Soil Health: the Land Core Approach to Climate Mitigation

In this episode of Voices from the Field, NCAT Agricultural and Natural Resource Economist Jeff Schahczenski talks with Aria McLauchlan and Harley Cross about how to measure the impact that soil health practices can have in migrating the impacts of weather and climate disruption.Aria and Harley are co-founders of Land Core, a non-profit organization advancing soil health policies and programs that create value for farmers, businesses, and communities. Land Core guided the successful passage of language supporting soil health at the USDA in both the House and Senate in 2019 and built a broad coalition that helped secure more than $50 million in federal investment for soil health in the 2018 Farm Bill.Aria is Land Core's executive director, and she previously spent a decade working in communications, business development, and marketing. Harley is a serial entrepreneur with a background in food manufacturing, supply chains, and brand management. They live in Grass Valley in northern California.NCAT Soil for Water ProjectNCAT is scaling up its Soil for Water project to include livestock producers and farmers across eight states.Soil for Water supports a network of farmers and ranchers who are taking steps to catch and hold more water in the soil through land management practices that improve soil health, reduce erosion, sustain diverse plant and animal life, and filter out pollutants.The project grew out of persistent droughts, which are straining agricultural producers across the country. It combines the use of appropriate technology, peer-to-peer learning, and on-farm monitoring to encourage the adoption of regenerative agricultural practices.The Soil for Water project is about building lasting infrastructure that will make farms, ranches and communities more resilient in the face of persistent drought and other natural disasters across the eight-state project region.Learn more at soilforwater.org.Related ATTRA Resources:Crop Insurance and Risk ManagementSoils and Compost Climate Disruptions, Agriculture and Crop Insurance: What are the Connections?Climate Change and Perennial Fruit and Nut Production: Investing in Resilience in Uncertain TimesOther ResourcesLand CoreContact Jeff Schahczenski via email at [email protected] complete a brief survey to let us know your thoughts about the content of this podcast.Please call ATTRA with any and all of your sustainable agriculture questions at 800-346-9140 or e-mail us at [email protected]. Our two dozen specialists can help you with a vast array of topics, everything from farm planning to pest management, from produce to livestock, and soils to aquaculture.You can get in touch with NCAT/ATTRA specialists and find our other extensive, and free, sustainable-agriculture publications, webinars, videos, and other resources at NCAT/ATTRA's website.You also can stay in touch with NCAT at its Facebook page.Keep up with NCAT/ATTRA's SIFT farm at its