Climate watch: With support, Pennsylvania’s farmers can deliver climate solutions

In the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, uncertainty overtook us. Would the virus spread to our Happy Valley? What did this mean for day-to-day life? Uncertainty showed up at our grocery stores, with panicked neighbors navigating empty shelves to stock up on food; something I’ve never witnessed before.

Though plenty of uncertainty remains, our grocery store shelves are full again, and farmers continue their essential work, though some have struggled. Nationally we’ve seen infection outbreaks and processing disruptions hit, but still, our food supply chain has proven resilient. America’s farmers are the foundation of that supply chain, including growers here in central Pennsylvania. We are so grateful for their work that keeps us fed even during these tumultuous times.

But it is imperative to note that COVID-19 is not the only existential challenge facing our country or our farmers. Climate change, bringing more unpredictable precipitation and rising heat, as well as stronger and more frequent weather events, adds another level of uncertainty to America’s agricultural sector. It’s crucial and timely for Congress to enact legislation that will both support farmers and address climate change.

Encouragingly, a bipartisan group of senators have introduced the Growing Climate Solutions Act. This legislation provides incentives for farmers and foresters to engage in sustainable practices by helping them to access lucrative carbon credit markets. Basically, it makes it easy for farmers to get paid for the emissions they reduce and the carbon they sequester. This can go far, as agriculture has the biggest potential to sequester carbon out of any sector, and offers the most available opportunity to control global warming.

This bill gives farmers technical assistance to earn carbon credits to develop better practices, measures the value of those credits, and certifies them for trading on the market. It’s good news for farmers and for the planet, since agriculture, forestry, and other land use (like biofuels) contribute an estimated 10.5% of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, according to the USDA, and 24% globally, reports the IPCC.

Here in Pennsylvania, climate change is already affecting our farmers, with more hot days, pests and heat stress. The Growing Climate Solutions Act would help farmers combat these concerning trends and reap financial benefits to do it.

Our representatives have shown their interest in our farmers, including Sen. Bob Casey as member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, and Sen. Pat Toomey who has worked to ensure markets for Pennsylvania farmers. Please ask them to support this vital bill.

As the measure has also been introduced in the House, we must encourage our Congressional representatives to support it as well: 15th District Congressman Glenn Thompson, member of the House Agriculture Committee, and 12th District representative Fred Keller, who has called agriculture the “lifeblood of central and northeastern Pennsylvania.”

In July, the Senate Agriculture Committee held a hearing on this legislation. Sen. Debbie Stabenow, ranking committee member and cosponsor of the Growing Climate Solutions Act said, “While farmers are uniquely affected by the climate crisis, they are also a critically important part of the solution.”

Agreed! Farmers need support to navigate our changing climate. They have huge potential to help prevent the worst of the inevitable changes coming. Congress must continue to work together to pass bipartisan legislation that values farmers’ contributions to feeding America, alongside solving the challenge of climate change.