Ag Carbon Credits Spark Debate

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The state’s farmers and ranchers could be getting extra money in their pocket just by continuing practices they’re probably doing anyway, and many are.

Nebraska is leading the country in ag carbon credit registration.

Here’s how it works. A carbon emissions goal is set nationally for companies to follow.

Some can’t get their carbon levels down to the required rate, so they buy carbon credits from other companies that are well below the required rate.

Ag producers can also transfer their eco-friendly farming and ranching practices into carbon credits.

Currently, carbon credits are worth about .50 cents an acre.

It’s a way for farmers and ranchers to get paid for virtually nothing.

“It’s a great opportunity to sort of remunerate them for benefits they’ve been providing anyway,” said Jace Nore, area manager for Sun One Solutions.

The benefits include no-till farming and rotational grazing.

Both methods are widely used in Nebraska, and both can be transferred into carbon credits sold on the Chicago Climate Exchange.

“Actually, with the help of the University of Nebraska they calculated how much sequestration is taking place based on soil types, moistures,” said Nore.

In other words, how much carbon dioxide is captured in the soil.

That’s where the debate begins.

“No-till of agricultural lands, we find actually does not result in much carbon sequestration. If anything, it’s carbon neutral,” said UNL Soil Science Professor Dan Walters.

But carbon credit aggregators say more goes into calculating carbon sequestration than what the plant holds in its roots.

“They also do some factoring into the less number of trips you have to make across the field,” said Nore. “The less diesel fuel you burn, the less you’re polluting the air with the emissions from your tractors.”

But Walters says what they aren’t calculating could be doing more damage.

That’s the other trace gases used in agriculture, like nitrogen.

“That’s the 300 pound gorilla in the whole carbon trading scheme,” he said. “In that one molecule of nitrous oxide is equal to 300 molecules of emission of CO2.”

But aggregators say, regardless, the carbon credit market is good for producers.

“We get the debate all the time on the science. We get the debate on the whole global warming issue,” Nore said. “But here’s an opportunity to add some income to your operation.”

If you’re a rancher, a carbon credit deadline is looming.

On February 1st, the Chicago Climate Exchange will no longer register rotational grazing done in the past five years.

The rules have changed. Ranchers will only be able to get credit for one year in the past.

According to Nore, it’s because proving the practices were being done got too hard.

He said, the exchange wants to fortify these records so eventually they may become tradable world wide.

To get more information on the deadline, visit Nebraska-based aggregator SunOne Solutions’ website: http://www.sunonesolutions.com/

To check the exchange visit: http://www.chicagoclimateexchange.com/