The Department of Agriculture is investing $40 million this year for 31 projects through its Conservation Innovation Grants. One grant includes the Innovative Technologies to Reduce Beef Industry Ghg Emissions project led by Colorado State University.
The investments emphasize adoption and implementation of climate-smart practices, including nutrient management, which helps producers manage nutrients and soil amendments to maximize their economic benefit while minimizing their environmental impact. NRCS Colorado State Conservationist Clint Evans says, “These investments move the needle in helping agricultural producers adopt and implement climate-smart practices, including nutrient management.”
This year, NRCS is investing $25 million through On-Farm Trials, which supports adoption and evaluation of innovative conservation approaches. Incentive payments are provided to producers to offset the risk of implementing innovative approaches. Colorado State University received $1 million for the project to generate science-based estimates of CO2-equivalent emissions from the livestock grazing and finishing sectors using novel technologies and evaluate potential CO2e reductions from conservation practices.
