No-Till Farming Improves Soil Health and Mitigates Climate Change

The climate crisis and years of unsustainable farming in the United States have resulted in soil erosion, pollinator loss, farmworkers and livestock exposed to extreme heat, and other adverse impacts. In 2019, 10 percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions came from agriculture. At the same time, farmers and the land they work are vulnerable to climate impacts such as drought and extreme weather.

No-till farming is one of the many sustainable agricultural practices that can help farmers mitigate and adapt to the climate crisis. This article is the third in EESI’s five-part series on sustainable agricultural practices encompassing cover crops, agroforestry, no-till farming, sustainable livestock grazing, and soil amendments.

What Is No-Till Farming?

Tilling is the process of churning the top layer of soil, typically with a plow, to prepare the field for the planting of a new crop. It is used to aerate the soil and control weeds, but it comes at the cost of soil health by causing soil erosion and nutrient runoff and releases greenhouse gases stored in the soil.

In a no-till system, seeds are planted directly into undisturbed soil, resulting in numerous environmental and climate benefits. And the benefits are multiplied when no-till is used in conjunction with other sustainable practices such as cover crops.

No-till is one way of practicing conservation tillage, an approach that leaves crop residues in the cultivation area to protect the soil from wind and water erosion. In addition to no-till, conversation tillage also includes in-row subsoiling, strip-till, and ridge-till practices. While conservation tillage has been adopted on half of the farmland in the United States, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) estimated that only one fifth of farmland practices continuous no-till.

Fighting Climate Change

No-till farming mitigates climate change in two ways: it reduces the use of fossil fuel-powered machinery and it helps soil hold on to carbon, preventing the release of greenhouse gas emissions during tillage. Because no-till farming does not require a tractor to pull a plow, it saves fuel, cutting emissions. USDA estimates that across the United States, farmers who use no-till farming save 588 million gallons of diesel fuel annually—enough energy to power over 720,000 homes for a year. They also prevent at least 5.8 million tons of carbon-dioxide emissions, the equivalent of taking more than 1 million cars off the road.

Building Climate Resilience

No-till farming can build climate resilience by enhancing soil health. Healthy soil has a higher water-holding capacity, meaning it can better absorb and hold on to water during periods of heavy precipitation and drought, making farms more resilient to extreme weather. In a no-till system, the remains of the previous crop—such as husks and stalks—remain on the soil instead of being plowed under. This adds organic matter to the soil and prevents wind and water erosion, which is especially important for protecting soil as storms become more frequent and intense due to the climate crisis. In fact, no-till farming can reduce soil erosion by more than 80 percent, which has the added benefit of protecting water quality by keeping sediments on the land and out of bodies of water. Soil health can be improved even further when no-till is combined with cover crops and other sustainable practices.

Cutting Costs for Farmers

By reducing the need for fuel-intensive plowing, no-till farming can slash fuel usage by 50 to 80 percent, saving farms money. No-till farming also reduces labor-related costs, as it requires 30 to 50 percent less labor than a conventional tillage system. When used in conjunction with cover cropping, no-till can be an effective weed prevention method, leading to savings on herbicides. And the improved soil health and water efficiency resulting from a no-till farming system can help boost crop yields.

No-Till Farming in Action: Macauley Farms, New York

Macauley Farms practices no-till farming on 567 acres in Livingston, New York. The farm rotates planting corn, soybeans, and wheat crops on a yearly basis. In 2009, the farm received financial and technical assistance from the USDA’s Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) to begin no-till wheat, and by 2012, they expanded no-till to all of their crops. The farm received another EQIP contract in 2012 to implement cover crops.

In total, the annual net income of Macauley Farms increased by over $25,000—a 135 percent return on investment—as a result of these sustainable practices. No-till farming saves the farm $72 per acre in labor and machinery costs and reduces sediment losses by 99 percent. USDA’s COMET-Farm Tool estimates that sustainable practices reduce the farm’s greenhouse gas emissions by 69 percent. The American Farmland Trust offers numerous examples of other farmers who have benefited from no-till farming.

Federal Programs that Support No-Till Farming

The following programs within the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service provide technical and financial assistance to help farmers implement no-till:

• The Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) helps farmers and agricultural producers maintain, improve, or adopt new conservation practices, such as no-till and conservation tillage in general.
• The Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) provides financial and technical assistance for projects that address natural resource concerns and provide environmental benefits, including no-till and reduced till initiatives.

To read all the articles in this series, visit our Agriculture and Climate series webpage.

Authors: Savannah Bertrand, Anna Sophia Roberts, and Emma Walker

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