Help available for flood-hit farmers
The chair of the Otago Rural Support Trust, Tom Pinckney, says he believes that they will be especially busy in the coming months as the enormity of the floods hit home.
The Ministry for Primary Industries is calling on researchers to apply for funding to better measure the country’s agricultural emissions.
The funding comes from MPI’s Greenhouse Gas Inventory Research annual funding round, which recently opened for research proposals with $2.1 million available.
Under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Control (UNFCCC), New Zealand must annually report its emissions through the Greenhouse Gas Inventory. This calculates and records greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture and industry in the country, as well as carbon sequestration from forests. MPI administers the agricultural side of this report.
Steve Penno says, this year, MPI is seeking proposals on nine priority areas, ranging from methane to the effects of plants on emissions.
“We’re seeking research proposals to maintain and improve our agriculture, forestry and land-use inventory. It will also be used to account for mitigation technologies as they are developed and implemented on farms in New Zealand.”
Penno says the research fund is an important tool in enabling reporting to the NZ Greenhouse Gas Inventory and the UN under the Paris Climate Agreement.
He adds that accurate information is essential for developing policy and verifying that efforts to reduce agricultural emissions across the country.
In Budget 2022 the Government committed $339 million through the Climate Emergency Response Fund to accelerate development and uptake of high-impact agricultural mitigation technologies. Of this, $1.5 million was added to the Greenhouse Gas Inventory Research fund for 2022/23, taking available funding to $2.1 million for new projects over the next 12 months.
Penno says the fund also contributes to international efforts to drive down agricultural emissions.
“As one of the only developed countries with a largely pasture-based agricultural economy, we’re also able to share our research outcomes with less developed countries with similar agricultural sectors to boost their knowledge,” he adds.
The Greenhouse Gas Inventory Research funding round is opened on 14 July and closes on 12 August, with successful proposals expected to be announced in October.
Fonterra shareholders are concerned with a further decline in the co-op’s share of milk collected in New Zealand.
A governance group has been formed, following extensive sector consultation, to implement the recommendations from the Industry Working Group's (IWG) final report and is said to be forming a 'road map' for improving New Zealand's animal genetic gain system.
Free workshops focused on managing risk in sharefarming got underway last week.
Annual farmer gathering, the South Island Dairy Event (SIDE), is set to make history as it heads to Timaru for the first time.
Installing 400 solar panels at their Taranaki piggery and cropping operation will have significant environmental, financial and animal welfare benefits for the Stanley family.
WoolWorks, New Zealand’s largest wool-scouring company, has partnered with the Lions Club of Riverton to help raise money for much-needed repairs to the Southland town’s swimming pool.
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