In California, climate change is an ongoing reality that Assemblymember Monique Limón intends to address. The hottest and driest summers in state history have occurred within the last 20 years, according to National Geographic. If current rates of global emissions persist, these conditions will likely continue and worsen. In order for California’s farmers and ranchers to remain resilient, climate change adaptation measures must be learned and adopted.
This is what Limón calls for in legislation she introduced on February 7. Her bill, if passed, would allocate $2 million in funding from the Office of Planning and Research for a competitive grant program designed to develop “specified planning tools for adapting to climate change in the agricultural sector.” According to Limón’s office, AB 409 would authorize three pilot projects in three different regions within the state to “develop climate adaptation planning tools and trainings for agricultural producers.”
The text of the bill asserts that the benefits of the grant program would go beyond aiding the agricultural sector alone. Through providing farmers and ranchers with the ability to fully grasp the impacts of climate change, come up with sound responses to those impacts, and integrate adaptation strategies, the state’s environment and public health would benefit as well.