Dairy Delivers
Meeting California’s Climate Goals
As the California Air Resources Board implements its 2022 Scoping Plan, one thing is clear. . .
Dairy methane reduction efforts, including the development of more than 120 dairy digesters in the San Joaquin Valley, is proving critical for California to meet its short-lived climate pollutant (SLCPs) and overall climate protection goals. The California Department of Food and Agriculture’s (CDFA) Dairy Digester Research and Development Program (DDRDP) has not only proven to be among the state’s most cost-effective climate investments, but also the most effective program for overall reductions.
As the state’s climate plan advances toward 2030, more dairy digesters will need to be built on San Joaquin Valley farms. As the U.S. EPA has recognized, “anaerobic digestion has many environmental and economic benefits, including producing renewable energy and reducing greenhouse gas emissions and is underutilized as a manure treatment option.”
Dairy digesters represent the most proven, efficient and cost-effective opportunity to reduce dairy methane emissions. Continued incentive funding and a commitment to economically viable long-term markets for the beneficial use of captured methane, such as the Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) program, will be crucial to ensure the economic sustainability of projects. Without viable long-term markets, existing projects will be stranded and new projects will not get financed or built.
A recent UC Davis report documents the tremendous progress California dairies have made towards SB 1383 goals, while demonstrating the need for continued investment in reduction efforts.
“continued implementation and commitment to the incentive-based climate-smart solutions that are currently driving voluntary dairy methane reduction in California should, by 2030, achieve the full 40 percent reduction in dairy methane sought by state regulators without the need for direct regulation.”
