Sustainable Farms & Fields: Climate-Smart Livestock

One-time funding of $30,000,000 from the Climate Investment Account was appropriated for the 2023-25 biennium to the Washington State Conservation Commission Sustainable Farms and Fields program for organic agricultural waste and greenhouse gas emissions reduction through climate-smart livestock management. View the proviso.
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This one-time funding resulted in three new funding opportunities:

• Alternative Manure Management
• Research and Demonstration
• Dairy Anaerobic Digesters‍‍

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Funding is Open!

View the Q&A webinar held on Feb. 22, 2024

The Research and Demonstration portion of the webinar begins at 41:30.
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Research and Demonstration

SCC seeks to fund applied research and demonstration projects that will result in increased adoption of climate-smart livestock management practices and/or improved accounting of the impacts of climate-smart livestock management practices in agricultural settings in Washington.

Preference is for projects focused on NRCS-approved practices, including practices aimed at reducing enteric methane emissions and manure management or application. Other proposed practices will be assessed on a case-by-case basis.

This funding is open to conservation districts and other public entities only. Interested producers should reach out to their CD, WSU Extension Office, or local climate-smart government program. All projects must be completed by June 30, 2025.‍

The application window for the Research and Demonstration funding is closed. To view the FAQ sheet, click here. To view funded projects, click here.

‍Alternative Manure Management (Applications are currently closed)

The objective of this funding is to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated with manure handling systems from baseline levels at dairy and livestock farms in Washington through grants to conservation districts and other public entities for implementation of projects.

This funding is open to conservation districts and other public entities only. Interested producers should reach out to their CD, WSU Extension Office, or local climate-smart government program.

Projects must occur on livestock operations where manure is stored in anaerobic (liquid)form and may include multiple components of a manure handling system, associated upstream and downstream components needed to accommodate the change to the manure management system, including transporting manure for eventual field application.

The expected period for this grant is May 2024 – June 2025 with an option to extend the contract for up to two (2) additional one-year terms dependent on re-appropriation of funds.

The application window for the initial round of review closed on April 5, 2024. No new applications are being accepted at this time. If additional funding becomes available, we will announce future application rounds.  

• ‍View the Request for Application‍
• Application link‍
• FAQ
• View funded projects

CARB AMMP Tool

Applicants for SFF Alternative Manure Management are asked to use the CARB AMMP Tool modified for Washington for estimating greenhouse gas emissions reductions for their projects, where possible. SFF Program Manager, Karen Hills, will walk through use of this tool in the webinar below.

• CARB AMMP Quantification Methodology
• CARB AMMP Tool Modified for Washington

Dairy Anaerobic Digesters - Coming in 2025

SCC is still working on the funding opportunity for Dairy Anaerobic Digesters.

‍‍Guidelines

Funds provided to conservation districts and other public entities will be utilized consistently with the Sustainable Farms and Fields Program Guidelines, the funding proviso language, and program procedures. Eligible activities will be consistent with the proviso language. More information is being developed.

‍This opportunity is supported with funding from Washington’s Climate Commitment Act. The CCA puts cap-and-invest dollars to work reducing climate pollution, creating jobs, and improving public health. Information about the CCA is available at www.climate.wa.gov.
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One-time funding of $30,000,000 from the Climate Investment Account was appropriated for the 2023-25 biennium to the Washington State Conservation Commission Sustainable Farms and Fields program for organic agricultural waste and greenhouse gas emissions reduction through climate-smart livestock management.