Beyond Carbon: Environment

Environment

We all win when we protect the environment and ecosystems. Conservation agriculture practices and temperate forest stewardship extend the benefits of our natural carbon sinks like trees, soil and other vegetation. In turn, a healthier natural world hedges against extreme weather impacts.

Lowering emissions almost always means better air quality. Some communities may have concerns about land that is used for large scale solar (or solar farms), so it is an area to watch. We want to be sure that these potential concerns and impacts are visible to everyone involved in the process of making the big decisions that will help scale these solutions.

Largely Positive

Areas to Watch or Address

Limited Impacts or Limited Data

Electricity

Sector Solutions	Air Quality	Water Quality & Quantity	Land Use	Ecosystems & Biodiversity	Material Disposability
Large Scale Solar
Cogeneration
Rooftop Solar
Demand Response
Landfill Methane

Buildings & Materials

Sector Solutions	Air Quality	Water Quality & Quantity	Land Use	Ecosystems & Biodiversity	Material Disposability
Recycling/Waste Management
Refrigerant Management
Retrofitting

Food & Agriculture

Sector Solutions	Air Quality	Water Quality & Quantity	Land Use	Ecosystems & Biodiversity	Material Disposability
Composting
Climate Smart Agriculture
Plant-Based Diet
Reduced Food Waste

Land Sinks

Sector Solutions	Air Quality	Water Quality & Quantity	Land Use	Ecosystems & Biodiversity	Material Disposability
Wetlands Protection
Planting Trees
Forest Management

Transportation

Sector Solutions	Air Quality	Water Quality & Quantity	Land Use	Ecosystems & Biodiversity	Material Disposability
Energy Efficient Cars
Energy Efficient Trucks
Mass Transit
Electric Vehicles
Alternative Mobility

Stories & Studies

Embracing a Solar Future Where People and Wildlife Thrive Together

The Nature Conservancy works to protect the world’s lands and waters. Operating in over 70 countries, we’ve helped conserve more than 100 million acres, over 400,000 of them in Georgia. These forests, wetlands and other natural areas not only provide

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Whatever Is Good For Our Planet Will Be Good For Us

White Oak Pastures is a leader in environmentally-responsible agriculture in Georgia. 20 years ago, farmer Will Harris began to shift from conventional beef production to a regenerative grazing system that is restoring the health of soils that had heavily

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Embracing Climate Solutions That Build Community at White Oak Pastures

It might be difficult to believe that a single-family business in Bluffton, Ga., is helping to regenerate farmland, revive a small town, produce nutritious food for the community, and scale climate solutions in our state, but all of this--and more--is

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read all stories & studies

Questions?

Why focus on refrigerants?

Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) are chemicals used to cool refrigerators and air conditioners. They are also an extremely potent greenhouse gas, with thousands of times the heat trapping potential of CO2. This class of chemicals was used to replace CFCs, a class of refrigerant chemicals that were phased out because they were depleting the ozone layer. In December 2020, Congress passed legislation to phase down HFCs nationwide by 40% by 2024 and by 85% by 2036. The phase down will be administered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Which industries dominate in Georgia’s building products?

According to the Georgia Forestry Commission, Georgia is a leader in paper and pulp products, with an economic output of $13.1 billion in 2018, representing almost 20,000 jobs and $1.8 billion in annual wages and salaries.

What is our current recycling rate?

In 2011, Georgia recycled only approximately 0.7 million tons out of 10.6 million tons of MSW, or a recycling rate of about 6.6%. This is significantly below the U.S. average rate of 22.6% reported by the same study (Shin, 2014).