Green campaigners join forces

Some 50 lobbying organisations backed up by academics and individual farmers have called on the Scottish Government to do more to help agriculture turn a corner and substantially reduce its greenhouse gas emissions.

In a joint letter, they urge cabinet secretaries Roseanna Cunningham and Fergus Ewing to support farming practices that are less damaging to our climate, putting the country on a path to net-zero greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture by 2050. Pete Smith, professor of soils and global change at University of Aberdeen Science and director of Scotland’s Climatexchange, said the land sector contributed about one quarter of all human greenhouse gas emissions. This made it essential for action to be taken in farming in order to provide part of the climate solution.

“By adopting this ambitious net carbon neutral target for the agricultural sector, Scotland has the opportunity to lead the world toward the goals and targets set out under the Paris Agreement,” he said.

Both Scottish Land & Estates and NFU Scotland supported the proposal, with David Johnstone for the landowners: “No sector should be immune from our collective efforts to tackle climate change and farmers and land managers have a vital role to play.

“Some of the changes that we need to see will be challenging to established ways of doing things, but with the right policies in place, and the right support, advice and training, farmers and land managers can deliver a great deal.”