It’s Earth Day this week. In agriculture, we don’t celebrate just on the big day. It’s every day in every way. 

When you visit an Arizona ranch, you’ll notice solar panels linked to ranch water pumps. Ranches in this desert state have been using solar to power their pumps for decades. These pumps keep water in livestock tanks for the cattle and wildlife.

On dairies, it’s no longer novel for an Arizona dairy family to have a methane digester, a system for capturing methane gas and converting it for energy use. 

In crop farming, farmers today use technology to reduce water use, improve seed varieties and continue growing more on less land. Again, decades of continued conservation and improved resource management for the good of the planet. 

I could go on. There’s so much we’re doing to reduce, reuse, restore and renew. It’s all for our living and vibrant planet, for our families and for everyone. 

It’s Just what farming and ranching do. 

For a Few Key Earth Day Successes, American and Arizona agriculture shares the following: 

  • Farmers and ranchers are at the forefront of climate-smart farming, putting scientific solutions, technology, and innovation to work to protect our land, air and water. 
  • Numbers from the Environmental Protection Agency continue to show that U.S. farmers and ranchers are leading the way in caring for our land, air and water. According to the latest numbers from EPA, U.S. agriculture reduced its overall emissions by 4.3% from 2019 to 2020.
  • With a growing population and increased needs for food, fuel and fiber, farmers are rising to the challenge through efficiency and sustainability practices. Over the last 30 years, ag emissions per capita in the U.S. have gone down 20%. 
  • Not only are agriculture’s overall emissions low but farmers and ranchers are also taking active steps to make their footprint even smaller. 
  • More than 140 million acres of U.S. farmland are used for conservation efforts and wildlife habitats—that land area is equal to the states of California and New York combined. Social Media Messages: