Sustainable Bioenergy, Farm, and Forests - April 4, 2014 | Newsletter

A weekly look at sustainable bioenergy, farm, and forest policy issues

April 4, 2014

White House Introduces Methane Reduction Strategy, Represents Opportunity for Farms

On March 28, the Obama administration unveiled itsStrategy to Reduce Methane Emissions, as prescribed by the President’s Climate Action Plan (CAP) released last June. While shorter-lived in the atmosphere, methane is a potent greenhouse gas (GHG), 84 times more effective at trapping heat in the atmosphere than carbon dioxide in a 20-year period. While most of the attention has been focused on the emissions of the booming domestic oil and natural gas industry, agriculture is the largest source of domestic methane emissions, at 23 percent. The plan targets methane emissions from four sectors; landfills, coal mining, agriculture, and oil and gas. Currently, methane accounts for almost 9 percent of domestic GHG emissions, down from 11 percent of total GHG emissions in 1990, despite an uptick in methane producing activities. However, methane emissions are expected to rise by 2030, unless further action is taken.

Latest IPCC Report Warns Feeding the World Will be Harder and More Expensive

On March 30, Working Group II (WGII) of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released thesecond report of its multi-part Fifth Assessment Report to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). The report is the product of 309 climate scientists and 2,000 experts summarizing 12,000 peer-reviewed scientific papers over a three-year period. According to the IPCC, if greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are not abated, average global surface temperatures will rise by 6 or 7 degrees Fahrenheit by 2100. This report specifically focuses on the human risks related to climate change. Paramount in these risks is the rising pressure on water availability and agricultural productivity by sea level rise, drought, heat waves and changes in precipitation.

To Contact the Author: Jessie Stolark at jstolark[at]eesi.org

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