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Australia has one of the most robust carbon project schemes in the world. Our farmers have a great greenhouse gas emission story to tell globally, but they are not being told this nearly enough.
But at the moment, farmers feel bombarded and confounded with information relating to "carbon" and all the things they should be doing, could be doing, and would be doing.
Unfortunately, the important information has been lost in a swarm of buzzwords that has left many farmers simply feeling attacked and deflated. Combined with vague messaging, many farmers are left asking - what is it exactly that you're wanting us to do?
There's real opportunity for farmers to harness this market - let's break down how.
Why so vague?
The truth is, a lot of the frameworks and processes are still being worked out at a national and global level (by governments and corporates), so there aren't clear cut answers to the following questions:
- How do I share my greenhouse gas emissions (GHGe) information with the customers who are buying my produce and are required to account for their Scope 3 emissions?
- How do I "inset" if I'm not in a carbon project?
- What value do I create and retain for my farm business by doing this?
This has resulted in a lot of information being given to farmers that omits the specifics, because ultimately, many of these specifics aren't known as yet, despite the best of intentions.
There has been a steep learning curve across industry in the last five-years when it comes to carbon (pretty broad stroke there), and a lot is being worked out as we go along due to maintaining integrity in the regulatory process and quite rapid advances in available and validated technologies.
So, what is it exactly that they're asking farmers to do?
First, start organising the data (fuel, fertiliser, yield etc) that make up your greenhouse gas emissions (GHGe) and put this information somewhere that you can share it later (eg. GHGe calculator).
This thing is happening. Farm businesses will need to supply their greenhouse gas emission data to their supply-chain stakeholders (in some way, shape, or form). How do we know? Supply-chain corporates are being asked for this information under legislation, and critically, many are already asking farmers to supply this data.
Something specific you can do is to download one of the free agricultural greenhouse gas emissions calculators and get familiar with the data points they are asking for.
Note: If you are unwilling to put your greenhouse gas emission data into a free app to understand this information for your own farm business, you are unlikely to want to do the work that is involved in a carbon project of any kind. Key point here What happens then? It is likely that supplying this data will become a condition of sale, just like the many other data points that farmers are asked to supply to support market access and biosecurity. (Note: we don't know what this looks like yet).
So, if spending two hours popping this data into a free app seems OK, keep reading.
Next, work out if a carbon project is the right move for your farm. There are a lot of different types, and you will likely need someone to help you navigate this.
Australia has one of the highest integrity, well-regulated, carbon project schemes (ACCU Scheme) on the planet.
The Australian government has invested millions of dollars to ensure that there are suitable and feasible options for Australian farmers and land managers to actively participate in carbon markets.
The system is designed to encourage participation, i.e. the Clean Energy Regulator (CER) is very farmer friendly. The ACCU Scheme is robust, has rigour and is a very good platform for engagement that will only get better.
Where to find specific information: Go to the Clean Energy Regulator's website, then Scheme (in the top navigation), then Australian Carbon Credit Unit Scheme.
The individual methodologies (instructions) for each type of carbon project are very detailed, but you will soon see that you may need to get in some other external skills and experience to support you with this.
These services are available.
By getting on the front foot of knowing the greenhouse gas emissions of your farm production, farmers will be empowered to influence how this data is managed and the value that is potentially created for the farm business.
The more farmers who do this, the more agency farmers will have collectively in this conversation.
The positive carbon outcomes for Australian agriculture will be defined and realised far quicker when there is clarity for all people involved.
This is not going away, and there is an enormous opportunity for Australian farmers to be world leaders in carbon.
Pip Grant is the CEO of farming systems group, Riverine Plains, and has worked on government funded carbon accounting projects, trialled carbon measurement technologies, and worked directly with hundreds of farmers and farm advisors who are starting to understand the carbon opportunity and requirements for farm businesses.
