Climate Smart Alliance for Ag

Groups Announce New Partnership at UN Climate Summit

Chris Clayton
By  Chris Clayton , DTN Ag Policy Editor
Connect with Chris:
A.G. Kawamura, a former California agriculture secretary, announced a new climate-smart initiative at the United Nations Climate Summit in New York Tuesday. (DTN file photo by Emily Unglesbee)

OMAHA (DTN) -- U.S. farm groups have signed on to join a new three-year initiative to help farmers and ranchers build more resiliency in North American agriculture to mitigate the long-term risks of climate change.

The North American Climate Smart Initiative was rolled out Tuesday as part of the United Nations Climate Summit in New York and ties into larger efforts on climate resiliency also announced by the Obama administration at the summit.

Ernie Shea, executive director of 25X25 and Solutions for the Land, said in a phone interview that the North American Climate Smart Agriculture Initiative also draws from work being done by the global alliance. The effort globally is an attempt to ensure farmland is intensively used for production, but in a way that protects the land resources from volatile weather conditions and more comprehensive focus on agricultural production, including biotechnology. "Because that's the only way we are going to be able to feed 9.5 billion people," Shea said.

"It's a pretty significant shift in emphasis from aid for developing countries around the world to an effort that is going to embrace sustainable intensification of production," Shea said. "We've been really happy to see it move in this direction."

Shea said one key to the climate-smart group for North America is that it will be led by farmers rather than governments. The group is being driven by a collection of entities.

"This has been in the works for three years and it just made sense to announce it at the climate summit," Shea said. "There are about eight or 10 of us who are here to demonstrate American leadership around climate-smart agriculture."

Some groups, countries and corporations have signed on to a joint statement for the meeting on agriculture, food security and nutrition. The statement reiterates global population growth and climate change are "already impacting all aspects of food security, food systems and the need to be more sustainable and more productive." The task then is to make agriculture globally more resilient to increasing weather volatility.

P[L1] D[0x0] M[300x250] OOP[F] ADUNIT[] T[]

A.G. Kawamura, a former California agriculture secretary, announced the new climate-smart initiative at the summit. Kawamura said in a news release that the North American program would focus on bringing together groups to examine climate-adaptation practices, tools and production systems on the farm. The effort also would review the latest science about climate change and its impacts on U.S. agriculture and forestry.

"We expect this initiative -- which will include the creation of a North American Climate Smart Agriculture Alliance -- will produce recommendations for steps that must be taken to reduce risk and enhance the resilience of ag and forestry operations," Kawamura said. "This is a resource that will offer support to states and regions, and establish crop-specific agricultural and forestry leadership teams that will develop adaptation strategies."

Kawamura cited the findings of the National Climate Assessment earlier this year that showed American agriculture has faced more climate disruptions in the past 40 years that are projected to increase over the next 25 years. By mid-century, the impacts will become increasingly negative on most crops and livestock.

"The assessment also includes many strategies agriculture and forestry can use to adapt to the average temperature and precipitation changes that are projected for the next 25 years," Kawamura said. "The North American Smart Agriculture Initiative can help promote these strategies, including technological advancements, expansion of irrigated acreage, regional shifts in crop acreage and crop species, adjustments in inputs and outputs, and changes in livestock management practices."

Fred Yoder, an Ohio farmer who serves on the Solutions from the Land board of directors and is a former president of the National Corn Growers Association, will chair the initiative.

Several major agricultural groups signed on to help support the Climate-Smart initiative in the U.S., including the American Farm Bureau Federation, American Soybean Association, National Corn Growers Association, National Farmers Union, Western Growers Association, National FFA Foundation, American Farmland Trust, United Soybean Board, Ontario Farmers Federation and the Soil and Water Conservation Society.

"Whether it is excessive flooding or withering drought, farmers and ranchers rise each day to meet the challenges of the weather; we have no doubt that we will continue to adapt to a changing climate," said Farm Bureau President Bob Stallman. "Farm Bureau believes that there are tools and solutions that will make combating inclement weather less challenging without hindering our productivity or harming the U.S. economy. This collaborative effort will ensure that farmers and livestock producers will do what needs to be done to readily meet the food demands of a global population expected to exceed 9 billion people in 2050."

President Barack Obama touched on agriculture in his speech Tuesday at the summit. Regarding the climate-smart efforts, the president said it would help farmers plant more durable crops. The president also pointed to challenges facing different regions of the country now. "In our west, wildfire season now stretches most of the year. In our heartland, farms have been parched by the worst drought in generations, and drenched by the wettest spring in our history," he said.

The president noted the U.S. is on target to lower its emissions "in the range of 17% below 2005 levels by 2020." He also said he had spoken with Chinese leaders to work together to lower emissions, adding "as the two biggest economies and emitters in the world, we have a special responsibility to lead. That's what big nations have to do."

The White House also offered a laundry list of areas where the Obama administration is working on climate change. The U.S. is joining the Global Alliance for Climate-Smart Agriculture to address global food security. The White House also pointed to the Feed the Future initiative as a way to invest in technologies, drought-tolerant crops and water efficiency to help farmers in developing countries become more resilient. The administration also is working on reducing methane and carbon emissions while promoting agriculture through the Agriculture Initiative of the Climate and Clean Air Coalition.

USDA also continues developing its regional climate hubs to work with local extension agents and other experts to help farmers adapting to changing climate conditions and weather volatility.

Chris Clayton can be reached at Chris.Clayton@dtn.com

Follow him on Twitter @ChrisClaytonDTN

(AG/BAS)

P[] D[728x170] M[320x75] OOP[F] ADUNIT[] T[]
P[L2] D[728x90] M[320x50] OOP[F] ADUNIT[] T[]
P[R1] D[300x250] M[300x250] OOP[F] ADUNIT[] T[]
P[R2] D[300x250] M[320x50] OOP[F] ADUNIT[] T[]
DIM[1x3] LBL[article-box] SEL[] IDX[] TMPL[standalone] T[]
P[R3] D[300x250] M[0x0] OOP[F] ADUNIT[] T[]

Chris Clayton