in some circumstances climate-negative, based on a brand new report.
Of $5.5 billion despatched to farmers through one in all USDA’s essential environmental applications between 2017 and 2022, solely $1.7 billion — 31 p.c — funded practices on the division’s official climate-smart record, based on the Environmental Working Group (EWG). Of the highest 10 practices funded by that program in 2023, solely two have been on the climate-smart record, the non-profit group stated.
“A lot of the [remaining] $3.8 billion in funding went to structural practices like fencing, different livestock practices and irrigation practices,” stated Anne Schechinger, EWG’s Midwest director.
USDA’s Environmental High quality Incentives Program (EQIP) is likely one of the division’s largest conservation subsidy applications. It offers funding for a spread of actions on a “climate-smart” record, together with cowl crops that defend soil and enhance its fertility, no-till soil routines and wetland restoration. EQIP is essential as a result of 10.6 p.c of the US’s whole greenhouse emissions in 2023 got here from agriculture, based on USDA.
However in 2023 and 2024, 14 “provisional” practices have been added to the climate-smart record. “Provisional practices are added to the record ‘provisionally’ as a result of USDA doesn’t have any information/quantification to indicate that they really scale back emissions,” stated Schechinger.
A kind of practices is waste storage, particularly the development of manure lagoons. Waste accounts for 11 p.c of U.S. agricultural emissions, and manure lagoons launch massive quantities of nitrous oxide, a potent greenhouse fuel. Manure additionally typically pollutes streams, consuming water and groundwater.
This isn’t the primary time EQIP has come underneath hearth. “EQIP particularly pays for agricultural practices that aren’t environmentally helpful or in some circumstances actively make the setting worse,” based on a report by the Institute for Agriculture and Commerce Coverage printed in 2022.
Ten practices funded by EQIP have been “industrial” or “factory-farm pleasant,” based on that report, which additionally cited waste storage services as an issue.
A spokesperson for USDA known as EWG’s analysis “essentially flawed.”
“Sadly, EWG didn’t consider the rigorous, science-based methodology utilized by USDA to find out eligible practices, not the extent of specificity required through the implementation course of to make sure the practices’ climate-smart advantages are being maximized,” USDA spokesperson Allan Rodriguez advised GreenBiz.
