What is carbon farming initiative?

As we are progressing towards modernization, environmental concerns are increasing. Every country is developing its infrastructure without realizing that it’s happening at the cost of our ecosystem. That’s why you can see Protocols and Summits happening across the world, with the most recent and famous ones being the Durban Summit and the Kyoto Protocol. These days, people are working out new initiatives that can minimize the impacts of human activities on the Earth and maximize the restoration of ecological elements. One such initiative is the carbon farming initiative.

Carbon farming involves a method of farming that reduces the content of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Also, efforts are made to capture carbon in the soil to prevent it from causing adverse effects on the climate. Carbon farming is undertaken by farmers to earn carbon credits. It’s a new and innovative concept which allows people to trade carbons just like people trade commodities.

On a large level, when a nation surpasses its capacity of emitting carbon, it can purchase carbon credits from another nation that has excess of carbon credits remaining. The trading is done in environmental markets and it is estimated that the process of carbon trading will grow to such an extent that these markets will be as huge as our stock markets! You too can benefit from carbon credits if you’ve a land where you can cultivate crops that capture carbon. Every ton of carbon sells for an estimated $40-50. If you’ve a farm, you can start sowing the seeds for a profitable tomorrow.

Features and Benefits of Global Environmental Markets

Environmental Markets are focused on harnessing the resources and power of commercial markets for protecting the vulnerable habitats. They help in providing real benefits for the local communities that depend on them. It is important to understand the importance of ecosystem services and in recent years there has been a surge in the interest on the economics of biodiversity and ecosystems.

Carbon Farming Initiative is a program that enables farmers to earn carbon credits through the storage of carbon or by minimizing greenhouse gas emissions. The credits are then sold to businesses and people who want to reduce their emissions. This program also supports the environment by inspiring sustainable farming and offering a source for funding landscape restoration projects.

Farmers and landowners can participate voluntarily in Carbon Farming Initiative. They can choose if they want to get involved or not. It would additionally help them to determine the type of activity that can be right for them, their organization or business. When you want to participle and want to apply, it is possible to get the forms and additional information from the website of Clean Energy Regulator. The authority evaluates the eligibility of applying farmers and organizations, and the activities, which are excluded from the Carbon Farming Initiative. They would also monitor the development of programs by the government for this initiative.

Another important part of Environmental Markets is the trading of carbon credits. Popularly known as Carbon Trading, it is considered to help developing countries to minimize their poverty rate while offering an low-cost method for offsetting carbon dioxide emissions. As per the Clean Development Mechanism under the Kyoto Protocol, the developed countries around the world are allowed to fulfill their commitment to reduction in carbon emission by taking steps like developing clean energy projects and reforestation in developing countries.

Using forests for reducing emissions would not only be a financially feasible task, it can also provide significant amount of benefits to the communities. it has been found that the deals between community tree growers and industries may be one of the most cost-effective methods for organizations to reduce their carbon emissions. In addition to seizing carbon by holding carbon dioxide from entering the atmosphere, such programs would have many other benefits including food crops production and forest habitat recovery.

The mechanism of the Environmental Markets are designed to bring economic, social and local environmental benefits to millions of people in developing countries. It is considered that Carbon Trading would present a crucial opportunity for sustaining forests and resources. Last but not the least, community based tree-planting programs can provide carbon credits to industrialized countries with a touch of social responsibility. These are the leading benefits and features of the fast developing Environmental Markets.

Environmental Markets: Saving The Environment Has Now Become a Business

Man never paid heed to the deteriorating condition of the environment, until the year 2011. The latter half of 2011 saw pecuniary motivation being attached to the task of saving the environment. This was a great boon for none other than Mother Earth, which saw that her own child can save her soul (nature) if s/he is offered currency.

It is sad to witness it, but it is true in one way or the other- man is the greediest. Environment, which has given us far from what we could expect needs back something in return, something that can possibly save its and as a whole, everyone’s life. But, man has nothing to fear of. He has spent his life running behind lettuce, success and lush life. But in this blind chase, he has forgotten that he lives in the shelter of environment that is plagued by malaises such as greenhouse effect that is horrifyingly leading toward much abysmal situation- global warming. The government agencies and world powers took note of the detrimental condition of the environment, and also noticed that there is no change in the behavior of the common man; he has still been blind-folded by the razzmatazz of fake realism of self-fulfillment.  This eventually led to the creation of Environmental Markets.

The commercialization of saving the planet took place in the year 2011, when Carbon Farming Initiative (CFI) was launched. CFI is a scheme wherein land managers and farmers earn carbon credits by storing carbon or minimizing the greenhouse gas emission. It is a trifle quizzical, as to where is monitory part attached? The explanation is the carbon credits (which are hard earned by the farmers, land managers and/or foresters by decreasing the greenhouse gas emissions on the land or storing the carbon) can be later sold to big business houses and industrialist. Puzzled, as to what type of financial instrument is carbon credits, which is the most sought after entity by big industrial giants? Carbon credit is a type of permit or certificate that helps the industrial top bananas to emit carbon dioxide or other similar green house gases without pinching the environment. One carbon credit empowers the business and/or industry to emit one tonne of greenhouse gas, be it methane, carbon dioxide, ozone, nitrous oxide, etc.  

Such type of Carbon Trading has gained rage in the industry. Several land holders, farmers and foresters are concentrating on possible ways to store carbon dioxide and minimize the emission of other such nefarious greenhouse gasses. The best way, which is adopted by several land holders and farmers, is to plant more and more trees, so as to capture more carbon dioxide before it hits the roof of the atmosphere and start with its evil reaction. Similarly, by ensuring proper management of the manure, the farmers are doing their bit of minimizing emission from livestock like piggeries. Furthermore, the carbon credits can be easily gained by reducing tillage that will help the soil to hold more carbon. One other example of gaining legitimate carbon credits is by making certain that proper savanna fire management takes place, which will lead to considerable reduction of the green house gas emission. Resultantly, we are witnessing the sudden spate of masses, which is actually participating in beneficial act of saving the planet, although with a motive to plainly mint money. 

Benefits Attached With Carbon Farming Initiative

Save the emissions of carbon dioxide while faming and earn reward points. This is a fact and is called Carbon Farming Initiative that will benefit the farmers as well as they can do carbon trading as well and by not releasing carbon in to the environment. Farmers can sell the carbon points to government environmental markets.

It is important to save the environment from the carbon emissions that are happening because of the greenhouse effect and the process used in the farming these days. Farming practices and procedures has increased a lot since the last decade. There are a lot of ways by which carbon emissions into the environment can be reduced.

Carbon Farming Initiative is something that will benefit the farmers and the environment as well. The kind of environmental hazards that are happening due to the effect of carbon dioxide can be reduced by carbon trading as you may add an incentive to a cause and people will follow the money. Money is a great motivation when it comes to this cause and environmental markets are the best place for such initiatives to take place successfully.

Pollution is a great cause of destruction of human health. And it is the job of us humans only to take part and start initiatives that would help reduce the pollution from the environment. The Clean Energy Regulator directs the Carbon Farming Initiative, which is an authorized balanced scheme that permits farmers and land supervisors to earn carbon credits by storing carbon or reducing the harmful greenhouse gases emission into the atmosphere or on the land. The best part is that these carbon credits can then be traded with the people and the corporates that wishes to balance their carbon emissions.​

This initiative has been supported by the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency and Fisheries and Forestry are also accountable for being operational with the industry, various research organisations and different Government agencies so that these can develop various new methodologies that have extensive application when it comes to the land sector. In Fact, the Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency is always welcome if some outside researcher comes up with some kind of new methodologies or ideas that leads to innovation in this sector.

Combining a monetary benefit with these initiatives is big step because this will motivate farmer and other industries working in the agriculture sector also to do something good and interesting in this sector. Moreover the best thing is that the Clean Energy Regulator also beforehand warns all the probable investors of Carbon Farming Initiative schemes to be aware of the already existing misleading claims. The investment in this Carbon Farming Initiative in the fact sheets basically provides more and useful information and particulars of how can a person notify the Clean Energy Regulator of the possibly misleading claims that happens frequently in this sector.

If you want to breathe in a better environment and if you want your kids to grow in a naturally safe and green environment then always make yourself a part of this initiative.

Understanding Environmental Markets

The Environmental Markets are the financial markets for emissions trading. Emissions trading is also known as cap and trade. It is a technique used for restricting the level of pollutions caused by commercial organizationsby offering them economic incentives for efficiency in emissions and allocating a cost for inefficiency.

Carbon Trading is a relatively new concept that is in its formulation stage as many countries are proposing their own schemes. Several financial exchanges are already in place for increasing the liquidity demand in the global EnvironmentalMarkets. At present, the largest emissions trading scheme in the world is the European Union Environmental Trading Scheme.

Another importanttermsthat is prevalent in this market is in the form of Carbon Farming Initiative. It creates a trading relation between carbon polluters and farms, forest developers and landowners. In this case, the carbon polluters are those who are committed towards reducing their carbon emissions, while the farmers and others are the ones that earn carbon credits. Credits can be earned either by storing carbon in the setting or minimizingcarbon emission during production.

At this juncture, you would want to know what carbon credits mean. Carbon credits stand for reductionin atmosphericgreenhouse gasesthroughthe following two processes. The first is by increasing the level of carbonaccumulated in trees or soil. A good example is by reducing tillage in a warmso as to increase carbon or by growing forests. The secondprocess is to reduce or avoid emissions. This can be achieved by capturingand destroying methane being emitted from livestock manure or landfills.

With this knowledge in place, you would now be able to better understand what Environmental Markets mean. They are a controlled exchange of ecosystemservices and goods between sellers and buyers. The sellers have the suppliers, and they act as the owners of property. The take steps for the implementation of conservation practices for improving ecosystem services. as an example, the planting of a riparian buffer enables landowners to generate reductions in nutrientsfor creating credits. They can then sell these credits to buyers from the water quality market.

It is the buyers that provide the capital and need for driving Carbon Trading markets. As an example, the water quality markets would be driven by the need for reduction of nitrogen and other nutrients in the watershed. The organizations and peopleasking for these reductionswould be complying with rulings such as the Clean Water Act. This further leads to the creation of future rules.

Ecosystem markets, Environmental Markets and Payments for Ecosystem Services are different termsused for referring to the complete set of economic tools used for rewardingconserving ecosystem services. in addition, all these terms are also used for referring particular division of these tools.