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We are a small business of $1.2 million sales in biological inputs
for agriculture. We are the oldest business of our kind in North
America since 1960. We are the 2016 recipient of the Global
Regenerative Business Prize which essentially recognizes the degree
to which we were founded on and maintain a view of essence within
the biggest, most complex picture of society and the natural world
that guides us to help our customers achieve their fullest
potential. We have reduced our fossil fuel use by approximately 75%
in the past decade. 

We invest increasing time doing advocacy for strong effective
climate policy, because what difference will our hard work to cut
emissions make if others are allowed to continue with business as
usual polluting. We are Health Ambassadors for Physicians for
Social Responsibility-LA and believe you should be listening to
their leadership for environmental justice. 

But in terms of our business goals, your agency is frankly the
nodal point for our company to achieve its highest aspirations. You
must require the same of all businesses of all sizes, no matter
what! All businesses and all residents need emissions reduction
goals and targets as well as more encouragement and recognition of
small businesses that are striving to be part of climate change
solutions. 

Our company did the fieldwork for a study 20 years ago funded by
the California Energy Commission that showed that the biggest
energy savings in the transition of a farm from conventional to
organic was in the pest management sector, mainly in being able to
reduce the number of tractor passes. That knowledge has sat on the
shelf for two decades! It is time for climate policy to recognize
the potential contribution of biological row crop agriculture, not
just grazing land and forests. The point is that an abundance of
knowledge exists for farms to reduce their fossil fuel use as well
as sequester CO2. What is needed is the economic incentive.  

The best way to support all small businesses and farms to
transition away from fossil fuels through sound biologically based
practices like carbon farming is via a comprehensive market-driven
state policy, such as a simple straight-forward predictable
gradually and steadily increasing carbon tax. Because emissions are
increasing and we are running out of time, the goal must be at
least $100 per ton of CO2 equivalent by 2025. 

Besides carbon dioxide emissions reduction and widespread
sequestration incentives, California also has an urgent role to
play in enacting strong and necessary reductions policy for
methane, especially from livestock. California has the biggest
methane hotspot in North America. The urgency of accelerated
impacts from methane requires a minimum goal of 50 percent
reduction in enteric emissions by 2025. A methane fee or tax must
be based on its true social cost using the 20 year interval methane
GTP. Your agency must stop ignoring the current scientific data on
calculating the social cost of methane and start getting tough on
emissions.

California must neither compromise on climate policy nor make the
model you create appear unnecessarily complicated. Simple policies
are going to spread to other states and nations faster. We can use
our prosperity and capacity best on the world stage by modeling
simple, market-based, transparent, comprehensive carbon dioxide and
methane pricing mechanisms.

Thank you for this opportunity.

Jan Dietrick, MPH, President
Ron Whitehurst, PCA, Secretary
Rincon-Vitova Insectaries, Inc
108 Orchard Dr
Ventura, CA 93001