BUILDING A MORE
JUST FRAMEWORK
Reauthorization of the
Farm Bill presents an
opportunity to reshape
our broken agricultural
policies. Now is the time
to build a more just
framework that better
serves rural communities
and small and moderate-
size family farms in the
U.S., promotes good
stewardship of the land,
overcomes hunger
domestically and abroad,
and helps vulnerable
farmers and their families
in developing countries.
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Sustainable and Renewable Energy from Family Farms
As a nation, we are beginning to respond to significant energy and climate problems. In states growing corn and soybeans, great excitement is expressed in increasing renewable energy production through corn ethanol and soy-diesel. However, many recognize that this must not come about at the expense of rural communities and the environment.
In the Energy Title of the next Farm Bill, programs and incentives should ensure that renewable energy industries like ethanol and other biorefineries will benefit family farmers and rural communities while also safeguarding soil, water and biodiversity. To achieve these social and environmental goals, the Farm Bill should not only include provisions that promote domestic production of biofuel crops, but also foster local ownership in processing facilities to benefit local economic development. Equally important, bioenergy policies must encourage sustainable practices of agricultural production to ensure long-term ecological integrity for future generations of farmers.
Along with our partners in the Sustainable Agriculture community, NCRLC advocates these types of key programs and policies:
1) The first objective must be energy conservation – actually cutting energy consumption – through sustainable practices in farming systems and livestock operations. Minimizing fossil fuel use should be the first goal for all of us, urban and rural.
2) Adoption of "pro-family farmer/pro-environment" standards in the Energy Title of Farm Bill that are based on local production, local ownership and sustainable practices.
3) Funding support for new farmer co-op and community-owned biorefineries (while simultaneously placing caps on public financing for mega-sized or absentee processing plants).
4) Funding and technical assistance for sustainable energy crop and on-farm energy production.
5) Increase research and development funds, including pilot projects, for conversion processes from alternative crops/biomass, enzymes and alternative process energy generation.
SUSTAINABLE FARMING PRACTICES
Given the first objective noted above, it is worth mentioning the work of Jim Kleinschmit, Director for Rural Communities Program at the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (www.iatp.org). He cautions that even if we meet the considerations of local production and ownership, simply replacing imported petroleum with domestically grown crops will not necessarily lead to the "green" and sustainable energy future we desire. "Production of crops and bio-based materials needs to be done in a way that does not exacerbate current environmental problems or create new ones," he says.
"For example, it is foolish to replace petroleum-based gasoline with ethanol from crops if it means using huge quantities of fossils fuels in the form of synthetic fertilizer, agricultural chemicals and diesel to produce." Kleinschmit is researching optimum ways to sustainably utilize corn, soybeans and other grains and oilseeds, along with a wide variety of bio-based materials such as grasses and trees, in order to bring diversity back to agricultural landscapes and markets.
"For emerging renewable energy industries to achieve their potential and be truly renewable, all three legs of sustainability – economic, social, and ecological – must have equal value," Kleinschmit says. "If not, the remarkable potential of the bio-economy will be cut short, and rural communities will be left without a leg to stand on."
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