President Announces Climate Action Plan: Says Biofuels, Agriculture, and Forestry Can Help

Concluding that the nation can no longer wait to address the rising threat of climate change, President Obama last week announced a plan to move forward and act under existing authorities. The initiatives will focus on reducing carbon pollution and developing adaptation measures in the United States and leading international efforts to prevent and adapt to climate change globally. The plan points to a number of ways that bioenergy, agriculture, and forestry can help.

In his speech at Georgetown University June 25, President Obama observed:

". . . in the late 1950s, the National Weather Service began measuring the levels of carbon dioxide in our atmosphere, with the worry that rising levels might someday disrupt the fragile balance that makes our planet so hospitable. And what they’ve found, year after year, is that the levels of carbon pollution in our atmosphere have increased dramatically. That science, accumulated and reviewed over decades, tells us that our planet is changing in ways that will have profound impacts on all of humankind. . . So the question is not whether we need to act. The overwhelming judgment of science -- of chemistry and physics and millions of measurements -- has put all that to rest. . . . So the question now is whether we will have the courage to act before it’s too late. And how we answer will have a profound impact on the world that we leave behind not just to you, but to your children and to your grandchildren. . ."

The accompanying Climate Action Plan points to a number of important roles for sustainable biofuels, farms and forests. Continued development of biofuels and the implementation of the Renewable Fuel Standard are needed to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions in transportation fuels. Preserving and enhancing the capacity of the nation’s forests to continue absorbing carbon from the atmosphere is critical. The sustainable management of forests, grasslands and wetlands is also needed to provide the wide spectrum of vital environmental services needed by society. To advance climate adaptation in agriculture and forestry, the plan calls for increased, coordinated efforts to conserve land and water resources, maintain agricultural sustainability, manage drought, reduce wildfire risks, and prepare for future floods.

While there is much that the administration can and should do under existing authorities to address climate change, a far more comprehensive climate and energy policy is needed. The President acknowledged this and said he would welcome the opportunity to work with Congress toward that end.