By Robert Parkhurst

Rice held by Jim Whitaker of Whitaker Farms. Credit: Adam Jahiel. 

I want to tell you a story about a handful of growers whose commitment to sustainability and desire to innovate inspired an ag carbon credit movement.

Today, the first ever carbon credits generated from rice farmers were sold to Microsoft, all because of a handful of pioneers who tested out a radical idea – that by implementing conservation methods on their crops, farmers could reduce methane emissions and thereby generate a carbon credit that could be later be sold on the carbon market. Not to mention the fact that these farmers also reduced water use by as much as 30 percent.

Testing out the feasibility of the voluntary rice protocol revealed several hurdles for growers to participate – but it also provided a proof of concept that changes in farm management can indeed reduce emissions, create carbon credits and reduce water use by as much as 30 percent. Because of these farmers, we were able to learn what works and what doesn’t and spur the development of a grasslands protocol – and now, their leadership has led to an opportunity to generate credits at scale through a new nitrogen fertilizer management protocol.

Here are insights from the farmers that made it happen.

These farmers sparked agricultural carbon markets across the U.S., via @rtparkhurst and…
Click To Tweet

The Isbells

Mark Isbell pumping water on a rice field. Credit: Adam Jahiel. 

“While the carbon credits program is important, the credits themselves are not our central concern. Three other concepts are involved. Number one, it’s the idea of potential – one thing leads to another. There are multiple opportunities involved, like saving water. Number two, the program fosters an ongoing relationship with researchers. That’s critical. And number three, it’s the right thing to do. If we can do the right thing but choose not to do it, well, that's not a good thing, is it?

Economic incentives are growing. But you can't always wait for the windfall; you have to do something because it shows potential. Now is the time to do this. Farmers are generally comfortable engaging a practice that has potential. They will look at it and take a risk; they don't want to wait until it's all figured out. "

• Chris Isbell, part of a father-son team that grows rice on 3,000 acres in central Arkansas

“There’s an element of choice in the carbon credit program, that’s important. It gives the rice farmer an option for income. Any program involving farmer participation has to have that flexibility. It never needs to be compulsory. Carbon credits are another step toward defining what it means to engage in sustainable agriculture.”

• Mark Isbell, Chris’s son and farming partner

The Whitakers

The Whitakers in a field of rice almost ready for harvest. Credit: Adam Jahiel. 

“The Rice Carbon Offset project has been very rewarding for Whitaker Farms. Conservation has always been a major component in our family operations. This project has helped save millions of gallons of water, lower fertilizer rates, increase waterfowl habitat and lower GHG emissions. We consider this a win-win for the environment.”

• Jim Whitaker, who works in partnership with his brother, Sam, to farm rice in Arkansas

Jim and Sam are part of a group who call themselves Nature’s Stewards. They’re setting the bar for what it means to be a sustainable production rice farmer. They’re after the conservation trifecta: water and soil conservation; expanding wildlife habitat; and, more recently, participating in the carbon credits market.

“We need more PhD's in the field doing the research and finding out more about conservation methods; researchers tend to teach to the middle. That’s okay. I understand that. They’ve got their job to do. But we don’t aim for the middle.”

• Sam Whitaker

Mike Sullivan

Mike Sullivan and his son Ryan. Credit: Adam Jahiel. 

“The general public is screaming for sustainably sourced products. We're building the base right now.

We need a type of green seal on every bag of rice. That seal needs to to be accompanied by a barcode that, when accessed, tells the consumer that this rice came from a young farmer – which in my case would be my son Ryan – and was grown in Burdette, Arkansas using less water, less energy and at the same time creating more waterfowl habitat. Will the carbon credit deal help us get that green seal? I don’t know, but I’m willing to give it a try.”

• Mike Sullivan, who farms with his son, Ryan, in northeast Arkansas

Dan Hooks

“I first heard about carbon credits when I was sitting on a panel. I kept asking myself: Why wouldn’t I want to do this? We’re already have precision-leveled fields and using AWD (alternative-wet-drying). Carbon credits program represents money on the table for us. I signed up.”

• Dan Hooks, rice farmer in Slovak, Arkansas

Bringing carbon credits to scale

Dan Hooks and his son Luke. Credit: Adam Jahiel. 

With support from the Conservation Innovation Grants program at USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service, Climate Smart Group, Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), and K·Coe Isom are leading a nitrogen management pilot project that will determine the feasibility of developing carbon credits by improving fertilizer efficiency on croplands. Corn growers who are implementing or are starting to implement practices that optimize the application of nitrogen to their fields may qualify and could generate revenue from the resulting carbon credits.

We are working to enhance the tools and technologies used to create offsets from rice cultivation to enhance their potential for the marketplace. There is a future for generating rice credits from agriculture – and for ag carbon markets on the whole – because these farmers proved that there is an interest and willingness to participate in pilot efforts that reduce emissions from agriculture.

A diverse group of like-minded partners also guided these farmers through the process, including Terra Global Capital, American Carbon Registry, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, California Rice Commission, and the White River Irrigation District. This public private partnership was funded by NRCS under the Conservation Innovation Grants (CIG) program and Entergy Corporation.

Related:

The science behind agricultural carbon markets >>

How agriculture can help drive a low-carbon economy >>

I want to tell you a story about a handful of growers whose commitment to sustainability and desire to innovate inspired an ag carbon credit movement. Today, the first ever carbon credits generated from rice farmers were sold to Microsoft, all because of a handful of pioneers who tested out a radical idea – that […]

The post These farmers sparked agricultural carbon markets across the U.S. first appeared on Growing Returns.

I want to tell you a story about a handful of growers whose commitment to sustainability and desire to innovate inspired an ag carbon credit movement. Today, the first ever carbon credits generated from rice farmers were sold to Microsoft, all because of a handful of pioneers who tested out a radical idea – that […]

The post These farmers sparked agricultural carbon markets across the U.S. first appeared on Growing Returns.

I want to tell you a story about a handful of growers whose commitment to sustainability and desire to innovate inspired an ag carbon credit movement. Today, the first ever carbon credits generated from rice farmers were sold to Microsoft, all because of a handful of pioneers who tested out a radical idea – that […]

The post These farmers sparked agricultural carbon markets across the U.S. first appeared on Growing Returns.

By Robert Parkhurst

Rice held by Jim Whitaker of Whitaker Farms. Credit: Adam Jahiel. 

I want to tell you a story about a handful of growers whose commitment to sustainability and desire to innovate inspired an ag carbon credit movement.

Today, the first ever carbon credits generated from rice farmers were sold to Microsoft, all because of a handful of pioneers who tested out a radical idea – that by implementing conservation methods on their crops, farmers could reduce methane emissions and thereby generate a carbon credit that could be later be sold on the carbon market. Not to mention the fact that these farmers also reduced water use by as much as 30 percent.

Testing out the feasibility of the voluntary rice protocol revealed several hurdles for growers to participate – but it also provided a proof of concept that changes in farm management can indeed reduce emissions, create carbon credits and reduce water use by as much as 30 percent. Because of these farmers, we were able to learn what works and what doesn’t and spur the development of a grasslands protocol – and now, their leadership has led to an opportunity to generate credits at scale through a new nitrogen fertilizer management protocol.

Here are insights from the farmers that made it happen.

These farmers sparked agricultural carbon markets across the U.S., via @rtparkhurst and…
Click To Tweet

The Isbells

Mark Isbell pumping water on a rice field. Credit: Adam Jahiel. 

“While the carbon credits program is important, the credits themselves are not our central concern. Three other concepts are involved. Number one, it’s the idea of potential – one thing leads to another. There are multiple opportunities involved, like saving water. Number two, the program fosters an ongoing relationship with researchers. That’s critical. And number three, it’s the right thing to do. If we can do the right thing but choose not to do it, well, that's not a good thing, is it?

Economic incentives are growing. But you can't always wait for the windfall; you have to do something because it shows potential. Now is the time to do this. Farmers are generally comfortable engaging a practice that has potential. They will look at it and take a risk; they don't want to wait until it's all figured out. "

• Chris Isbell, part of a father-son team that grows rice on 3,000 acres in central Arkansas

“There’s an element of choice in the carbon credit program, that’s important. It gives the rice farmer an option for income. Any program involving farmer participation has to have that flexibility. It never needs to be compulsory. Carbon credits are another step toward defining what it means to engage in sustainable agriculture.”

• Mark Isbell, Chris’s son and farming partner

The Whitakers

The Whitakers in a field of rice almost ready for harvest. Credit: Adam Jahiel. 

“The Rice Carbon Offset project has been very rewarding for Whitaker Farms. Conservation has always been a major component in our family operations. This project has helped save millions of gallons of water, lower fertilizer rates, increase waterfowl habitat and lower GHG emissions. We consider this a win-win for the environment.”

• Jim Whitaker, who works in partnership with his brother, Sam, to farm rice in Arkansas

Jim and Sam are part of a group who call themselves Nature’s Stewards. They’re setting the bar for what it means to be a sustainable production rice farmer. They’re after the conservation trifecta: water and soil conservation; expanding wildlife habitat; and, more recently, participating in the carbon credits market.

“We need more PhD's in the field doing the research and finding out more about conservation methods; researchers tend to teach to the middle. That’s okay. I understand that. They’ve got their job to do. But we don’t aim for the middle.”

• Sam Whitaker

Mike Sullivan

Mike Sullivan and his son Ryan. Credit: Adam Jahiel. 

“The general public is screaming for sustainably sourced products. We're building the base right now.

We need a type of green seal on every bag of rice. That seal needs to to be accompanied by a barcode that, when accessed, tells the consumer that this rice came from a young farmer – which in my case would be my son Ryan – and was grown in Burdette, Arkansas using less water, less energy and at the same time creating more waterfowl habitat. Will the carbon credit deal help us get that green seal? I don’t know, but I’m willing to give it a try.”

• Mike Sullivan, who farms with his son, Ryan, in northeast Arkansas

Dan Hooks

“I first heard about carbon credits when I was sitting on a panel. I kept asking myself: Why wouldn’t I want to do this? We’re already have precision-leveled fields and using AWD (alternative-wet-drying). Carbon credits program represents money on the table for us. I signed up.”

• Dan Hooks, rice farmer in Slovak, Arkansas

Bringing carbon credits to scale

Dan Hooks and his son Luke. Credit: Adam Jahiel. 

With support from the Conservation Innovation Grants program at USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service, Climate Smart Group, Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), and K·Coe Isom are leading a nitrogen management pilot project that will determine the feasibility of developing carbon credits by improving fertilizer efficiency on croplands. Corn growers who are implementing or are starting to implement practices that optimize the application of nitrogen to their fields may qualify and could generate revenue from the resulting carbon credits.

We are working to enhance the tools and technologies used to create offsets from rice cultivation to enhance their potential for the marketplace. There is a future for generating rice credits from agriculture – and for ag carbon markets on the whole – because these farmers proved that there is an interest and willingness to participate in pilot efforts that reduce emissions from agriculture.

A diverse group of like-minded partners also guided these farmers through the process, including Terra Global Capital, American Carbon Registry, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, California Rice Commission, and the White River Irrigation District. This public private partnership was funded by NRCS under the Conservation Innovation Grants (CIG) program and Entergy Corporation.

Related:

The science behind agricultural carbon markets >>

How agriculture can help drive a low-carbon economy >>

By Mark Brownstein

Five years ago, EDF initiated a series of 16 peer-reviewed scientific studies involving over 100 research and industry experts in order to better quantify the methane emissions coming from the U.S. oil and gas industry and to better understand where and how to focus efforts to reduce them. Since then, over 30 peer-reviewed papers have been published across a number of scientific journals, with the data indicating that emissions from the industry are generally higher than official U.S. estimates.

However, quantifying methane wasn’t our only goal. We also sought to catalyze a community of researchers — both inside and outside academia — to continue this work, because there is still much more we can learn about how to effectively reduce this powerful climate pollutant.  So I was pleased to see the publication of a new independent study that evaluates methane emissions from natural gas infrastructure in the Fayetteville Shale region of Arkansas.

Researchers estimated regional emissions based on data collected during two flights in October 2015, and teamed up with the major operators in the area to help interpret the results. This proactive industry involvement is valuable for increasing our understanding about what factors may cause excessive emissions.

For this study, companies provided very detailed information about a routine operation known as manual liquids unloading – the process of unclogging a well of liquids that inhibit gas production. Specifically, industry provided the research team with the start and end times of 107 manual liquids unloading events taking place during the two midday flight windows. Thanks to these insights, researchers estimate that 30-50% of the emissions measured during the regional flights were due to these episodic events. The authors of this study report that emissions from manual liquids unloadings in the Fayetteville Shale are not equally spread across all hours of the day; instead they occur preferentially during working hours. Consequently, emissions from these episodic events measured around midday may be 3-5 times higher than the daily average.

Putting the data to use

Traditionally top-down studies like this one — which use aircraft to capture methane data in the atmosphere—find higher methane levels than studies that rely on ground-based measurements.  My science colleagues also tell me that the aircraft-based methods used in this paper reduce uncertainty between top-down and bottom up studies by carefully accounting for the background methane entering the study area which varied from East to West (although they were unsure about the effect of excluding 13 of 15 flights – deemed unsuitable for analysis – on the study’s conclusions).

These results can be expected to vary from basin-to-basin. Planned, episodic events may account for a significant portion of emissions in the Fayetteville, but research in other basins finds that abnormal, unintended events are the defining attribute of super-emitting sites – random, unpredictable sites responsible for a disproportionate amount of methane emissions.  We suspect both play a role in explaining the difference in emissions data from “top down” and “bottom up” studies reported in other basins.

The good news is unloading liquids is a common, planned event at a certain time of day – meaning companies can target interventions that are timely, efficient, and effective at reducing emissions. Now that the study has surfaced a principal cause of methane emissions in this region, a key next step is to implement suitable emission reduction strategies through company practice and federal and state regulation.

Image source: Wikimedia

By Mark Brownstein

Five years ago, EDF initiated a series of 16 peer-reviewed scientific studies involving over 100 research and industry experts in order to better quantify the methane emissions coming from the U.S. oil and gas industry and to better understand where and how to focus efforts to reduce them. Since then, over 30 peer-reviewed papers have been published across a number of scientific journals, with the data indicating that emissions from the industry are generally higher than official U.S. estimates.

However, quantifying methane wasn’t our only goal. We also sought to catalyze a community of researchers — both inside and outside academia — to continue this work, because there is still much more we can learn about how to effectively reduce this powerful climate pollutant.  So I was pleased to see the publication of a new independent study that evaluates methane emissions from natural gas infrastructure in the Fayetteville Shale region of Arkansas.

Researchers estimated regional emissions based on data collected during two flights in October 2015, and teamed up with the major operators in the area to help interpret the results. This proactive industry involvement is valuable for increasing our understanding about what factors may cause excessive emissions.

For this study, companies provided very detailed information about a routine operation known as manual liquids unloading – the process of unclogging a well of liquids that inhibit gas production. Specifically, industry provided the research team with the start and end times of 107 manual liquids unloading events taking place during the two midday flight windows. Thanks to these insights, researchers estimate that 30-50% of the emissions measured during the regional flights were due to these episodic events. The authors of this study report that emissions from manual liquids unloadings in the Fayetteville Shale are not equally spread across all hours of the day; instead they occur preferentially during working hours. Consequently, emissions from these episodic events measured around midday may be 3-5 times higher than the daily average.

Putting the data to use

Traditionally top-down studies like this one — which use aircraft to capture methane data in the atmosphere—find higher methane levels than studies that rely on ground-based measurements.  My science colleagues also tell me that the aircraft-based methods used in this paper reduce uncertainty between top-down and bottom up studies by carefully accounting for the background methane entering the study area which varied from East to West (although they were unsure about the effect of excluding 13 of 15 flights – deemed unsuitable for analysis – on the study’s conclusions).

These results can be expected to vary from basin-to-basin. Planned, episodic events may account for a significant portion of emissions in the Fayetteville, but research in other basins finds that abnormal, unintended events are the defining attribute of super-emitting sites – random, unpredictable sites responsible for a disproportionate amount of methane emissions.  We suspect both play a role in explaining the difference in emissions data from “top down” and “bottom up” studies reported in other basins.

The good news is unloading liquids is a common, planned event at a certain time of day – meaning companies can target interventions that are timely, efficient, and effective at reducing emissions. Now that the study has surfaced a principal cause of methane emissions in this region, a key next step is to implement suitable emission reduction strategies through company practice and federal and state regulation.

Image source: Wikimedia

By Mark Brownstein

Five years ago, EDF initiated a series of 16 peer-reviewed scientific studies involving over 100 research and industry experts in order to better quantify the methane emissions coming from the U.S. oil and gas industry and to better understand where and how to focus efforts to reduce them. Since then, over 30 peer-reviewed papers have been published across a number of scientific journals, with the data indicating that emissions from the industry are generally higher than official U.S. estimates.

However, quantifying methane wasn’t our only goal. We also sought to catalyze a community of researchers — both inside and outside academia — to continue this work, because there is still much more we can learn about how to effectively reduce this powerful climate pollutant.  So I was pleased to see the publication of a new independent study that evaluates methane emissions from natural gas infrastructure in the Fayetteville Shale region of Arkansas.

Researchers estimated regional emissions based on data collected during two flights in October 2015, and teamed up with the major operators in the area to help interpret the results. This proactive industry involvement is valuable for increasing our understanding about what factors may cause excessive emissions.

For this study, companies provided very detailed information about a routine operation known as manual liquids unloading – the process of unclogging a well of liquids that inhibit gas production. Specifically, industry provided the research team with the start and end times of 107 manual liquids unloading events taking place during the two midday flight windows. Thanks to these insights, researchers estimate that 30-50% of the emissions measured during the regional flights were due to these episodic events. The authors of this study report that emissions from manual liquids unloadings in the Fayetteville Shale are not equally spread across all hours of the day; instead they occur preferentially during working hours. Consequently, emissions from these episodic events measured around midday may be 3-5 times higher than the daily average.

Putting the data to use

Traditionally top-down studies like this one — which use aircraft to capture methane data in the atmosphere—find higher methane levels than studies that rely on ground-based measurements.  My science colleagues also tell me that the aircraft-based methods used in this paper reduce uncertainty between top-down and bottom up studies by carefully accounting for the background methane entering the study area which varied from East to West (although they were unsure about the effect of excluding 13 of 15 flights – deemed unsuitable for analysis – on the study’s conclusions).

These results can be expected to vary from basin-to-basin. Planned, episodic events may account for a significant portion of emissions in the Fayetteville, but research in other basins finds that abnormal, unintended events are the defining attribute of super-emitting sites – random, unpredictable sites responsible for a disproportionate amount of methane emissions.  We suspect both play a role in explaining the difference in emissions data from “top down” and “bottom up” studies reported in other basins.

The good news is unloading liquids is a common, planned event at a certain time of day – meaning companies can target interventions that are timely, efficient, and effective at reducing emissions. Now that the study has surfaced a principal cause of methane emissions in this region, a key next step is to implement suitable emission reduction strategies through company practice and federal and state regulation.

Image source: Wikimedia

By Mark Brownstein

Five years ago, EDF initiated a series of 16 peer-reviewed scientific studies involving over 100 research and industry experts in order to better quantify the methane emissions coming from the U.S. oil and gas industry and to better understand where and how to focus efforts to reduce them. Since then, over 30 peer-reviewed papers have been published across a number of scientific journals, with the data indicating that emissions from the industry are generally higher than official U.S. estimates.

However, quantifying methane wasn’t our only goal. We also sought to catalyze a community of researchers — both inside and outside academia — to continue this work, because there is still much more we can learn about how to effectively reduce this powerful climate pollutant.  So I was pleased to see the publication of a new independent study that evaluates methane emissions from natural gas infrastructure in the Fayetteville Shale region of Arkansas.

Researchers estimated regional emissions based on data collected during two flights in October 2015, and teamed up with the major operators in the area to help interpret the results. This proactive industry involvement is valuable for increasing our understanding about what factors may cause excessive emissions.

For this study, companies provided very detailed information about a routine operation known as manual liquids unloading – the process of unclogging a well of liquids that inhibit gas production. Specifically, industry provided the research team with the start and end times of 107 manual liquids unloading events taking place during the two midday flight windows. Thanks to these insights, researchers estimate that 30-50% of the emissions measured during the regional flights were due to these episodic events. The authors of this study report that emissions from manual liquids unloadings in the Fayetteville Shale are not equally spread across all hours of the day; instead they occur preferentially during working hours. Consequently, emissions from these episodic events measured around midday may be 3-5 times higher than the daily average.

Putting the data to use

Traditionally top-down studies like this one — which use aircraft to capture methane data in the atmosphere—find higher methane levels than studies that rely on ground-based measurements.  My science colleagues also tell me that the aircraft-based methods used in this paper reduce uncertainty between top-down and bottom up studies by carefully accounting for the background methane entering the study area which varied from East to West (although they were unsure about the effect of excluding 13 of 15 flights – deemed unsuitable for analysis – on the study’s conclusions).

These results can be expected to vary from basin-to-basin. Planned, episodic events may account for a significant portion of emissions in the Fayetteville, but research in other basins finds that abnormal, unintended events are the defining attribute of super-emitting sites – random, unpredictable sites responsible for a disproportionate amount of methane emissions.  We suspect both play a role in explaining the difference in emissions data from “top down” and “bottom up” studies reported in other basins.

The good news is unloading liquids is a common, planned event at a certain time of day – meaning companies can target interventions that are timely, efficient, and effective at reducing emissions. Now that the study has surfaced a principal cause of methane emissions in this region, a key next step is to implement suitable emission reduction strategies through company practice and federal and state regulation.

Image source: Wikimedia

By Larry Epstein

The government of Belize has just made major voluntary commitments at the United Nations Oceans Conference that, once implemented, will secure Belize’s fisheries as an engine for sustainable development.

Healthy oceans and sustainable fisheries are crucial for poverty alleviation, food security and generating economic growth in low and middle income countries. This goal is reinforced by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals which declare a target to “conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development.” The health and vibrancy of Belize’s coastal communities, where 15,000 people depend on fisheries for their livelihoods, depend on this target becoming a reality.

Last week, fisheries ministers, fishermen, community leaders and the conservation community from around the world gathered at the United Nations Oceans Conference to share experiences and strategies for achieving this vision, and declare voluntary commitments for good stewardship of the oceans.

The Government of Belize, representatives of Belize’s fishing community, Environmental Defense Fund, Wildlife Conservation Society, Toledo Institute for Development and Environment and The Nature Conservancy presented Belize’s major achievements in sustainable fisheries at the conference. At the gathering of leaders and experts in fisheries management from around the world, Belize’s Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries, Forestry, the Environment, Sustainable Development & Climate Change, Minister Omar Figueroa, highlighted the major step Belize took in partnership with Belize’s fishing and conservation community to end open access fisheries, and implement the world’s first national system of multispecies fishing rights for a small-scale developing world fishery, called managed access. In some fishing areas, this system is already yielding benefits as fishermen are reporting higher catch, and illegal fishing has dropped 60%.

We agree with Minister Figueroa – for Belize the oceans are “a matter of survival”.  Further, Belize’s fishing community has the most at stake from sustainable fisheries and development.  Cash Ramirez from Punta Gorda and Paula Williams from Punta Negra presented their experiences as fishers who are collaborating with fishery managers, scientists and community conservation organizations. They told the conference delegates first-hand why sustainable fisheries are important as a way of life for their communities.

Belize has made major steps to protect its magnificent barrier reef, and the biodiversity and fisheries that live there. In doing so it has established itself as a global leader in small-scale fisheries management. Minister Figueroa announced a voluntary commitment that will secure those gains – to pass a modern, comprehensive fisheries act that will significantly strengthen the foundation for good governance of fisheries and collaboration across all stakeholders.

Belize also committed to enact specific policies that will amplify fisheries recovery and rebuilding that is already underway with the end of open access and national implementation of the fishing rights policy.  Minister Figueroa announced the implementation of science-based fishery management plans for lobster, conch and finfish drawing on adaptive management approaches (http://fishe.edf.org/) pioneered by the Belize Fisheries Department, EDF and WCS with support from a community of scientists and experts from around the world. Belize will also increase its no-take zones more than three-fold, from 3% to 10% of territorial waters.

With these measures, Belize will ensure its fishermen and coastal communities continue on a path of sustainable development while also contributing to healthy reefs, more fish in the water, rich biodiversity, thriving livelihoods and food security.

The Minister’s full speech to the United Nations is available and can be viewed here:

By Larry Epstein

The government of Belize has just made major voluntary commitments at the United Nations Oceans Conference that, once implemented, will secure Belize’s fisheries as an engine for sustainable development.

Healthy oceans and sustainable fisheries are crucial for poverty alleviation, food security and generating economic growth in low and middle income countries. This goal is reinforced by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals which declare a target to “conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development.” The health and vibrancy of Belize’s coastal communities, where 15,000 people depend on fisheries for their livelihoods, depend on this target becoming a reality.

Last week, fisheries ministers, fishermen, community leaders and the conservation community from around the world gathered at the United Nations Oceans Conference to share experiences and strategies for achieving this vision, and declare voluntary commitments for good stewardship of the oceans.

The Government of Belize, representatives of Belize’s fishing community, Environmental Defense Fund, Wildlife Conservation Society, Toledo Institute for Development and Environment and The Nature Conservancy presented Belize’s major achievements in sustainable fisheries at the conference. At the gathering of leaders and experts in fisheries management from around the world, Belize’s Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries, Forestry, the Environment, Sustainable Development & Climate Change, Minister Omar Figueroa, highlighted the major step Belize took in partnership with Belize’s fishing and conservation community to end open access fisheries, and implement the world’s first national system of multispecies fishing rights for a small-scale developing world fishery, called managed access. In some fishing areas, this system is already yielding benefits as fishermen are reporting higher catch, and illegal fishing has dropped 60%.

We agree with Minister Figueroa – for Belize the oceans are “a matter of survival”.  Further, Belize’s fishing community has the most at stake from sustainable fisheries and development.  Cash Ramirez from Punta Gorda and Paula Williams from Punta Negra presented their experiences as fishers who are collaborating with fishery managers, scientists and community conservation organizations. They told the conference delegates first-hand why sustainable fisheries are important as a way of life for their communities.

Belize has made major steps to protect its magnificent barrier reef, and the biodiversity and fisheries that live there. In doing so it has established itself as a global leader in small-scale fisheries management. Minister Figueroa announced a voluntary commitment that will secure those gains – to pass a modern, comprehensive fisheries act that will significantly strengthen the foundation for good governance of fisheries and collaboration across all stakeholders.

Belize also committed to enact specific policies that will amplify fisheries recovery and rebuilding that is already underway with the end of open access and national implementation of the fishing rights policy.  Minister Figueroa announced the implementation of science-based fishery management plans for lobster, conch and finfish drawing on adaptive management approaches (http://fishe.edf.org/) pioneered by the Belize Fisheries Department, EDF and WCS with support from a community of scientists and experts from around the world. Belize will also increase its no-take zones more than three-fold, from 3% to 10% of territorial waters.

With these measures, Belize will ensure its fishermen and coastal communities continue on a path of sustainable development while also contributing to healthy reefs, more fish in the water, rich biodiversity, thriving livelihoods and food security.

The Minister’s full speech to the United Nations is available and can be viewed here:

Written by Judith A. Ross

Youth plaintiffs are suing the US government over inaction on climate change (Photo: Robin Loznak)

 

Nine-year old Levi Draheim lives on one of Florida’s fragile barrier islands, just 13 feet above sea level. In his short lifetime, he has already experienced the impact of climate change on his local ecosystems and on his health. Among other things, Levi has had to curtail his outdoor activities due to seasonal allergies, and can no longer swim in the Indian River Lagoon because of increasing flesh-eating bacteria and dead fish.

Levi is the youngest of 21 young people from across the U.S. who are taking the government to court, asserting that their constitutional and public trust rights are being violated by its creation of climate danger.

Represented by lawyers from Our Children’s Trust, the 21 filed a lawsuit, Juliana v. United States in 2015, arguing that the federal government, through its,

“… affirmative action in causing climate change, … has violated the youngest generation’s constitutional rights to life, liberty, and property, as well as failed to protect essential public trust resources.”

Or, as plaintiff Nathan Baring, 17, of Fairbanks, Alaska succinctly puts it,

“Our government continues making today’s profit a priority over protecting our right to a sustainable future. My generation, without voting rights, hasn’t been fairly represented in making decisions that will affect our lives.”

The complaint, filed in US District Court in Oregon, spells out the US government’s historical and ongoing role in continuing to promote and encourage the use of fossil fuels — in spite of long-known scientific evidence of it’s dangers.

“ … rather than implement a rational course of effective action to phase out carbon pollution, Defendants have continued to permit, authorize, and subsidize fossil fuel extraction, development, consumption and exportation – activities producing enormous quantities of CO2 emissions that have substantially caused or substantially contributed to the increase in the atmospheric concentration of CO2. Through its policies and practices, the Federal Government bears a higher degree of responsibility than any other individual, entity, or country for exposing Plaintiffs to the present dangerous atmospheric CO2 concentration. In fact, the United States is responsible for more than a quarter of global historic cumulative CO2 emissions.”

The complaint details how climate change directly impacts the current and future rights of each plaintiff. Eleven of them live in Oregon, while the other ten are from Washington, Colorado, Florida, New York, Pennsylvania, Louisiana, Arizona, Alaska, and Hawaii.

Named plaintiff in the case, Kelsey Cascadia Rose Juliana, 21, from Eugene Oregon, sums up the group’s deep sense of urgency,

“I believe that climate change is the most pressing issue my generation will ever face, indeed that the world has ever faced. This is an environmental issue and it is also a human rights issue.”

The case is quickly gathering steam, despite the government’s appeals to dismiss, which was denied by US District Judge Ann Aiken, who found in November, 2016, that,

“Exercising my ‘reasoned judgment,’ I have no doubt that the right to a climate system capable of sustaining human life is fundamental to a free and ordered society.”

The Trump Administration then filed a motion for an interlocutory appeal of that decision, which Judge Aiken denied on June 8, 2017.

With the facts in their favor, the young plaintiffs also have the fossil fuel industry on the run. Last month, three interveners, American Petroleum Institute (API), American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers (AFPM), and National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) that originally sought to protect their own interests by joining the government as defendants are now asking for permission to withdraw from the case.

Many believe that this change of heart was prompted by what the government’s co-defendants would be forced to reveal during the discovery process. As Julia Olson, co-lead counsel for plaintiffs and executive director of Our Children’s Trust, said in a May 25 press release ,

“API and its members will not come clean on the facts of climate change because they know it exposes them to liability for the damage they too have caused to the global climate system.”

In terms of relief, the Plaintiffs’ complaint, among other things, asks the court to,

• Declare that Defendants have violated and are violating Plaintiffs’ fundamental constitutional rights to life, liberty, and property by substantially causing or contributing to a dangerous concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere, and that, in so doing, Defendants dangerously interfere with a stable climate system required by our nation and Plaintiffs alike;
• Enjoin Defendants from further violations of the Constitution underlying each claim for relief;
• Declare Defendants’ public trust violations and enjoin Defendants from violating the public trust doctrine underlying each claim for relief;
• Order Defendants to prepare a consumption-based inventory of U.S. CO2 emissions;
• Order Defendants to prepare and implement an enforceable national remedial plan to phase out fossil fuel emissions and draw down excess atmospheric CO2 so as to stabilize the climate system and protect the vital resources on which Plaintiffs now and in the future will depend;
• Retain jurisdiction over this action to monitor and enforce Defendants’ compliance with the national remedial plan and all associated orders of this Court.

As Attorney Olson points out in a statement responding to Trump’s decision to pull the U.S. out of the Paris Agreement, the young plaintiffs’ lawsuit is more significant than ever.

“The youth climate lawsuit – Juliana v. US – will provide the constitutional mandate for the United States and the Trump Administration to transition to a clean energy economy, to protect the youngest generation’s right to a stable climate. At this historic moment, we need enforceable domestic actions, not empty global promises. The U.S. government has a duty to chart the course to reduce atmospheric CO2 concentrations from over 400 ppm to a safe level, below 350 ppm, by the year 2100. We believe that courts, including the U.S. District Court in Oregon, as a co-equal branch of government, can and will use judicial oversight to ensure the executive branch is complying with its constitutional and public trust obligation to implement a climate recovery plan. And unlike the Paris Agreement, the Trump Administration cannot withdraw from this lawsuit.”

On June 9th, the Trump administration took the extraordinary step of petitioning for a review of Judge Aiken’s November 2016 denial of their original appeal. And, it also is seeking “a stay of proceedings in the district court” while the Ninth Circuit considers its petition.

The government can try to run, but it can’t hide from the determination of these young plaintiffs.  As Kiran Oomen, ​20, of Eugene, Oregon vows,

“The fact that the US government is doing everything it can to avoid going to court against us makes it hard to believe they have any case whatsoever. The judicial branch is a vital part to our justice system in this country, and the government’s evasion of the courts threatens the rights of every citizen in this country. We’ll see you in court Donald Trump.”

TELL CONGRESS: NOBODY VOTED TO MAKE AMERICA DIRTY AGAIN

ICYMI: FirstEnergy keeps raking in the money, via @DispatchAlerts ow.ly/4TCx30cyTmp

Originally posted by Vanishing Paradise on June 8, 2017. Recently, Vanishing Paradise and coastal restoration supporters headed to 40 Arpent Brewery in Arabi, LA for Conservation on Tap, co-sponsored by the Meraux Foundation. At the brewery, nestled right next to the Mississippi River levee, more than 60 supporters heard a presentation by Bren Haase with Louisiana’s Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority on the 2017 Coastal Master Plan—including an overview of the plan, funding and how it would impact the sportsmen ...

Read The Full Story

The post Sportsmen Support the Coast at Conservation on Tap appeared first on Restore the Mississippi River Delta.

Originally posted by Vanishing Paradise on June 8, 2017. Recently, Vanishing Paradise and coastal restoration supporters headed to 40 Arpent Brewery in Arabi, LA for Conservation on Tap, co-sponsored by the Meraux Foundation. At the brewery, nestled right next to the Mississippi River levee, more than 60 supporters heard a presentation by Bren Haase with Louisiana’s Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority on the 2017 Coastal Master Plan—including an overview of the plan, funding and how it would impact the sportsmen ...

Read The Full Story

The post Sportsmen Support the Coast at Conservation on Tap appeared first on Restore the Mississippi River Delta.

Originally posted by Vanishing Paradise on June 8, 2017. Recently, Vanishing Paradise and coastal restoration supporters headed to 40 Arpent Brewery in Arabi, LA for Conservation on Tap, co-sponsored by the Meraux Foundation. At the brewery, nestled right next to the Mississippi River levee, more than 60 supporters heard a presentation by Bren Haase with Louisiana’s Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority on the 2017 Coastal Master Plan—including an overview of the plan, funding and how it would impact the sportsmen ...

Read The Full Story

The post Sportsmen Support the Coast at Conservation on Tap appeared first on Restore the Mississippi River Delta.

On today’s show Simone & Jacques talk with Meredith Dowling, Associate Executive Director and Emmet Bartholomew, Gulf Region Volunteer Pilot Recruitment of Southwings about how Southwings organization provides a network of volunteer pilots to advocate for the restoration and protection of the ecosystems and biodiversity of the Southeast through flight. Below is a transcript of this week's Delta Dispatches Podcast. Listen to the full recording or subscribe to our feed in iTunes and Google Play.     Listen now! Jacques: Hello. ...

Read The Full Story

The post Delta Dispatches: Seeing Louisiana's Coast from Above appeared first on Restore the Mississippi River Delta.