The future of Aussie agriculture and net-zero target

The government has dismissed fears the nation’s agriculture sector will be forced to meet net-zero emission targets, as a landmark plan takes shape.

The federal government has batted away fears the nation’s agriculture sector will be forced to meet net-zero emission targets, ruling out a specific emissions reduction target for the sector.

Federal Agriculture Minister Murray Watt appeared in Senate estimates last week, at the same time hundreds of submissions to the government’s agriculture and land sectoral plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions were released.

“In regard to any concerns from the NFF (National Farmers’ Federation) or others that we are going to require agriculture to be net-zero, that is not what we are proposing. We are proposing that the agriculture sector should reduce its emissions and contribute to an economy-wide target,” he said.

“There’s no policy being considered or implemented by the Australian government around herd reduction.

“What we are saying is that the ag sector, like all sectors within the economy, has got a role to play in meeting our economy-wide emissions reduction targets. We are not talking about setting any binding targets around methane reduction or anything like that.”

Mr Watt said the government would work with the sector, which already has its own emissions reduction plans, to move forward with those plans and become more sustainable.

More than 230 submissions were received as part of the agriculture and land sectoral plan survey including from Bega Cheese, the CSIRO, NAB, BP Australia, the NFF, Cattle Australia and GrainGrowers along with private farmers and producers.

The ASX-listed Bega Cheese said the federal government needed to help landholders measure and understand their emissions.

“The government needs to take an active role in resource baselining and monitoring carbon sequestration to take the burden off landholders who need to focus on implementation,” they said.

“The existing carbon calculators focus on emissions but do not adequately calculate sequestration opportunity. Making landholders feel that they are more the problem than the solution is not helpful for empowering practice change.”

GrainGrowers said it wanted to see a standardisation of greenhouse gas emission measurement and the endorsement of a carbon calculation tool for growers.

“To harness the potential of Australian grain growers to contribute to carbon sequestration and climate change mitigation, GrainGrowers urge a comprehensive approach that elevates grower expertise in the complex carbon arena and supplies tools for evaluating risks,” the submission read.

Last week the Commonwealth Bank of Australia announced it had started a pilot with emissions platform Ruminati, allowing a group of its agribusiness customers in Victoria, Queensland and NSW to calculate baseline emissions and model what changes in farming practices might have for them.