The CSIRO has published a review of the Federal Government’s proposed Carbon Farming Initiative in the organization’s ECOS magazine.

 

The Carbon Farming Initative, outlined by the Federal Government, is currently pending passage through the Federal Parliament. It will, if passed into legislation, be the first legislated mechanism for generating carbon credits from agricultural projects.

 

The CFI is based around carbon sequestration in ‘carbon forests’ and soil that can store carbon for up to 100 years. The move is considered a priority, given that the agriculture sector accounts for ever a quarter of the country’s greenhouse gas emissions.

 

The CFI, as found by the review in ECOS, can stand to deliver significant opportunities for emissions reductions through tree conservation and planting, improved land management, and new technology..

 

CSIRO’s Dr Jeff Baldock says land clearing and agriculture in Australia have resulted in losses of 20–70 per cent of soil carbon, compared with undisturbed areas.

“This has created an opportunity for farmers to rebuild soil carbon,” Dr Baldock says.

 

In a feature article, CSIRO researcher Dr Joely Taylor provides an insight into Australia’s prospects of developing a sustainable biofuels industry from waste biomass.

 

“A home-grown, waste-fed, ‘second-generation’ biofuels market would provide environmental, economic and fuel security benefits for Australia.

 

“Second-generation technologies – many of which are now reaching the commercial demonstration stage – convert waste materials like wheat chaff, cane bagasse, forestry residues and urban waste diverted from landfill,” Dr Taylor says.

 

“This reduces the competition for arable land – a problem posed by first-generation, crop-based biofuels.