Cattlemen's Assn. Unveils Climate Change Principles
Published: Friday, February 15, 2019
The National Cattlemen's Beef Assn's. Center for Public Policy last Thursday released new Cost/Benefit Principles that will help guide its decision-making process on various policy proposals regarding climate change.
"It seems like every week or so, another group releases another proposal or call to 'Do Something' about climate change – such as the so-called 'Green New Deal' that was released today," said Colin Woodall, NCBA senior vice president, government affairs. "Unfortunately, many of these proposals are often lacking in specifics, which makes it very hard for us to develop substantive responses. Hopefully, our new Cost/Benefit Principles will help the producers we represent—as well as millions of other concerned American citizens—make better-informed decisions on important issues like climate change.
Woodall pointed out that U.S. beef producers have already made a great deal of progress on environmental issues like climate change, such as producing the same amount of beef with 33 percent fewer cattle, compared to 1977. Woodall also pointed out that beef producers in the U.S. now have one of the lowest carbon footprints compared to many of their worldwide counterparts—now producing only 2 percent of all carbon emissions in the United States.
"Despite all the progress we've made on the environmental front in recent decades, some policymakers still seem to think targeting U.S. beef producers and consumers will make a huge impact on global emissions," Woodall said. "That's why we drafted our Principles—to give the folks who are proposing new public policies the opportunity to outline the specific costs and estimated benefits of their proposals."
NCBA's new six-point Cost/Benefit Principles for Climate Change Policy Proposals read as follows:
1. Explain specifically what policy changes you are proposing.
2. Estimate as specifically as possible how much each of these policy changes would cost taxpayers, consumers of specific energy sources (automobile drivers, residential electricity users, airline travelers, etc.,) food consumers and specific targeted industries / business owners, etc.
3. Estimate how much CO2 and other greenhouse gas emissions would be reduced by a date certain (of your choosing) if your proposed policies outlined in Question 1 above were to be fully implemented.
4. Estimate how much global temperatures would be changed by the same date certain you use in Question 3 if your policy recommendations in Question 1 were to be fully implemented.
5. If any of your policy proposals are intended to reduce the consumption of beef, please detail specifically how much additional land must be converted to crop production in order to fill the protein-intake gap, i.e,, the difference between average protein intake via current beef consumption and what would have to be produced and consumed to keep protein-intake levels consistent under an all- or mostly vegetarian of vegan diet. Also, identify specifically where this land is located, and how much additional GHGs would be released into the atmosphere by converting current pasture land into crop production.
6. Please show all your math for your estimated costs, emissions, average global temperature, and land conversion data outlined in Questions 2, 3, 4 and 5.
Return to Top of Page