Reducing barriers and streamlining viability of opportunities are key factors in advancing sustainable agricultural practices. Economic incentives and supportive programs, at both the state and local levels, are key components to encouraging farmers to engage with these practices. Given that the average age of farmers in the region is 62 , we need to do more to recruit and retain the next generation of climate-smart farmers. Implementation of conservation practices requires that farmers shift their management methods, while also assuming they pay the costs and repercussions of trial-and-error periods. Thus, incentivizing these actions with the appropriate financial safeguarding is necessary. California recognizes the economic value of carbon sequestering abilities in forests and working lands. The state has initiated a cap-and-trade market that promotes the selling of offsets for GHG emissions , In the past, carbon markets have generally failed to involve agriculture because the protocols for standardized offsets does not exist. However,plastic round pots for plants as new economic programs and protocols are increasingly established, landowners have the ability to generate financial returns from their conservation efforts.
Recently, the rangeland compost application has been approved as a viable practice for generating carbon offsets by the American Carbon Registry and the California Air Pollution Control Officers Association GHG Reduction Exchange . Incorporating agriculture in carbon markets gives farmers, ranchers, and forestland owners the opportunity to mitigate and adapt the impacts of climate change that directly affect them. Carbon markets encourage landowners to shift their practices to enhance carbon sequestration, generating quantifiable benefits such as enhanced carbon sequestration and soil health . The inclusion of agriculture in the carbon market can be expanded to encompass more land conservation practices, for instance, by approval of carbon farming as California Environmental Quality Act GHG mitigation . While the county’s CAP has proposed developing a local offsets registry, approving carbon farming methods as CEQA certified GHG mitigation practices could reduce costs from credit development and 3rd party verification . Compliance Offset Protocol Rice Cultivation Projects highlight a case study program for encouraging sustainable farming methods by quantifying reductions in GHG emissions. The protocol develops a market solution for a rice carbon offset protocol that helps facilitate agricultural Programs administered by the Natural Resources Conservation Services and the California Department of Food and Agriculture , such as the Healthy Soils Program and Conservation Innovation Grants , present grant opportunities that can drive agricultural innovation in resource conservation . Although there remain barriers that have ultimately limited farmer involvement, carbon credit programs have the potential to financially encourage the adoption of sequestering agricultural practices.
With several options for carbon crediting and market involvement, large-scale implementation of carbon farming throughout the county is becoming more viable. In addition to these economic incentives, there are programs that also offer financial support for transitioning land management methods. As part of San Diego’s Climate Action Plan , the county proposed establishing a Local Direct Investment Programs that aims to fund and implement local direct investment projects approved as GHG emission reductions protocols by the state . The CAP strategy is an opportunity for conservation projects such as carbon farming protocols to directly feed into CAP GHG reduction goals while also financially backing landowners. As local carbon farming protocols continue to develop and more are approved as acceptable recipients of investment funds, this can help provide economic incentive, promote carbon farming, and increase recognition of these practices as investments in county-wide resilience . As these programs that directly support farmers and offer funding, farmers are increasingly willing and able to invest in the transformation of land into carbon sinks. Thus, there is an opportunity to capitalize on these already existing programs and economic tools to further implementation efforts. As analysis result indicate, San Diego’s agricultural lands are at great risk of conversion to urban use in the coming years. Thus, programs that promote the growth of agricultural land are critical to safeguarding these valuable lands. The Urban Agricultural Incentive Zone is an example program that utilizes incentives to encourage the growth of agriculture in the city’s urban neighborhoods.
UAIZ allows for private landowners in urban areas to receive a tax incentive for leasing lands to growers, farmers, and/or gardeners for agricultural use. To receive these incentives, zones must be designated for agricultural use for at least five years . In addition to these economic and scientific resources, it is critical that farmers are supported with a network of agencies and partners that can provide both the guidance and political will needed to encourage local carbon farming initiatives. As carbon farming is increasingly recognized as a viable method of climate adaptation and mitigation, entities have started to join forces to facilitate carbon farming ideas and initiatives to on-the-ground implementation and demonstration projects. The county’s Resource Conservation Districts are integral in providing technical assistance, advice, and planning . Through comprehensive planning and monitoring, the RCDs are working to help farmers implement effective practices on their land . RCDs of Greater San Diego are following in the footsteps of RCDs statewide, developing carbon farming plan templates for assessing opportunities and related practices for landowner implementation of conservation systems that address resource concerns . In addition, San Diego has a Task Force specifically designed to promote and scale out carbon farming throughout San Diego . The Task Force is comprised of diverse stakeholders from over 40 multi-sector organizations, representing producers, industry, local independent farmers, scientists, and philanthropic groups . Expanding carbon farming from demonstration projects to region-wide implementation requires that farmers and landowners are well supported by these resources and agencies. As this network continues to grow, it presents a promising opportunity for sizeable carbon farming application and thus tangible GHG reductions and co-benefits.The combination of incentive programs, carbon farming projects, and scientific research presents a powerful opportunity to make tangible change.
If the county can capitalize on these opportunities, it will help ensure that agricultural lands continue to exist and contribute value for the region in future years. Fine-scale hydrologic models at the regional level can provide useful information about water-shed specific hydrologic response. While the BCM is able to generate confident, high resolution projections, the results are dependent on underlying NRCS soil properties used as an input. As these NRCS soil maps may not accurately reflect existing conditions,plastic garden planter it is important that conditions are assessed locally and case-by-case to help achieve projected benefits . It is thus vital that science-based decision support tools, such as the BCM and model input data, are updated, maintained, and improved to continue to inform stakeholders and decision makers. Integrated analysis helps portray where areas of benefit coincide with existing agricultural lands, and areas of benefit at risk of conversion. However, it is important to note that in many ways, San Diego lacks a comprehensive understanding of the region’s agricultural landscape. With many small, dispersed farms, data illustrative of all agricultural land in the region is limited. As a result, the “agricultural land” area is likely not representative of the entirety of San Diego’s working lands. The lack of recognition of the agricultural lands throughout the county presents many challenges for planners, natural resource managers, and entities at the forefront of San Diego county planning. Without accurate spatial records and data of agricultural lands, it is difficult to target both land preservation and carbon farming efforts. If the county plans on continuing its efforts to preserve these valuable lands in the years to come, it is critical to utilize tools, such as the BCM, that highlight the potential benefits of maintaining lands in partnership with soil management practices. For BCM results to be best utilized in targeting carbon farming and preservation planning, there is a need for accurate agriculture data. In addition, understanding the status of lands and the agencies involved in ownership and preservation can help stream light efforts. As shown in figure 19, there are lands listed as protected under CPAD and CCED that are also planned for urban development, highlighting a need for more synthesis between land use planning and programs aimed at protecting these agricultural lands. These analyses illustrate areas that exhibit natural resource characteristics amenable to carbon sequestration that coincide with existing agriculture and thus help identify lands with existing opportunities for building resiliency of agriculture against climate change impacts in the San Diego region. Results can be leveraged a tool to inform how farmers consider possibilities for farming strategies, and for designing and directing programs to best support these efforts. Additionally, studies can depict the unparalleled role that these agricultural lands play in providing critical ecosystem services throughout San Diego, especially taking into account the threats of climate change and urbanization. Agricultural lands not showing hydrologic benefit under a 3% BCM soil management scenario are not necessarily unable to produce hydrologic benefit, and thus should not be disregarded from considerations of carbon farming implementation. However, areas showing the highest degree of potential benefit may be prioritized with the most feasible and immediate opportunity for implementation. While results may not give exact quantification of hydrologic benefits, due to potential misrepresentation of soils and agricultural land, these local applications help conceptualize the potential value of our region. The rapidly changing climate necessitates that conservation efforts are more immediate and poignant than ever. With projections showing a future of water related challenges, how San Diego acts now will have implications regarding resiliency of agriculture for both the short and long-term future.
This study has highlighted the important and unique role that San Diego agriculture can play in addressing these growing challenges. Results indicate that San Diego’s agricultural lands contribute many benefits throughout the region’s institutional and natural landscapes. When managed sustainably, these lands have the potential to improve water resources across the region and become more resilient to forecasted climate impacts. Carbon farming practices can not only result in immediate benefits, but can also ensure that lands sustain these benefits for years to come. To ensure that agricultural lands and their benefits remain in the future, supportive programs and economic incentives must continue to assist farmers in implementing and bearing the costs of carbon farming practices. Additionally, quantifying benefits at a regional scale can help identify opportunities and direct these efforts to be most effective. Regional application of advanced, fine-scale hydrologic modeling can inform policy and programs, while encouraging farmers to adopt practices. It can also serve to quantify the value lost and opportunity cost if future development plans are pursued. The region’s agricultural sector, which is directly impacted by the impacts of climate change, has the ability to become a source of regional climate resilience. With advanced climate modeling, a strong agricultural community, and a network of supportive entities, partnerships, and programs, San Diego is poised to lead the way in California’s carbon farming movement. Soil compaction is a long-recognized soil sustainability threat with reports of its associated problems worldwide . Soil compaction issues have been exacerbated over the past century in agriculture by mechanization and continued growth in average tractor size . When soils are compacted, soil particles are forced closer together, diminishing porosity and pore connectivity , which impedes soil water and air movement necessary to the many services soils provide to societies and the environment, such as crop production and preventing surface runoff . Soils are more susceptible to compaction when moist, because soil strength increases as soils dry . For example, in California trials, compaction increased when the time interval between irrigation and tillage operations was shortened . In California, agricultural managed aquifer recharge is an active area of interest and research amongst farmers, policy makers, and scientists searching for solutions to groundwater depletion , 2018. This practice involves flooding agricultural fields during the winter and early spring when most crops are dormant or fields are fallow. But one concern is that Ag-MAR may increase the risk of soil compaction during subsequent field operations, especially since the practice involves deep soil saturation during periods of relatively low potential evapotranspiration . There are two concepts related to the capability of soil to support agricultural field operations: trafficability, the capability of a soil to support traffic without wheel slippage and compaction, limited mostly by excessive moisture and, work ability, the capability of the soil to be worked by tillage to achieve a specific goal , occurring optimally between some upper and lower soil moisture threshold, since soils can be either too wet or too dry for ideal work ability .