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Miliband muses on farm farts ban
The government's desire to extend the polluter pays principle to every sector of the economy took a bizarre new twist yesterday as UK farmers were urged to stop their flatulent livestock releasing methane into the atmosphere.
Speaking at the Oxford Farming Conference, environment secretary David Miliband warned that agriculture contributes seven percent of the UK's greenhouse gas emissions and a third of its methane – one of the most damaging climate change gases. As a result, he said, the polluter pays principle would soon be applied to farming in the way it is already being introduced to other industries.
"That means greenhouse gases generated in producing food or in food miles carrying a price need to be recognised in the same way as greenhouse gases generated in other industries," he explained.
And in a veiled warning that legislation was on the agenda he confirmed the government "will look closely at how incentives within the food, energy and land markets can reflect environmental impact more closely".
While it is unlikely that this will result in a "fart-tax" with civil servants chasing cows round with breathalyzer style methane measurers, Miliband did argue that farmers should act to reduce methane emissions by feeding cattle different food, breeding them to live longer, altering the handling of manure and getting farms to generate "biogas" or "biofertiliser" from animal waste.
Extending the polluter pays principle to farming would likely lead to higher food prices, but Miliband insisted that climate change could provide an opportunity for farmers, as it has done in other sectors.
He added that diversifying into developing crops for biofuels and differentiating UK produce as a green alternative could help farmers prosper while still becoming leaders in green agriculture.
To assist this transition Defra yesterday announced that as well as investigating new environmental incentives it is to fund a new education initative called Communicating Climate Change to Farmers.
The project unites environmental charity Forum for the Future, the National Farmers' Union, the Country Land and Business Association and the Applied Research Forum, in an effort to promote best practice to farmers committed to reducing their carbon footprint.
Meanwhile, speaking at the same event Conservative leader David Cameron urged consumers, and in particular purchasers at large organisations such as schools and the military, to embrace "food patriotism" and buy British goods that have not contributed to carbon emissions by being shipped round the world.
His comments further highlight the growing pressure on procurement managers to consider a wide range of environmental factors when making purchasing decisions, particularly when it comes to food.
In related news, environmental lobby group Sustain attacked government departments for their practice of serving bottled water at meetings. Their report found that only DEFRA, the Food Standards Agency and Department of Transport served tap water, with all other government agencies serving bottled water which is more expensive, contributes to landfill and results in carbon emissions when transported.
Posted by James Murray on January 4, 2007 | Permalink
Comments
Keep up this nonsense and you Britons will be called 'TWIT'tons'.
Can't you see where all this is leading? Next, you'll be installing methane detectors in those elevators you Brit's call lifts.Don't you know lifts are what we call shoes?
'Tis no wonder chaps in Scotland/Wales/Australia and certain civilised (Ized?)
parts of Canada are laughing
at the country that resurected the FARThing?
Posted by: ednauseam | Jan 6, 2007 1:30:57 AM
I find it a shame that my ancestoral homeland has become infused with Big Government bureaucrats so inflated with their own importance they have to stick their noses into every crevice of British life seeking out anything and everything that doesn't smell right to their totalitarian sensibilities. However, I'm afraid the foul breeze of government intrusion has made its evil way over to this side of the Atlantic as well. Today we're told we can't ingest smoke anywhere near a public facility. Tomorrow we'll likely be told we can't expel smoke anywhere near those same public facilities. Today they tell us we should eat more vegetables and use black tape on our desks to tell us where to place our pens. Tomorrow they'll scold us when they get wind of the unintended consequences of our obedience. When is too much too much? Will I eventually have to turn in my wife and my dog for being enemies of the State?
Posted by: L. Wall | Jan 7, 2007 12:16:52 PM
Holy CRAP!!!You people are being over run by a religion that wants to kill your society and your government is concerned about the natural occurrence of a Holstein breaking wind?
Me dost think thy under garments are drawn to tight and thoust brain is deprived of oxygen.
May the Lord God have mercy on the foolish.
Posted by: T.Walters | Jan 7, 2007 2:51:56 PM
Over half of methane produced is from naturally decaying plant matter. Are wet lands to be taxed or drained -- good-by to ducks, geese, swans, shrimp, crabs etc. To quote B. Bunny, "What a maroon."
Posted by: Ben Porter | Jan 7, 2007 3:27:22 PM
I think almost every one in the UK must be bonkers. How can you stop a cow from Fartin' ?
Posted by: Dee | Jan 7, 2007 10:47:01 PM
Easy to stop a cow from wasting fuel. Use a Cork and at milking time suck the methane out and use it to generate electric power for the Govt buildings. The more solid waste could be dried and used for heat. The nitwits could provide black tape to mark the proper storing of the cow chips, and where to insert them for burning and to indicate when the heater was full.
Of course it already sounds like said buildings are already full of liquid Bovine excretement.
Posted by: Len | Jan 8, 2007 4:00:40 AM
Hey Dee,
Don't you ever know the use of the cattle-lytic converter in each and every bureaucratic paradize ?
Have a look at this:
http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f78/jonjayray/cows2.jpg
Posted by: Demesure | Jan 9, 2007 5:04:02 PM
First recognise methane as a pollutant emitted by agricultural industry.
Then ask yourself whether it is fair or moral for any industry (or individual) to pollute the environment in a way that can change the climate of this planet?
Why do the above critics object to the UK taking steps to ensure their society does not threaten the health or well being of future generations ?
Posted by: rmo | Jan 11, 2007 10:46:46 AM
When is Gordon Brown going to tax the hot air that comes out of that hole in his head!!!! The man must be bored and have no other issues that need to be resolved first
Posted by: Mark Mason | Jan 14, 2007 12:02:21 PM
This is a joke. How are they going to intervene in our lives and in business next? I think they forgot to take a history class when they were in school. All you have to do is look at any socialistic country and see what has happened to them. Famine, disease, and the complete abuse of their people. Britain is continuously moving more left. This climate change stuff is also ridiculous. Their are over 17 thousand scientists that agree that their is no global warming. What the U.K. needs is a statesman like Churchill once again. Because their government is a joke. In their world trees have more meaning than people do. Of course we need to be good stewards of our land, but running farmers out of business is not the way to do it. If they are successful enough ma bey they will be able to create a famine. Let us hope and pray that America wakes up in time to keep from becoming overwhelmed by idiots.
Posted by: Fryman | Jan 27, 2007 9:35:50 PM
