New Report Says Agriculture Can Help Combat Climate Change
August 30 2016 - 3:00PM
Business Wire
Corn And Soybean Crops Have The Highest Potential To
Mitigate/Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions; 100 Million Metric Tons
Of Greenhouse Gas Emissions Could Be Eliminated From U.S.
Agriculture By 2030
Agriculture can play a significant role in helping to reduce
greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions according to a recent scientific
report. As part of Monsanto Company’s commitment to make its own
operations carbon neutral by 2021, the company commissioned
third-party expert ICF International to examine the potential for
reducing GHG emissions through agriculture in the United States.
The resulting report titled, “Charting a Path to Carbon Neutral
Agriculture: Mitigation Potential for Crop Based Strategies,” shows
that widespread adoption of recommended practices could potentially
result in more than 100 million metric tons of carbon
dioxide-equivalent emissions reductions in the United States alone.
That’s equal to the carbon absorption potential of more than 2.5
billion tree seedlings grown for 10 years.
“This report shows promising results and helps confirm the
significant impact farmers can make when they adopt and maintain
the practices noted in the report,” said Michael Lohuis, Ph.D.,
Lead Scientist for Environmental Strategy for Agriculture,
Monsanto. “The carbon-smart practices mentioned, coupled with
innovations like biotechnology and advanced breeding, are vital
tools that can help farmers adapt to and mitigate climate
change. At Monsanto, we are committed to encouraging the use
of innovative farming techniques and carbon smart practices that
will help reduce emissions.”
This report comes after Monsanto made its commitment to be
carbon neutral by 2021. That commitment included the sharing of
data and modeling results with the broader agriculture community in
hopes of encouraging the adoption of best practices and reinforcing
the role carbon neutral cropping systems can play in reducing GHG
emissions.
The report focused on near-term strategies, including:
- Cover crops. The report found
that the greatest near-term potential for reducing GHG emissions
through agriculture comes from the planting of cover crops, grown
between primary crop seasons. Cover crops, which are currently
grown on only about 3-5 percent of U.S. crop acreage, can prevent
soil erosion and help to absorb and keep carbon stored in the
soil.
- Conservation tillage. The second
largest potential comes from reducing or eliminating soil tillage,
which enables farmers to save money and resources while limiting
the amount of carbon released from the soil into the atmosphere.
This practice also helps preserve soil structure and soil
organisms, which improves soil health.
- Precision nutrient management.
Precision agriculture and nitrification inhibitors can be effective
in reducing GHG emissions. Precision agriculture helps determine
the appropriate amount of fertilizer and pesticide to use on the
field, and where they need to be applied. By using GPS guidance and
variable rate technology when applying the inputs, farmers optimize
nutrient and fuel use while improving profitability. By adding
inhibitors, farmers utilize fertilizer more efficiently, reducing
emissions and achieving the same yield.
Long-term strategies also can help reduce carbon
emissions, but will require more research and time to scale-up.
These strategies include:
- Ethanol production from corn
stover. Corn stover (the stalks, leaves and cobs left in the
field after corn harvest) represents a sizeable renewable source of
biomass to augment ethanol production. This material could help
reduce emissions from fossil fuels while sustainably managing
excess crop residues in the field.
- Utilize crop material left in the
field after harvest. There also is a possibility that available
excess corn stover could be burned alongside coal in coal-fired
power plants, which would reduce the amount of fossil fuel used
through the use of this renewable source of energy. Available corn
stover also could be processed into plant-based charcoal (biochar)
that could be incorporated into the soil to increase soil health
and store carbon in the soil not in the atmosphere.
“Agriculture has the potential to play a critical role in
addressing climate change,” said Debbie Reed, Executive Director
with the Coalition for Agricultural Greenhouse Gases. “This report
adds another critical set of data points to help quantify and
demonstrate how the agriculture community can take actionable
steps, both in the near-term and long-term that will have a
substantial and positive impact on our planet.”
For more resources and information on Monsanto’s climate change
efforts and collaborations, see Monsanto’s 2015 sustainability
report, Growing Better Together. Click here to access the ICF
report.
About Monsanto Company
Monsanto is committed to bringing a broad range of solutions to
help nourish our growing world. We produce seeds for fruits,
vegetables and key crops – such as corn, soybeans, and cotton –
that help farmers have better harvests while using water and other
important resources more efficiently. We work to find sustainable
solutions for soil health, help farmers use data to improve farming
practices and conserve natural resources, and provide crop
protection products to minimize damage from pests and disease.
Through programs and partnerships, we collaborate with farmers,
researchers, nonprofit organizations, universities and others to
help tackle some of the world’s biggest challenges. To learn more
about Monsanto, our commitments and our more than 20,000 dedicated
employees, please
visit: discover.monsanto.com and monsanto.com.
Follow our business on Twitter® at twitter.com/MonsantoCo, on the
company blog, Beyond the
Rows® at monsantoblog.com or subscribe to
our News Release RSS Feed.
About ICF International
ICF International (NASDAQ:ICFI) is a leading provider of
professional services and technology-based solutions to government
and commercial clients. ICF is fluent in the language of change,
whether driven by markets, technology, or policy. Since 1969, we
have combined a passion for our work with deep industry expertise
to tackle our clients' most important challenges. We partner with
clients around the globe—advising, executing, innovating—to help
them define and achieve success. Our more than 5,000 employees
serve government and commercial clients from more than 65 offices
worldwide. ICF's website is www.icfi.com.
Monsanto has no investment in ICF
international.
View source
version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160830005248/en/
Monsanto CompanyLindsey Dario, 314-694-6141