Just last week, NJ’s Senator Cory Booker along with Representative Abigail Spanberger (D-VA) re-introduced the Climate Stewardship Act. Originally introduced in 2019 by Senator Booker and then-Representative, now-Secretary of Interior Deb Haaland, this legislation seeks to invest heavily in the agriculture sector and empower the workers within it to become part of the solution to the climate crisis.

Farmers across the country are feeling the effects of climate change. [1] One of the ways the Climate Stewardship Act seeks to help farmers transition to more sustainable practices is by providing grant funding to farmers, ranchers, and rural businesses for energy efficient improvements and renewable energy production such as solar and wind. The Act also provides funding for what the legislation defines as “Climate Stewardship Practices.” These practices include creating herbaceous wind barriers, mulching to improve soil health, compost applications, and using prescribed grazing techniques.

The Climate Stewardship Act also seeks to plant billions of trees and restore over 2 million acres of coastal wetlands with the goal of sequestering carbon and thereby reducing the country’s net emissions. Over 400 million of these trees are drafted to be planted in urban and low-income neighborhoods with the goals of reducing temperatures and improving air quality in those areas. Ultimately, the Act seeks to reduce or offset the carbon emissions from the agriculture sector by one-third by 2025.

Sources:
[1] https://www.booker.senate.gov/news/press/with-fdrs-new-deal-as-blueprint-booker-introduces-climate-change-bill-focused-on-investing-in-farm-conservation-programs-reforestation-and-wetlands-restoration
[2]https://www.booker.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/with_fdrs_new_deal_as_blueprint_sen_booker_and_rep.spanbergerreintroduceclimatechangebillfocusedoninvestinginfarmconservationprogramsreforestationandwetlandsrestoration3.pdf