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AGRICULTURE’S                Chapter 2


                  SUSTAINABLE

                  FUTURE:                      Fate of climate

                  Feeding more                 payment plans is in

                  while using less
                                               hands of researchers



                                               By Steve Davies










               A dizzying array of ongoing research projects,    doesn’t end up holding up to scientific scrutiny.
               with sponsors ranging from the Energy Depart-     … It’s going to be a black eye,” said Cannon
               ment to multinational food industry giants, will   Michael, a farmer in California’s Central Val-
               go a long way toward determining whether          ley who is participating in several research proj-
               carbon credit markets can become a reliable,      ects with scientists at the University of Califor-
               meaningful source of income for farmers.          nia-Davis and elsewhere.
               The researchers are working feverishly to pro-    Michael, who produces cotton, tomatoes, mel-
               duce data on how much carbon-saving farm          ons, herbs and other crops, says there has to be
               practices can reduce emissions and whether        proof of how much farming practices such as
               farmers can make a profit carrying them out.      reduced tillage actually increase soil carbon and
                                                                 reduce emissions. “You’re going to have to really
               The ultimate goal: Provide the data needed to     be backed up with good science,” he said.
               put a price on the greenhouse gases farmers can
               keep out of the air, allowing those reductions to   To increase the carbon content of his soil,
               then be sold as carbon credits. Oil and gas com-  Michael is using reduced tillage as well as a
               panies as well as airlines are potential buyers of   microbial soil treatment known as BEAM com-
               the credits, in addition to food companies and    post (BEAM stands for biologically enhanced
               others that are counting on purchasing credits to   agricultural management).
               offset their emissions.                           Planting cover crops, a practice being heav-

               “These markets are going to collapse if they’re   ily promoted to increase soil carbon in other
               based on assumptions or information that          parts of the country, doesn’t work as well in the



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