The Climate Bill that has been passed by the US House of Representatives still has a long way to go before becoming law, although with the Democrats generally supporting the legislation and holding a 59-40 majority in the US Senate, pundits suggest the legislation has a better chance than similar legislation that was proposed almost a decade ago under the Clinton administration. View the rest of the post here

The New York Times reports the US House of Representatives has narrowly passed climate change legislation, although political commentators believe the legislation will face a bigger challenge in the US Senate, given the breakdown of voting for the Bill. The legislation was passed by 219 votes to 212, mostly on the basis of Democrat votes – although 44 Democrats voted against the Bill. View the rest of the post here

Legislation to implement a US greenhouse emissions trading scheme will encounter its first real test when it faces a vote in the US House of Representatives on Friday 26^th. A series of amendments negotiated by House Agriculture Committee Chairman Collin Peterson appears to have gathered the support of farm state Democrats, but it is understood the Bill will face stiff opposition from Republicans.
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A report has been released by the Primary Industries Ministerial Council (the Council of Commonwealth and State Primary Industries Ministers) into possible options for the ‘coverage’ of agriculture under the Australian Government’s proposed Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme (CPRS).  View the rest of the post here

There are reports that proposed amendments to the Waxman-Markey Bill – which is currently progressing through US House of Representatives Committees prior to being considered by the full House of Representatives – would accommodate the interests of agriculture and is therefore more likely to be agreed to by the US Senate. View the rest of the post here

With greenhouse emissions trading legislation now being debated in the US, agricultural policy analysts are starting to consider the possible impacts on US farmers. The US ETS scheme looks likely to include agriculture as a source of emission offsets, will not require farmers to pay a cost for their farm emissions. View the rest of the post here

The New Zealand economic consultancy NZIER has just released the results of some economic modelling it has carried out for the NZ Government of alternative approaches for New Zealand in meeting international greenhouse emission reduction obligations. View the rest of the post here

Two reports by the Senate into climate change policy have now been released. The first was a report by the Senate economics committee, and the latest is a report arising from a Senate Select Committee into climate change policy. View the rest of the post here

Just when the farm sector was hoping that it might be ignored in debates about greenhouse emissions and how to curb them, a columnist in The Australian has highlighted that cows are a major source of greenhouse emissions and need to be included in policies aimed at reducing emissions. View the rest of the post here

The NZ Government has announced is setting up a greenhouse gas research centre targeting solutions for New Zealand's agriculture and horticulture emissions. About half of New Zealand's greenhouse gas emissions come from agriculture, with methane from ruminant animals the biggest contributor. View the rest of the post here