Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen speaks at Cypress Creek Renewables solar field in Chapel Hill, N.C., on Tuesday, Sept. 27, 2022. Yellen warned of the economic calamity that could come if climate change were not immediately addressed with government intervention
. (AP Photo/Hannah Schoenbaum) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)
HANNAH SCHOENBAUM
Tue, September 27, 2022
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) — Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen warned Tuesday of economic calamity if climate change is not addressed with immediate government intervention.
Joined by local business owners and prominent Democrats in North Carolina, Yellen said the increasing frequency and severity of natural disasters could create devastating short-term supply reductions of everyday goods that could cause prices to skyrocket.
Supply chain disruptions like those experienced on a global scale during the COVID-19 pandemic could soon become commonplace, she said during a visit to Cypress Creek Renewables' solar farm in Chapel Hill.
“Here in North Carolina, you remember well the devastating toll of Hurricane Florence. That disaster killed 22 Americans. It led to $24 billion in damage and left a million North Carolinians without power," Yellen said.
As North Carolina is gearing up for several tight races in November, Yellen pitched the benefits of Democrats’ new climate, health and tax law, the so-called Inflation Reduction Act, that will spend $375 billion over the next decade on climate-related investments.
Combined with last year’s bipartisan infrastructure law, the investments total more than $430 billion. The money will be spent on everything from providing tax credits to purchasers of qualifying electric vehicles to constructing clean-manufacturing facilities.
Yellen said spending will be particularly impactful in “non-coastal communities that have suffered from disinvestment."
Some North Carolinians who lost their homes in Florence in 2018 and Hurricane Matthew in 2016 are still waiting on repairs or permanent housing accommodations, due in large part to supply and labor shortages brought on by the pandemic, according to the state's disaster recovery agency.
Other policies championed by President Joe Biden — including the CHIPS Act, which invests $52 billion in the domestic semiconductor industry — have focused on shoring up essential resources to reduce dependency on global manufacturers.
Yellen is the third Cabinet member to visit North Carolina in September alone, following visits from Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael Regan in Warrenton last weekend and Vice President Kamala Harris in Durham on Sept. 1.
Yellen’s visit is part of a monthlong national tour highlighting new legislation.
The Republican National Committee called Yellen’s trip to North Carolina “ironic,” accusing her of touting so-called solutions to economic problems that she and the Biden administration created, said spokeswoman Taylor Mazock.
Yellen, for her part, said the “persistent, frequent shocks” caused by climate change will put greater strains on the national budget if unaddressed. “State and local governments may increasingly be forced to devote scarce resources to disaster mitigation, potentially at the expense of investments in areas like education and worker training," she said.
Six weeks out from the midterm elections, Biden has been showering attention on the Southern swing state, where a tight U.S. Senate race could shift the power balance in the narrowly divided chamber.
The White House hosted more than 50 North Carolina leaders for a forum last week on how Biden's policies could benefit working class communities in the Tar Heel state.
And with abortion access in the spotlight, Democrats are funneling resources into North Carolina's state legislative campaigns to prevent Republicans from gaining the few seats they need to nullify the Democratic governor's veto on more stringent restrictions.
Republican U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis criticized the Biden administration Tuesday for its “reckless” spending policies that he said have been “a disaster for North Carolina families” and the economy.
“President Biden’s answer to all of our problems has been to spend more money we don’t have on far-left priorities like green energy welfare, which will only make inflation even worse for North Carolinians,” Tillis said.
___
Associated Press writer Fatima Hussein contributed from Washington.
___
Hannah Schoenbaum is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues. Follow her on Twitter @H_Schoenbaum.
HANNAH SCHOENBAUM
Tue, September 27, 2022
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) — Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen warned Tuesday of economic calamity if climate change is not addressed with immediate government intervention.
Joined by local business owners and prominent Democrats in North Carolina, Yellen said the increasing frequency and severity of natural disasters could create devastating short-term supply reductions of everyday goods that could cause prices to skyrocket.
Supply chain disruptions like those experienced on a global scale during the COVID-19 pandemic could soon become commonplace, she said during a visit to Cypress Creek Renewables' solar farm in Chapel Hill.
“Here in North Carolina, you remember well the devastating toll of Hurricane Florence. That disaster killed 22 Americans. It led to $24 billion in damage and left a million North Carolinians without power," Yellen said.
As North Carolina is gearing up for several tight races in November, Yellen pitched the benefits of Democrats’ new climate, health and tax law, the so-called Inflation Reduction Act, that will spend $375 billion over the next decade on climate-related investments.
Combined with last year’s bipartisan infrastructure law, the investments total more than $430 billion. The money will be spent on everything from providing tax credits to purchasers of qualifying electric vehicles to constructing clean-manufacturing facilities.
Yellen said spending will be particularly impactful in “non-coastal communities that have suffered from disinvestment."
Some North Carolinians who lost their homes in Florence in 2018 and Hurricane Matthew in 2016 are still waiting on repairs or permanent housing accommodations, due in large part to supply and labor shortages brought on by the pandemic, according to the state's disaster recovery agency.
Other policies championed by President Joe Biden — including the CHIPS Act, which invests $52 billion in the domestic semiconductor industry — have focused on shoring up essential resources to reduce dependency on global manufacturers.
Yellen is the third Cabinet member to visit North Carolina in September alone, following visits from Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael Regan in Warrenton last weekend and Vice President Kamala Harris in Durham on Sept. 1.
Yellen’s visit is part of a monthlong national tour highlighting new legislation.
The Republican National Committee called Yellen’s trip to North Carolina “ironic,” accusing her of touting so-called solutions to economic problems that she and the Biden administration created, said spokeswoman Taylor Mazock.
Yellen, for her part, said the “persistent, frequent shocks” caused by climate change will put greater strains on the national budget if unaddressed. “State and local governments may increasingly be forced to devote scarce resources to disaster mitigation, potentially at the expense of investments in areas like education and worker training," she said.
Six weeks out from the midterm elections, Biden has been showering attention on the Southern swing state, where a tight U.S. Senate race could shift the power balance in the narrowly divided chamber.
The White House hosted more than 50 North Carolina leaders for a forum last week on how Biden's policies could benefit working class communities in the Tar Heel state.
And with abortion access in the spotlight, Democrats are funneling resources into North Carolina's state legislative campaigns to prevent Republicans from gaining the few seats they need to nullify the Democratic governor's veto on more stringent restrictions.
Republican U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis criticized the Biden administration Tuesday for its “reckless” spending policies that he said have been “a disaster for North Carolina families” and the economy.
“President Biden’s answer to all of our problems has been to spend more money we don’t have on far-left priorities like green energy welfare, which will only make inflation even worse for North Carolinians,” Tillis said.
___
Associated Press writer Fatima Hussein contributed from Washington.
___
Hannah Schoenbaum is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues. Follow her on Twitter @H_Schoenbaum.
Biden administration invests $2.8 billion in ‘climate smart’ farming
Alejandra O'Connell-Domenech
Alejandra O'Connell-Domenech
THE HILL
Tue, September 27, 2022
Story at a glance
The U.S Department of Agriculture has selected 70 ‘climate smart’ agricultural projects to take part in its $2.8 billion pilot program.
The pilot program, Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities, aims to help make the agricultural sector more sustainable by implementing ‘climate smart’ practices like improving soil quality or changing manure management styles.
The second pool of recipients will be announced later this year.
As the climate crisis continues, the Biden administration is investing more than $2 billion to help the country’s agricultural sector become more sustainable.
The U.S Department of Agriculture announced this week that its $2.8 billion pilot program, Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities, has selected its first pool of recipients—70 agricultural projects that promote “climate smart” farming practices.
The Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations defines climate smart agriculture as an approach to “transform agri-food systems toward green and climate resilient practices.”
America is changing faster than ever! Add Changing America to your Facebook or Twitter feed to stay on top of the news.
Those practices include conservation tillage and cover cropping, which involves planting some form of flora for the sole purpose of absorbing water to either mitigate soil erosion or to protect seedings.
Other forms include actions like carbon capture and swapping out the use of wet cow manure—the creation of which accounts for a large amount of a farm’s greenhouse gas emissions—for dry manure like composting.
In 2020, methane made up 11 percent of the United States’ total greenhouse gas emissions from human activities, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. The largest source of methane came from petroleum and natural gas, at 32 percent, followed by livestock at 27 percent, landfills, and manure management, according to EPA data.
The second pool of selected projects will be announced later this year, the USDA said in a statement.
“The USDA is delivering on our promise to build and expand these market opportunities for American agriculture and be global leaders in climate-smart agricultural production,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said in a statement.
“There is strong and growing interest in the private sector and among consumers for food that is grown in a climate-friendly way. This effort will increase the competitive advantage of U.S. agriculture both domestically and internationally, build wealth that stays in rural communities and support a diverse range of producers and operation types.”
The pilot program aims to incentivize farmers to produce commodities created via climate smart practices. The selected projects will run between one and five years and have funding ranges from $5 million to $100 million.
Projects selected to receive money from the second funding pool will “emphasize the enrollment of small and/or underserved producers, and/or monitoring, reporting, and verification activities developed at minority-serving institutions.”
Tue, September 27, 2022
Story at a glance
The U.S Department of Agriculture has selected 70 ‘climate smart’ agricultural projects to take part in its $2.8 billion pilot program.
The pilot program, Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities, aims to help make the agricultural sector more sustainable by implementing ‘climate smart’ practices like improving soil quality or changing manure management styles.
The second pool of recipients will be announced later this year.
As the climate crisis continues, the Biden administration is investing more than $2 billion to help the country’s agricultural sector become more sustainable.
The U.S Department of Agriculture announced this week that its $2.8 billion pilot program, Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities, has selected its first pool of recipients—70 agricultural projects that promote “climate smart” farming practices.
The Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations defines climate smart agriculture as an approach to “transform agri-food systems toward green and climate resilient practices.”
America is changing faster than ever! Add Changing America to your Facebook or Twitter feed to stay on top of the news.
Those practices include conservation tillage and cover cropping, which involves planting some form of flora for the sole purpose of absorbing water to either mitigate soil erosion or to protect seedings.
Other forms include actions like carbon capture and swapping out the use of wet cow manure—the creation of which accounts for a large amount of a farm’s greenhouse gas emissions—for dry manure like composting.
In 2020, methane made up 11 percent of the United States’ total greenhouse gas emissions from human activities, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. The largest source of methane came from petroleum and natural gas, at 32 percent, followed by livestock at 27 percent, landfills, and manure management, according to EPA data.
The second pool of selected projects will be announced later this year, the USDA said in a statement.
“The USDA is delivering on our promise to build and expand these market opportunities for American agriculture and be global leaders in climate-smart agricultural production,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said in a statement.
“There is strong and growing interest in the private sector and among consumers for food that is grown in a climate-friendly way. This effort will increase the competitive advantage of U.S. agriculture both domestically and internationally, build wealth that stays in rural communities and support a diverse range of producers and operation types.”
The pilot program aims to incentivize farmers to produce commodities created via climate smart practices. The selected projects will run between one and five years and have funding ranges from $5 million to $100 million.
Projects selected to receive money from the second funding pool will “emphasize the enrollment of small and/or underserved producers, and/or monitoring, reporting, and verification activities developed at minority-serving institutions.”
No comments:
Post a Comment