Carbon Farmers tell Julia: “Let’s get on with it”

“The Carbon Farmers’ Market can start tomorrow - the regions need it, the nation needs it, and the planet needs it. Let’s get on with it,” says Carbon Farmers of Australia.
“The farmers of Australia have been waiting five years to receive credits for reducing or storing carbon – and they are urging Julia Gillard to deliver the Carbon Farming Initiative she promised during the Election, says Carbon Farmers’ director Michael Kiely. The Government has already provided the framework for a voluntary carbon market, the National Carbon Offset Standard (NCOS). The Prime Minister pledged to see a pathway built from this voluntary market to the mandatory market. A body called the Carbon Trust has been set up to oversee the market. A raft of methodologies for avoiding emissions and storing carbon in soils have been submitted for approval.
“It’s time to get on with it. The NCOS market can start tomorrow because there is no problem with measurement of nitrogenous fertiliser applied by a farmer. They need only produce delivery dockets for the super they put on in previous seasons and those for the replacement source of nutrients,” says Michael Kiely. “The need is urgent as all indicators of Climate Change are running at or above worst case scenarios.”
Under the Carbon Farming Initiative the Prime Minister has promised that farmers will be able to earn carbon offset credits by a number of methods, starting in mid-2011, including avoided emissions from fertiliser usage, which is valued at 300 times the Greenhouse Gas saving as a single tonne of CO2 saved by other means.
The Carbon Farming Initiative puts farmers on the frontline in the race to stall Global Warming long enough to enable renewable energy sources to reach critical mass to deliver base load capacity. The only option the Government has to achieve this is the sequestration of carbon in the 450 million hectares of agricultural soils. The farmers have done their part by developing techniques for growing carbon in soils. The Government has done its part by introducing the National Carbon Offset Standard.
“It’s now up to the Carbon Trust to get on with the job of assessing the methodologies we have submitted and make some decisions,” says Michael Kiely.
For more information, (02) 6374 0329