American Farmers Taking Aggressive Action on Climate Change

A few years ago, the U.S. congress was considering a carbon cap and trade proposal that would mitigate climate change, but it was fiercely opposed by American farmers.  Led by a lobby that had told them that they would face higher prices for commodities like fertilizer, they stormed Washington with hats that read “Don’t Cap Our Future.” Accordingly, the measure failed.

Now, farmers are taking a new tack.  Observing the adverse effects of climate change, e.g., higher temperatures and the consequent long droughts, they have joined together in launching the new alliance, the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture, that, according to NPR,  is “proposing initiatives that would make it easier for farmers to make climate-friendly changes on their farms. The proposals include everything from installing anaerobic digesters that capture the greenhouse gas methane from cow manure to building healthier, carbon-rich soil, absorbing carbon from the air in the process, and expanding forest land.”

Certainly this is good news, but it should be noted that, as is all too often the case, catastrophes that affect others may be cause for sympathy; those that affect us directly inspire action.