Assemblymember Robert Rivas of Hollister has revived a bill aimed at sequestering carbon and reducing greenhouse gas emissions in natural and working lands.
The Nature Conservancy and the California Climate and Agriculture Network are cosponsors of the bill. Along with setting a carbon capture goal for farmlands and other areas, the measure would charge the Air Resources Board (CARB) with “identifying best practices and policy incentives to achieve that goal.” Rivas said the approach would encompass “land management, restoration of woodlands and wetlands, and modifying soils.”
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The bill supports Gov. Gavin Newsom’s executive order for conserving 30% of the state’s land by 2030, granting more political clout to Rivas' effort this time.
An identical bill died last spring in the Senate Appropriations Committee. Democrats were divided over concerns of granting broad authority to CARB.
Farmers would need to see demonstrable yield increases to invest in such practices or reliable funding for incentives to cover the cost, the California Farm Bureau argued.
