First Name: | Jan |
---|---|
Last Name: | Dietrick |
Email Address: | bugnet@rinconvitova.com |
Affiliation | President, Rincon-Vitova Insectaries, In |
Subject | Comments on 2030 Climate Policy Scoping from small insectary business perspective |
Comment |
We are a small business of $1.2 million sales in biological inputs for agriculture. We are the oldest business of our kind in North America since 1960. We are the 2016 recipient of the Global Regenerative Business Prize which essentially recognizes the degree to which we were founded on and maintain a view of essence within the biggest, most complex picture of society and the natural world that guides us to help our customers achieve their fullest potential. We have reduced our fossil fuel use by approximately 75% in the past decade. We invest increasing time doing advocacy for strong effective climate policy, because what difference will our hard work to cut emissions make if others are allowed to continue with business as usual polluting. We are Health Ambassadors for Physicians for Social Responsibility-LA and believe you should be listening to their leadership for environmental justice. But in terms of our business goals, your agency is frankly the nodal point for our company to achieve its highest aspirations. You must require the same of all businesses of all sizes, no matter what! All businesses and all residents need emissions reduction goals and targets as well as more encouragement and recognition of small businesses that are striving to be part of climate change solutions. Our company did the fieldwork for a study 20 years ago funded by the California Energy Commission that showed that the biggest energy savings in the transition of a farm from conventional to organic was in the pest management sector, mainly in being able to reduce the number of tractor passes. That knowledge has sat on the shelf for two decades! It is time for climate policy to recognize the potential contribution of biological row crop agriculture, not just grazing land and forests. The point is that an abundance of knowledge exists for farms to reduce their fossil fuel use as well as sequester CO2. What is needed is the economic incentive. The best way to support all small businesses and farms to transition away from fossil fuels through sound biologically based practices like carbon farming is via a comprehensive market-driven state policy, such as a simple straight-forward predictable gradually and steadily increasing carbon tax. Because emissions are increasing and we are running out of time, the goal must be at least $100 per ton of CO2 equivalent by 2025. Besides carbon dioxide emissions reduction and widespread sequestration incentives, California also has an urgent role to play in enacting strong and necessary reductions policy for methane, especially from livestock. California has the biggest methane hotspot in North America. The urgency of accelerated impacts from methane requires a minimum goal of 50 percent reduction in enteric emissions by 2025. A methane fee or tax must be based on its true social cost using the 20 year interval methane GTP. Your agency must stop ignoring the current scientific data on calculating the social cost of methane and start getting tough on emissions. California must neither compromise on climate policy nor make the model you create appear unnecessarily complicated. Simple policies are going to spread to other states and nations faster. We can use our prosperity and capacity best on the world stage by modeling simple, market-based, transparent, comprehensive carbon dioxide and methane pricing mechanisms. Thank you for this opportunity. Jan Dietrick, MPH, President Ron Whitehurst, PCA, Secretary Rincon-Vitova Insectaries, Inc 108 Orchard Dr Ventura, CA 93001 |
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Original File Name:
Date and Time Comment Was Submitted: 2016-12-16 16:52:42 |
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