USDA’s new methods for measuring changes in greenhouse gas emissions from farming and forestry can help industrial biotech companies establish the environmental benefits of building the bioeconomy. The Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) welcomed USDA’s release of the report Quantifying Greenhouse Gas Fluxes in Agriculture and Forestry: Methods for Entity-Scale Inventory, which outlines science-based methods for quantifying changes in carbon emissions and storage at the local farm and forest operation and can help farmers and forest landowners participate in emerging carbon markets.

Brent Erickson, executive vice president of BIO’s Industrial & Environmental Section, said, “American farmers and forest owners can sustainably produce more than 1.1 billion tons of biomass annually, providing raw material for building the bioeconomy. As a groundbreaker in developing industrial biotechnology, the United States can become a leader in manufacturing renewable chemicals and biobased products, opening new opportunities for economic growth and high-tech jobs.

“This science-based methodology sets a transparent standard for measuring one important indicator of sustainability – greenhouse gas emissions – in biomass production. As we move toward biobased production, we can look to this and other indicators of industrial biotechnology’s contribution to a cleaner, healthier environment and sustainable economic growth,” he added.

(Photo Credit: ciat shared by cc 2.0)