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New Dynamic in D.C., Statehouses Can Reinforce Solutions from the Land
Reaction among those advocating policies that promote land-based solutions in dealing with a changing climate are seeing Tuesday's election results as beneficial to the cause. A shift in the balance of power in the House of Representatives and the election of a number of new governors who have made clean energy and climate mitigation issues in their campaign would indicate favorable political support for the kinds of policies advocated by Solutions from the Land (SfL). Tuesday's outcome can be an opportunity for all policy makers, including those in Congress, in the Trump administration and in statehouses across the country – regardless of political affiliation – to make an earnest commitment to provide U.S. farmers, ranchers and forestland owners with the tools – programs, funding mechanisms, incentives, tax breaks and research, among others – that are needed to meet multiple challenges, including those induced by a changing climate. Read more…
SfL Report Assesses Challenges Posed by Changing Climatic Conditions in Missouri
Solutions from the Land (SfL) commends Missouri agriculture and forestry leaders who looked into the future, examined what science is telling them is coming from changing climatic conditions and extreme weather events, and explored opportunities to improve resiliency and ensure the economic viability of the state's agricultural and forestry sectors for...
Bioenergy Day Recognizes Sector’s Contributions to Forest Health, Rural Jobs Across America
Today, we join stakeholders around the country in observance of National Bioenergy Day, recognizing the importance of using domestic biomass for a wide variety of applications, including renewable energy, heating and cooling, and biobased products, to improve forest health, mitigate climate change, create jobs and strengthen communities in rural America. Solutions from the Land (SfL) and its renewable energy platform, 25x'25, join a wide range of other groups that are demonstrating today that sustainable use of biomass is among important, holistic solutions that mitigate the effects already being seen in U.S. forests due to climate change. Using excess biomass resources that are produced from existing forest management activities – as well as wastes from the forest products sector – supports forest health while reducing wildfire risk. And it should not be forgotten that all of these activities create economic opportunity for beleaguered rural America, generating local jobs and boosting economic activity. While deforestation is a pressing global concern, the U.S. Forest Service says the forested landmass of the United States has stayed stable for the past 100 years, despite a tripling of population growth. Still, U.S. forests face pressing threats from climate change, pests and urbanization. Very simply, sustainable biomass utilization can help support forest health while creating economic incentives to keep land forested. Read more…
Modern Bioenergy Leads Growth of All Renewables to 2023: IEA Forecast
A multinational agency with the mission of ensuring reliable, affordable and clean energy for its 30 member-countries and beyond says modern bioenergy will have the biggest growth among renewable energy resources between 2018 and 2023. The projections underscore the critical role of fuel, thermal and power resources in building a robust renewable portfolio and ensuring a more secure and sustainable energy system. According to the latest market forecast from the International Energy Agency's (IEA) – Renewables 2018 , bioenergy is the "overlooked giant" of the renewable energy field. IEA officials say bioenergy, which includes transportation biofuels and biomass-fueled power, make up some 50 percent of total renewable energy consumption, as much as hydro, wind, solar and all other renewables combined. Furthermore, bioenergy will lead the growth in renewable energy consumption over the five-year forecast period. Around 30 percent of the growth in renewables consumption is expected to come from modern bioenergy in the form of solid, liquid and gaseous fuel due to bioenergy's considerable use in heat production and its growing consumption in transport. The report notes that in 2023, modern bioenergy will remain the primary source of renewable energy. Read more…
IPCC Report Stresses the Need to Act Now
The latest report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) says the rate of global greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) is increasing to levels that will push temperatures above the limits targeted by world leaders as outlined in the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement. The panel reports that significant action must be taken – and taken now – to limit the increase in global temperature to no more than the mid-century target of 1.5 degrees Celsius above preindustrial levels. Without rapid, far-reaching and unprecedented changes in the energy, transportation and agriculture sectors, the risks of a changing climate to communities, regions and nations dramatically increase. One panel member said the report indicated that "The next few years are probably the most important in human history." While the report details the challenges that this world faces, it also offers opportunities to find innovative ways counter and stem the rising tide that is climate change. Solutions from the Land (SfL) demonstrates the efforts being made in agriculture to address growing, climate-related risks. Among other strategies, SfL’s farmer leaders promote the use of production and conservation practices – cover crops, enhanced crop rotation, rotational grazing, and no- and low-till farming – to capture carbon in soil. As a result, soil health and crop resilience are enhanced, and the amount of climate-warming carbon dioxide emitted into the atmosphere is lowered. Read more…
CARB Action on LCFS Underscores Need for Ethanol-Supported HOLC Fuels
Asserting that they are taking the state's climate fight up a notch, members of the California Air Resources Board (CARB) last week adopted amendments to the state's low-carbon fuel standard (LCFS) that could enhance the role of E85 and the use of ethanol in high-octane, low-carbon (HOLC) transportation fuels. Among the principle aims of the amendments is the requirement of a 20-percent cut in the carbon intensity (CI) of gasoline and diesel by 2030, a goal that can be attained with the help of more efficient, high-octane fuels achieved through biofuel blending that can reduce emissions. CI is the amount of carbon by weight emitted per unit of energy consumed, usually a British thermal unit (Btu). CARB says the amended LCFS is "designed to make the program a more versatile, comprehensive tool in the fight against climate change," while bringing the standard in compliance with California's recently adopted GHG emissions-reduction target goal of 40 percent below 1990 levels for both power and transportation fuels combined by 2030. (Read more…)
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An Agricultural Renaissance, led by innovative and entrepreneurial farmers, ranchers and foresters constructing sustainable, profitable and resilient systems that lay the foundation for a world of abundance on many scales capable of producing nutritious food, feed, fiber, clean energy, healthy ecosystems, quality livelihoods, and strong rural economies.