Farms.com Home   News

Opinion: GHG debate needs debit-credit balance

The home plate in baseball is 17 inches wide.

I listened to a presentation by the University of Saskatchewan agricultural economist Richard Gray at the end of March. In his submission, he suggested there was an error in greenhouse gas emission accounting. Kevin Hursh mentioned this in his column on page 11 of the April 6 issue.

Gray hypothesized that the accounting does not account for the carbon dioxide withdrawn from the atmosphere, converted to energy, stored in a kernel of grain, and exported to a user. The farm does not get credit for that exported carbon.

Industry champions support his hypothesis. I hear words like “rewarded,” and that past practices should be in the reward mix and the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change coefficients are wrong.

But the IPCC protocols for reporting emissions do address this energy transport. The accounting for respiratory emissions is on a worldwide scale. Their protocol is slightly less than a one-to-one debit and credit.

Click here to see more...

Trending Video

Home Grown Ontario Asparagus Harvest

Video: Home Grown Ontario Asparagus Harvest


It’s asparagus season in Ontario and it doesn’t get more local than this. ??

Meet Rebecca Compton of Dalton White Farms in Norfolk county. She is currently raising the 8th generation on her family farm where they grow asparagus, ginseng, and hazelnuts.

Watch the video to learn about asparagus harvest in Ontario and the importance of preserving farmland to keep farm business and food independence sustainable for years to come.

Look for asparagus at your local farmers’ market or grocery store right now. When you see the Foodland Ontario label, you know it's from a local Ontario Farm.

What’s your favourite way to enjoy asparagus? Drop your recipe below!