Scenic Hudson Statement on Gov. Hochul’s Signing of Soil Health & Climate Resiliency Act

For Immediate Release

Contact: 

Ned Sullivan, President: 914 489 4630; nsullivan@scenichudson.org
Andy Bicking, Director of Government Relations & Public Policy:
914 489 1568; abicking@scenichudson.org

HUDSON VALLEY — Scenic Hudson today praised Gov. Kathy Hochul for signing the Soil Health and Climate Resiliency Act.
 
President Ned Sullivan said, “The future of the Hudson Valley depends on protecting the ability of our farms to produce food and contribute to the region’s economy, while we fight climate change. Accepted science indicates that agriculture and forestry account for 24 percent of greenhouse gases globally. Yet regenerative or climate-friendly practices can sequester carbon, nitrogen, and methane in soil and plants, even removing them from the air. Governor Kathy Hochul’s signature on the Soil Health and Climate Resiliency Act is an important step in moving agriculture in the state toward practices that will make farming part of the solution to global warming, while improving the productivity and profitability of agriculture. As the founder of the Northeast Carbon Alliance and a member of Governor Hochul’s Agriculture and Forestry Advisory Panel for the Climate Action Council, I am eager to continue Scenic Hudson’s collaboration with the governor, Agriculture Commissioner Richard Ball, Assembly members Donna Lupardo and Didi Barrett, and Senator Michelle Hinchey, without whom this important achievement would not have been possible.”
 
Director of Government Relations and Public Policy Andy Bicking said, “Conserving soil resources has always been a hallmark of caring for the environment and good farming. The Soil Health and Climate Resiliency Act recognizes this and takes the visionary step of focusing agency action on managing soil to address climate change. Many of these regenerative strategies have been practiced for generations by organic and BIPOC farmers. By signing the Soil Health and Climate Resiliency Act, Governor Hochul puts New York State on a clear path toward providing leadership on this important issue.”