Third World Network intervention at the Workshop on Agriculture at the 5^th Session of the AWG-LCA, Bonn, 4 April 2009

Agriculture seriously affects climate change and is in turn seriously affected by it. The large mitigation potential can change agriculture from being the second largest emitter of GHGs to a much smaller emitter or even a net sink. The overall mitigation potential is 6 billion tonnes a year, which is close to all of agriculture’s direct emissions. The greatest potential mitigation contribution is from soil carbon sequestration (5.38 billion tones annually), followed by reduction of methane emissions (500 million tones) and nitrous oxide emissions (120 million tones).

Conventional and intensive agriculture characterized by mechanization and use of agro-chemicals (mineral fertilizers, herbicides, pesticides) and reliance on high external inputs (chemicals, irrigation, fossil fuels) have led to high environmental and social costs that may undermine future capacity to maintain required levels of food production.

In April 2008, the International Assessment of Agricultural Science and Technology for Development (IAASTD) launched its report in Johannesburg, which was approved by 57 governments. The IAASTD was an inter-governmental process, co-sponsored by FAO, UNDP, UNEP, GEF, World Bank, with over 400 authors involved in drafting the report. It conducted a three-year evidence-based assessment on agricultural science and technology and on the future of agriculture. It made a critique of conventional industrial farming and called for a fundamental change in farming practices so as to better address increasing food prices, hunger, inequities and environmental crises. The report reflects a growing consensus among scientists and many governments that the old paradigm of industrial energy-intensive and toxic agriculture is an outdated concept, while small-scale farmers and agro-ecological methods provide the way forward.

Sustainable agriculture, that includes organic agriculture, is an effective approach to mitigation and adaptation efforts. For that to happen, some important measures must be taken urgently.

(1) Clearly, sustainable agro-ecological agriculture should be supported and developing countries wanting to undertake or implement such activities should be enabled and supported by financing. This should be a priority, as this also supports local communities and farmers. To that end, the UNFCCC must be made friendly to small organic farmers and indigenous peoples.

(2) Capacity building activities in promoting sustainable agriculture should be supported. Arrangements should be made for the sharing of experiences and the transfer of good practices in agriculture that can constitute mitigation and adaptation efforts.

(3) Given the many advantages of organic farming and sustainable agriculture, in terms of climate change as well as social equity and farmers’ livelihoods, there should be a much more significant share of research, personnel, investment, financing and overall support from governments and international agencies that should be channeled towards sustainable agriculture. Promotion of sustainable agriculture can lead to a superior model of agriculture from the environmental and climate change perspective. As high-chemical and water-intensive agriculture is phased out, and more natural farming methods should be phased in, with research and training programmes, promoting better production performances in sustainable agriculture.

(4) In addition, international agencies and developed country governments should halt the promotion of unsustainable chemical intensive agriculture policies and programmes in developing countries that undermine climate change efforts.

SOURCE: http://www.twnside.org.sg/title2/susagri/susagri074.htm