For Some California Farmers, a Virus-Driven Drop in Emissions Could Set Back Their Climate Efforts
The state’s cap-and-trade program funds ‘climate smart’ agriculture programs. But with emissions down, funding for those programs may be threatened.
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The drop in greenhouse gas emissions that accompanied the coronavirus stay-at-home orders might seem like the lone silver lining of the Covid-19 pandemic. But in California, the reduced demand for petroleum-based fuel has had one paradoxical consequence: Revenue from the state’s system for limiting carbon emissions plummeted last month, putting many of the “climate smart” agricultural programs it funds in jeopardy.