Tom Vilsack Secretary of U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) | Official Website
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced its intention to establish the Greenhouse Gas Technical Assistance Provider and Third-Party Verifier Program Advisory Council, informally known as the Growing Climate Solutions Act Advisory Council. The USDA is currently seeking nominations for membership on this new council, as stated in a Federal Register notice published today.
Authorized by the Growing Climate Solutions Act (GCSA), which was signed into law as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023 (Public Law 117-328), the council aims to reduce market confusion by connecting qualified providers and third-party verifiers with producers seeking carbon credits.
“The program authorized by the Growing Climate Solutions Act will enable USDA to reduce market confusion by connecting qualified providers and third-party verifiers who can offer technical expertise with producers seeking to obtain carbon credits,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. “Establishing this Council with a slate of expert members from diverse backgrounds will be an important step forward in creating a program that can assist a wide scope of our stakeholders in accessing strong and verified environmental credit markets, furthering the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to advancing climate-smart agriculture and creating new income opportunities for small and mid-sized farmers.”
The council's purpose is to support farmers, ranchers, and private forest landowners, including beginning, underserved, limited resource, and veteran farmers, in participating in voluntary environmental credit markets. These markets offer credits representing real, additional, lasting, unique, and independently verified emissions reductions or removals.
Key activities of the council include periodically reviewing and recommending changes to protocols recognized by the program for generating environmental credits; required qualifications for entities providing technical assistance; and activities for which technical assistance providers and third-party verifiers may register under the program.
The council will also advise the Secretary of Agriculture on current methods used in voluntary environmental credit markets to quantify and verify greenhouse gas emissions reductions or mitigations. It will explore ways to reduce barriers to entry and transaction costs associated with such markets while strengthening them to align with high-integrity protocols for carbon credit generation.
The Secretary of Agriculture will appoint 32 members to the council from various sectors including USDA, EPA, NIST, farmers, ranchers, private forest landowners, forestry industry representatives, scientific research communities—including land-grant colleges and universities—experts in voluntary environmental credit markets and verification requirements, nongovernmental organizations, civil society organizations, and private sector businesses involved in these markets.
At least 51 percent of the advisory council members will be farmers, ranchers, or private forest landowners. Representatives from beginning farmer groups as well as underserved communities will also be included. Members are expected to serve two-year terms with staggered initial appointments ranging from one to three years. They may serve up to four additional two-year terms but will not receive compensation other than reimbursement for approved travel expenses.
Interested parties should refer to the Federal Register notice for detailed candidate qualifications. Comments can be submitted online through October 15, 2024. Nomination packages must be postmarked by October 15th and can be sent electronically via email or mailed directly.
For more information about this initiative or how to submit nominations visit www.ams.usda.gov/services/GCSA or contact Sasha Strohm at sasha.strohm@usda.gov or 202-720-5705.
AMS administers programs that create marketing opportunities domestically and internationally for U.S. food producers while ensuring quality food availability nationwide. Under the Biden-Harris administration's guidance, USDA is transforming America's food system focusing on resilient local production systems among other initiatives aimed at economic development in rural communities.
