It was tractor demolition day today in Fresno at an event sponsored by the Valley Air District. The machinery being crushed was being traded-in for cleaner-burning items like trucks, harvesting equipment, pump engines and–yes–tractors. The air district announced the receipt of $108 million to assist with those trade-ins, the funding coming from the California Air Resources Board’s FARMER program (Funding Agricultural Replacement Measures for Emission Reductions).
CDFA undersecretary Jenny Lester Moffitt, shown here greeting Valley Air District executive director Samir Sheikh, spoke at the event about the critical importance of programs like FARMER to the climate smart agriculture approach that is necessary to adapt to climate change.