We are hearing a lot about the budget reconciliation legislation, otherwise known as the Build Back Better Act, being discussed in Congress. During a recent interview on RFD-TV, National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) Senior Vice President of Communications, Alan Bjerga, talked about some of the opportunities for dairy that’s currently in that legislation.
The legislation also includes $27 billion in a once-in-a-generation funding boost for conservation programs, with an emphasis on climate smart agricultural practices. And this is something that pleases NMPF, as Bjerga explains.
NMPF notes some of the key wins for dairy among the climate-smart ag provisions of the Build Back Better Act include:
- $9 billion in new funds for the Environmental Quality Incentives Program, which provides important technical assistance to dairy farmers, targeted toward stewardship practices that can reduce greenhouse gas emissions;
- $25 million annually for Conservation Innovation Trials, with the new funding targeted toward initiatives that use feed and diet management to reduce enteric methane emissions, which can comprise roughly one-third of a dairy farm’s greenhouse gas footprint. NMPF is excited for this opportunity to amplify its focus on innovative feed additives and rations that reduce enteric emissions;
- A new cover crop initiative to pay producers $25 per acre of established cover crop practices to reduce nutrient runoff and soil erosion; and
- $7.5 billion in new funds for the Regional Conservation Partnership Program, which funds locally developed, targeted partnership projects, with emphasis on initiatives that incentivize or target reduced methane emissions.