A coalition of industry groups has formed a group called the Rural Investment to Protect our Environment (RIPE) and is calling on USDA to create a new voluntary climate change program that pays farmers at least $100 per acre for using conservation practices.
The policy plan, called RIPE100, would “reward farmers for the total public value of their conservation practices,” the group said. “RIPE is the only policy proposal designed to protect farmers from climate policy costs and ensure a reasonable return on their efforts,” RIPE said.
The group added that currently, farmers are only paid for carbon sequestration, but other conservation practices also provide environmental benefits.
“American farmers have a pivotal role to play in tackling climate change, but they shouldn’t sacrifice their own livelihood in the process,” said RIPE Executive Director Aliza Wasserman-Drewes.
