United States Secretary of Agriculture
Tom Vilsack unveiled voluntary guidelines for farmers to reduce greenhouse gas
emissions that contribute to global warming.
Specific actions include reducing the
unnecessary use of fertilizer and methane emissions from cattle and swine,
reforesting areas damaged by wildfire and disease and encouraging tree planting
in urban areas.
For methane reduction in particular, the federal program
promotes installing more anaerobic digesters, which use naturally-occurring
bacteria to break down organic waste to produce biogas.
Vilsack's department estimates that if
all steps are followed, it would reduce annual emissions and enhance carbon
sequestration by roughly 120 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent —
like taking 25 million cars off the road.
Vilsack said U.S. agriculture accounts
for about nine per cent of greenhouse gas emissions.
That’s a much lower estimate than others
claim, pointing to cattle belches and farts as a huge contributor.
