All Climate Events

Thursday, November 4, 2021. 1:15 PM. Webinar: Beneficial Electrification: The Future of Farming. Kevin Dooley, ASU; Keith Dennis, National Rural Electrification Cooperative Association and Beneficial Electrification League; Doug Hutching, Delta Solar; Jim Whittaker, Trinity Farms. Sponsored by the Security and Sustainability Forum. Register here.

Nine percent of US greenhouse gas emissions come from the agriculture sector. Farms consume energy directly in gasoline, diesel, electricity, and natural gas; and indirectly in energy-intensive inputs such as fertilizer and pesticides. Some farms also produce renewable energy or lease out land for wind turbines, oil, or gas development. Transitioning farms from fossil fuel to clean electricity will have a significant impact on climate change. Electrification opportunities span the range of farming activities and are driven by technological advances, including real-time crop monitoring by drones, robotic milking and weeding machines,
and autonomous tractors. Electrification of farm equipment will also aid in advancing precision agriculture since many of the protocols used in these technologies are better suited to interface with systems optimized to run on electricity versus fossil fuels. Not all electrification is equal. Learn about Beneficial Electrification. Scaling that energy transition is not challenge-free. Barriers include resistance to change, entrenched practices, data sharing, proof of profitability, and just transitions.