A Closer Look at Yard Stick’s Climate-Smart Commodities Partners, Part 3
On September 14, 2022, the USDA announced 70 projects that will receive up to $2.8 billion combined in grants from its Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities initiative. Yard Stick PBC was included as major partners in six successful project bids with $225 million in grants combined.
In parts one and two of this series, we discuss the USDA initiative and four different projects where Yard Stick PBC is the measurment, reporting and verification (MRV) partner. In this article we highlight two more exciting partners — The Nature Conservancy and South Dakota State University.
Expanding Agroforestry Production and Markets, with The Nature Conservancy
The Nature Conservancy, a global environmental nonprofit founded in 1951, set out a series of goals and policy positions in 2020 that included an effort to reduce or store 3 gigatons of CO2 emissions yearly by 2030.
This effort includes proposals to transform the power sector, reduce transportation emissions, decarbonize manufacturing, ensure a just and equitable transition, and (most relevant here) incentivize natural climate solutions. From its website:
“Congress should invest in nature-based solutions to enhance climate resilience, reduce wildfire risk and restore natural areas, as well as climate-smart agriculture and forestry practices that sequester carbon, avoid emissions and create new market opportunities.”
The Nature Conservancy and its partners, including Propagate and Yard Stick, got a jumpstart for that effort from the executive branch and the USDA with a $60 million grant to expand agroforestry in 36 U.S. states. The project submission description read:
“This project will build climate-smart markets and increase capital investments in tree planting that will increase the supply of agroforestry commodities utilizing a network of leaders in forestry. This will work directly with manufacturers and retailers to connect potential buyers with producers (including underserved producers).”
Agroforestry is the practice of integrating fruit, nut and timber trees into existing farm and pasture land. Working with Propagate, The Nature Conservancy and others, this agroforestry project will Yard Stick a chance to leverage the high quality soil carbon measurement that is our bread and butter and apply it to different sets of commodities like nuts, berries, beef, fruit trees, and forest products like timber.
“Yard Stick’s participation and the use of their new technology will significantly help remove the financial barriers around measuring soil carbon,” said Audrey Epp Schmidt, Director of Strategic Partnerships at Propagate. “These innovative methods will help us more accurately measure and provide evidence of the outsized impact that scaling agroforestry practices can have for combating climate change.”
According to The Nature Conservancy’s website, agroforestry currently represents less than 1% of U.S. agriculture. The project seeks to transform 30,000 acres into agroforestry systems in the next 5 years. The benefits from that transformation could be huge in terms of carbon sequestration. More from the website:
“Because agroforestry sequesters 2 to 5 tons of carbon per acre per year, the level of adoption expected from this project would generate carbon sequestration equivalent to 1–2.5% of 2020 U.S. emissions from all sources, according to Joe Fargione, science director for The Nature Conservancy’s North America Region. In the longer term, over approximately 20 years, the project could catalyze more than 80 million acres of high-density agroforestry, mitigating 3% to 6% of the country’s 2020 emissions.”
Agroforestry shows great promise for soil organic carbon sequestration and we’re excited to be the measurement, reporting and verification technology for this effort.
The Grass is Greener on the Other Side: Developing Climate-Smart Beef and Bison Commodities
South Dakota State University is working with several major partners, including the National Bison Association and the Tanka Fund, to study and promote best practices in regenerative ranching for beef and bison.
Regenerative ranching, and specifically its capacity for soil organic carbon sequestration, is a burgeoning area of study that has several exciting opportunities for Yard Stick PBC. Leading researchers like Dr. Paige Stanley are showing that moving away from bulk measurement and towards more point-specific measurement for the different types of soil organic carbon will lead to far better understanding of the sequestration possibilities available to ranchers. As the kids say, Yard Stick PBC is here for it!
The USDA will provide up to $80 million in funding for this project, which is slated to take place in 13 states and tribal lands. Here’s the project description:
“This project will create market opportunities for beef and bison producers who utilize climate-smart agriculture grazing and land management practices. The project will guide and educate producers on climate-smart practices most suited for their operations, manage large-scale climate-smart data that will be used by producers to improve decision-making, and directly impact market demand for climate-smart beef/bison commodity markets.”
Here’s a quote from South Dakota State’s project lead, Kristi Cammack, from the university’s website.
“As a researcher and administrator, this is a wonderful opportunity to be involved in a project that has such an impact on our state and the region,” said Cammack. “The livestock industry is a major driver of the overall economic health of South Dakota. The work we will be doing through the climate-smart commodities project will ensure the industry continues to grow and thrive for generations to come. I am excited for our SDSU team to begin working with the tremendous partners we have and help make a difference for South Dakotans and others across the country.”
Ranching is such a huge part of US agriculture; everyone at Yard Stick PBC is looking forward to working on such a potentially impactful project with SDSU and the other project partners.
