OPENING STATEMENT OF SENATOR PAT ROBERTS

SUBCOMMITTEE ON PRODUCTION AND PRICE COMPETITIVENESS

HEARING ON CARBON CYCLE RESEARCH AND AGRICULTURE'S ROLE IN REDUCING CLIMATE CHANGE

MAY 4, 2000

Good afternoon and welcome to today's hearing.

Given scientific uncertainties about the magnitude, timing, rate, and regional consequences of climate change, what are the appropriate responses to the problem for world decision makers? The Administration has decided that the Kyoto Protocol, which mandates the United States to cut its energy usage seven percent below 1990 levels with no developing nation participation, is the appropriate method.

I am not going to open up a debate about climate change, but I am interested in finding a solution. One component of a solution is croplands, soils, and forests that soak up carbon dioxide. We will hear today from the leader of the NOAA agency that reported that crops, soils, and forests have the ability to absorb most if not all of the carbon dioxide emitted through fossil fuel emissions.

Is there a sensible solution to climate change that has benefits for agriculture rather than pursuing a diplomatic strategy that may impose harsh unforseen consequences on the United States?

I have introduced legislation that will promote agricultural research in the area of climate change while giving producers and policymakers a better understanding of the link between the carbon cycle and agricultural best management practices.

My bill, S.1066, the Carbon Cycle and Agricultural Best Practices Research Act, authorizes the USDA to conduct needed research on the mechanics of storing carbon in soil and to preform research that will better define agriculture's ability to solve climate change. Why? Agriculture may have the ability to store 200 million tons of carbon annually or the equivalent of 307 million tons of coal. For a regional perspective, a large utility in Kansas uses 10 to 11 million tons of coal annually.

The research focuses on best management practices such as conservation tillage, efficient fertilizer application, intensive crop rotations, and increased cover crops. These practices reduce soil erosion, reduce fuel costs, improve soil fertility, improve water quality, and increase production. For this reason, the promotion of conservation practices in agriculture remains a win win opportunity for everyone.

With that in mind, I am pleased to welcome the panels here today and look forward to hearing about agriculture's role in mitigating greenhouse gases. Today's panelists include representatives from government agencies, leading carbon cycle researchers, and agriculture producers who have embraced best management practices. Unfortunately, because we are in the middle of planting season, one of the producers invited to testify, Mr. Clark Woodworth from Sterling, Kansas, could not make the trip to Washington, and I would like to submit his testimony for the record.

I would like to remind the panelists that your entire testimony will be submitted for the record and ask that you limit your statements to no more than five minutes so that everyone has ample time to be heard.