RFA emphasizes ethanol’s potential in USDA climate-smart program
Summary
The USDA’s new Climate-Smart Agriculture and Forestry program should prioritize projects that will help farmers and downstream processors—like ethanol biorefineries—measure, verify, and monetize carbon sequestration and emissions reductions that result from new technologies and more efficient practices. This recommendation was one of many suggestions submitted by the Renewable Fuels Association Monday in response to the USDA’s request for information on potential Climate-Smart Agriculture and Forestry (CSAF) initiatives. RFA’s comments highlighted the fact that renewable fuels already serve as an excellent example of how agriculture can reduce emissions and significantly contribute to the fight against climate change. “Corn-based ethanol is the perfect climate-smart commodity; it already cuts GHG emissions in half compared when directly to gasoline,” wrote RFA President and CEO Geoff Cooper. In addition, when it comes to project funding, USDA should support efforts that help bridge the gap between current systems and those that will be needed for climate-smart corn and ethanol to expand to commercial scale.