The 2008 Farm Bill provides for establishing science-based technical guidelines to measure environmental service benefits including carbon, water quality, and habitat credit trading. The Bill proposes creating a registry to collect, record, and maintain benefits.
Because of previous and ongoing research projects within USDA…Rapid Watershed Assessment, Conservation Effects Assessment Program, etc….there exists valuable science to lend to the assessment protocols for farm-based ecosystem services. Because of the ranking systems for the various conservation programs (EQIP, WHIP, etc.), the basis for the documentation to measure, register, monitor, and value these ecosystem services exist.
If USDA develops an outreach approach to development of the rules and guidelines…allowing for the protocols of measurement, registration and monitoring to coordinate with other standards that are developing -particularly for carbon credits- then they will have done a great service to farm and forest owners.
Filed under: Carbon Markets, Ecosystem Service Tools
