How Hepburn Shire Farms can reach Z-NET Baseline year Tonnes of carbon dioxide Agriculture emmissions equivalent in 2018 sector 262,041 106,325 Acknowledgements The Z-NET Blueprint, detailed in this report is freely usable under a This Z-NET Agricultural Guide is a publication of the Creative Commons license, specifically Attribution-NonCommercial- Hepburn Z-NET Roundtable and was made possible ShareAlike 3.0 Unported (CC BY-NC-SA 3.0). by the financial support of Sustainability Victoria, Hepburn Shire Council and Creswick Community This means you are free to: Bank and was auspiced by Renew. 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For all things Z-NET related to agriculture, go to: - Non-Commercial — You may not use the material for commercial www.hepburnznet.org.au/action/farm purposes. - ShareAlike — If you remix, transform, or build upon the material, you must distribute your contributions under the same license as the original. - No additional restrictions — You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits. Disclaimer This report was prepared by Renew in good faith exercising all due care and attention, but no representation or warranty, express or implied, is made as to the relevance, accuracy, completeness or fitness for purpose of this document in respect of any particular user’s circumstances. Users of this document should satisfy themselves concerning its application to, and where necessary seek expert advice in respect of, their situation. The views expressed within are not necessarily the views of Sustainability Victoria (SV) and may not represent SV policy. The report has been constructed based on information current as of January 2019. Since this date, material events may have occurred which are not reflected in the report. Neither Renew, nor the parties which have endorsed or been involved in the development of the report, accept any responsibility for use of the information contained in the report and make no guarantee nor accept any legal liability whatsoever arising from or connected to the accuracy, reliability, currency or completeness of any material contained in this report. Renew and all other parties involved in the preparation and publication of this report expressly disclaim all liability for any costs, loss, damage, injury or other consequence which may arise directly or indirectly from use of, or reliance on, the report. Creswick & District hepburn Community Bank®Branch wind community energy Section Overview 7 Table of contents A Introduction 8 Why the focus on agriculture? 10 What does zero net agricultural emissions looks like? 14 What are agricultural emissions actually from? 16 Emission sectors and options 19 B 1. Fossil fuels 20 2. Livestock 28 3. Land use 32 4. Soil Carbon 36 4. Agricultural inputs 40 5. Non-agricultural emissions 42 C Actions 45 How the agricultural sector can support renewables in the Shire 46 Non-emissions considerations 48 Developing an on-farm plan to reach Z-NET 50 Conclusion 52 Community programs to reach Z-NET 53 Further reading and reference list 53 How Hepburn Shire Farms can reach Z-Net 2 3 How Hepburn Shire Farms can reach Z-Net A Overview Introduction Why the focus on agriculture? What does zero net agricultural emissions looks like? What are agricultural emissions actually from? How Hepburn Shire Farms can reach Z-Net 4 5 How Hepburn Shire Farms can reach Z-Net Introduction There is a great deal of public commentary about the agricultural sector’s In 2018, the Hepburn Shire Zero Net Emissions Transition (Z-NET) project began, contribution to climate change, due to factors like land use, tillage, supply of animal products etc. While a genuine risk of environmental harm exists as building on a long history of local environmental action in the Hepburn Shire. part of some agricultural actions, agriculture (or agricultural products) and Beginning with the development of a localised greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions environmental harm are not synonymous; farms often are - and increasingly should be - net carbon sinks, havens for biodiversity and functional ecosystems, profile, this project aimed to quantify and address emissions in the Shire, using and a base for supporting industries of local food, energy and resources. local data and developing local projects to address climate change. This document is intended to act as a guide, to help farmers and community members better understand the agriculture-based drivers of climate change, and what types of action can make a material difference to greenhouse gas emissions. With input from all the local sustainability groups, community Because of these findings, and although the project began with a members, and a team of over 30 domestic and international strong focus on energy, electricity and fossil fuels, a strengthened project partners, the Community Transition Plan (CTP) was focus on agricultural emissions is a necessary step. Fortunately, It should also be mentioned that carbon accounting is a relatively “simple” launched in 2019. The CTP outlines how zero net energy could Hepburn Shire is home to a large number of innovative and open- analysis of quite complex and long-existing carbon cycles: a very useful tool for be achieved locally by 2025, followed by zero net emissions minded individuals, many of whom are farmers. This positions determining impact of human activities and natural occurrences, but not one by 2030. This is in line with the 2018 Intergovernmental the Shire well to consider, review and significantly improve the to be considered without context. It is certainly important to strive for a better Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) Special Report on Global agricultural emissions profile identified in the original CTP, and balance and to achieve net emission reductions in short-term carbon cycles Warming of 1.5˚C 1, which sets the impetus for drastic action on implement on-the-ground actions to address it. – animals, trees and vegetation, soil carbon – and these types of actions are greenhouse gas emissions within 12 years. The implementation Z-NET also identifies that the journey to carbon neutrality needs to discussed here. However, this should not detract from the need to take action of the CTP is overseen by the Z-NET Roundtable. be carried out in a way which is socially, ethically, practically and on stabilising long-term carbon cycles: most notably through stemming the financially acceptable; it must not dismiss the potential impacts release of long-sequestered carbon by burning fossil fuels. The vision for the Hepburn Shire is a three phased roadmap: on local community. For this reason, all actions taken consider the social justice elements of transition, by realising that many within This document aims to show that agriculture has the opportunity to pivot Phase 1: 2019 – 2021 (quick wins) the community may need support and guidance along the way. relatively quickly, using existing techniques and knowledge to change from a net emitter of greenhouse gases to a net carbon sink. In doing so, it can provide Phase 2: 2022 – 2024 (zero-net energy) The CTP 2 was primarily focussed on climate change ‘mitigation’, fast emissions reductions and support to other sectors, while new technologies Phase 3: 2025 – 2029 (zero-net emissions) i.e. reducing greenhouse gas emissions to mitigate the impact of develop. Over this next ‘critical decade’, the agricultural sector is well-placed climate change. Since the release of the CTP, in light of significant to transition to zero net emissions. The first step in achieving this change is an The approach taken in the development of the CTP differs from climate change-fuelled events, there has been a renewed focus open discussion about what the problems actually are, and what can be done to the approach most commonly adopted in emission reduction on climate change ‘adaptation’. Adaptation is identifying that, improve them. planning, as it is a combination of top-down and bottom- irrespective of future success of emissions reductions, climate up action in: carbon accounting, policy development, local change impacts are already being felt, and that there is a need to action and tangible projects. This amalgamation of different adapt to this changing climate. approaches carries inherent imperfectness, caused by blurred boundaries, inconsistencies in reporting, and limited budgets; Considering all of the above, the agricultural sector faces a series however, the Z-NET approach offers clear and measurable of complex challenges. For Hepburn Shire, it has a significant outcomes, within a specified and necessary timeframe. emissions footprint to reduce; it must continue to feed a growing population in an ethical and ecologically sound manner; and it Of all the emission sectors identified in the CTP, the largest (for must achieve this while facing the high likelihood of a hotter, drier the Hepburn Shire) was agriculture, which varies significantly and more volatile climate. This Guide is written for farmers in the from state, national and international averages. This variation Hepburn Shire, to share some of the learnings from the Z-NET is not because the Hepburn Shire has a particularly emissions- project and to enable and encourage farms to set their own goals intense agricultural industry; it is due to the scope of what has for carbon neutrality and to work towards those goals.