The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) latest published quarterly indicator report for greenhouse gas emissions points to agricultural emissions falling 4.6% in Q2 2024 when compared with the same quarter in 2023.

The decrease represents 244,000t of CO2 equivalents, which is the second-largest emissions drop of any sector, with electricity reported as having the largest.

The most significant drivers of the reduction in farm emissions were reported to have been a 1.9% decline in the national herd, a 4.4% contraction in milk production and lower nitrogen fertiliser and limestone sales, as these were a respective 13.6% and 23.0% lower than Q2 2023.

Changes

These farm-level changes translated into a 14.1% decrease in the emissions from manure management, a 6.8% drop in emissions from farmed soils and a 1.9% decline in the emissions resulting from enteric methane.

Reductions in farming emissions in the second quarter of this year follows an even stronger reduction witnessed in the first three months.

Emissions were down 4.9% in the first half of 2024 compared with the equivalent six months a year previous.

The EPA reported this summer that emissions from agriculture fell 4.6% between 2022 and 2023, as fertiliser use on farms fell by a significant 18%.