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Climate Action Offsetter: Sokol Blosser Winery Achieves Carbon Reduction, Works Toward Carbon Restoration
written by Sokol Blosser Winery
In 2007 Oregon Governor Ted Kulongoski initiated a challenge to the Oregon wine industry: “Make 20 wineries carbon neutral in 18 months.” As one of the founding wineries in Oregon and a leader in sustainability, Sokol Blosser Winery was one of the first to sign up.
We felt the first step was to better understand Sokol Blosser Winery’s carbon footprint. An initial carbon audit through Ecos Consulting in 2009 let us know where changes needed to be made. We were able to reduce our carbon footprint dramatically through a combination of reducing waste, reducing energy usage, and implementing recovery efforts which include our 25kW solar panel system, native plant riparian zones in the vineyard, and carbon offset purchases.
There are several ways we have invested in renewable energy and carbon offset projects. In 2010, we offset 22 metric tons of carbon through the PGE Clean Wind Program. We also use GreenShipping.com to help us offset the carbon value of shipping wine directly to customers. These offsets include investments in clean energy supported by the Bonneville Environmental Foundation (BEF). Essentially, this allows our packages to arrive at a customer’s door with zero carbon footprint from shipping. Also, alongside other participating wineries in the Carbon Neutral Challenge, we have purchased other offsets through BEF in the agriculture sector that have significant climate benefits, such as investments in a dairy methane digester project registered with the Reserve. The dairy digester facilitates the breakdown of methane emissions, a potent greenhouse gas.
Sokol Blosser now undergoes detailed yearly carbon reporting through The Climate Registry, which highlights our carbon usage and recovery each year. Reporting our carbon usage to a certifying agent adds legitimacy to a statement like carbon neutrality, something we feel is important for any claim that carries a marketing benefit. However, we feel that being carbon neutral is not enough to reverse the damage that has already been done to our environment. Our next goal after reaching full carbon neutrality is carbon restoration, or the reversing of negative effects.
The wine industry is a great place to initiate a movement toward this way of thinking because it is largely populated with forward thinking people who are tied to the land. It is an agriculture-based industry with a major tourism component, which gives us an opportunity to teach as well as execute. For Sokol Blosser, we are still in the carbon reduction stage. We are working to better understand the full range of environmental implications of our business. If you consider only what we own and operate, our carbon footprint is rather small. What about the companies that ship our wine? What about the air travel our sales people use? Who is responsible for that – is it the winery or the companies that profit from it? These are the tricky questions we continue to explore as we work towards our ultimate goal of carbon restoration.
For more information visit: http://www.crchallenge.org/
Errata and Clarifications released for the Organic Waste Composting Project Protocol Version 1.0
Nominate a Climate Action Champion by Wednesday, February 29
Our annual Climate Action Champion awards are an opportunity to recognize individuals and organizations that exemplify leadership and commitment to the reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. For their efforts in the “fight” against climate change, we award these outstanding and deserving award recipients with a special championship belt.
We are pleased to accept nominations from Reserve account holders, staff and Board Members. You can nominate any individual, company, academic institution, government agency and/or non-profit organization that you believe has demonstrated excellence in reducing GHG emissions. Eligibility is not limited to Reserve affiliates and self-nomination is allowed. For more information on the nomination process and to make a nomination, please review the nomination form below:
Climate Action Champion Nomination Form
In 2011, the Reserve recognized the following Climate Action Champions:
- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, State of California
- Gina McCarthy, Assistant Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
- Terry Tamminen, former secretary of the California EPA and founder of Seventh Generation Advisors
- PG&E
From l-r: Linda Adams, Gary Gero and Gov. Arnold Schwarzengger
From l-r: Gary Gero, Steve Kline from PG&E, Gina McCarthy from U.S. EPA
and Terry Tamminen from Seventh Generation Advisors
Agenda and participation details for Reserve Board meeting Wednesday, February 1
Stakeholder Consultation for ODS Project Protocols Revision – RSVP by January 30
Rice Cultivation Project Protocol Version 1.0 was adopted by the Reserve Board on December 14, 2011
Errata and clarifications released for U.S. and Article 5 Ozone Depleting Substances Project Protocols
New offset standard opens doors for rice farmers to participate in carbon markets
The Climate Action Reserve adopts first rice cultivation guidelines for GHG offset projects
SACRAMENTO, CA – The Climate Action Reserve, North America’s largest and fastest growing carbon offset registry, adopted the first version of its Rice Cultivation Project Protocol today in a move that creates opportunities for California rice farmers to participate in carbon markets and to also become involved in California’s groundbreaking cap-and-trade program. State officials have indicated agriculture protocols, such as the Rice Cultivation Project Protocol, are the next standards they may look at adopting into the state’s compliance market. That will open the door for rice farmers to sell their earned carbon offsets to California companies that are required by law to reduce their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
The State of California and the global community have identified cropland agriculture as having the potential to reduce significant amounts of greenhouse gases from being emitted into the atmosphere. We are very pleased to adopt the Rice Cultivation Project Protocol and provide a tool for farmers to get incentives to reduce emissions,” said Linda Adams, Chair of the Climate Action Reserve Board of Directors.
The Rice Cultivation Project Protocol provides a clear standard for how to reduce GHG emissions by changing water and residue management practices in rice farming and how these reductions can be measured and rewarded with offset credits.
The protocol also represents several firsts for the Reserve. It is the organization’s first cropland agriculture protocol and the first to use a bio-geo-chemical model, which emulates soil processes. It is also the Reserve’s first protocol to provide guidelines for individual farmers to aggregate their lands and work together to develop an offset project. This is intended to make the protocol more accessible and flexible for rice farmers.
As with all Reserve protocols, the Rice Cultivation Project Protocol was developed with guidance and input from a diverse group of stakeholders involved in rice farming. Significant contributions were made by the California Rice Commission and the Environmental Defense Fund, who had jointly drafted a previous standard for rice cultivation offset projects.