A state Assemblyman from Brooklyn is sponsoring legislation asking for a state study on climate resilient crops and climate smart farming practices.

Assemblyman Brian Cunningham, D-Brooklyn, recently introduced A.7931 in the Assembly, with consideration possible when the next state legislative session begins in January. The bill asks for the state Agriculture and Markets Department for the study so that the department can then help farmers adapt their work.

Cunningham proposes the study be completed in a year and include recommendations for legislation and administrative programs that deal with such topics as genetics, technology and management to decrease yield gaps and the results on locally grown food, job creation, educational opportunities, and the environment.

“In the State of New York, concerns are growing about the impacts of climate change on agriculture and food security. Climate change is bringing about various challenges to traditional farming practices, including extreme weather events, shifting temperature and precipitation patterns, and increased pest and disease pressures. These changes pose significant threats to crop yields, farm profitability, and the overall stability of the agricultural sector,” Cunningham wrote in his legislative justification.

The state Farm Bureau may not be opposed to the study. One of the organization’s legislative priorities 2023 is supporting farmers’ efforts to adapt to and mitigate climate change through the state’s Environmental Protection Fund and legislative programs that support on-farm renewable energy. And the organization’s president mentioned farmers’ willingness to participate in research to help meet the state’s climate goals.

“As mentioned previously in these comments, farmers are adapting to climate change already happening on their farms and have also adapted practices to make their farms more resilient to future impacts, but more can be done to support farmers,” David Fisher, New York Farm Bureau president wrote in comments to the state’s Climate Action Council. “(The New York Farm Bureau) supports the recommendations AR 11 around water and energy efficiency programs, research in climate resilient crop varieties, and continuing the promoting watershed based BMPs to help with flood attenuation, drought mitigation and water quality protection.”

While Cunningham has his eyes on the future, farmers and environmentalists have their eyes on Gov. Kathy Hochul, who has yet to decide whether or not to sign the Birds and the Bees Protection Act (A.7640/S.1856A) passed by both houses of the state Legislature earlier this year. The Farm Bureau has lobbied against the bill, which was also opposed by local Assemblymen Joe Giglio, R-Gowanda, and Andrew Goodell, R-Jamestown, and by state Sen. George Borrello, R-Sunset Bay. The bill hasn’t been delivered to Gov. Kathy Hochul’s desk yet, according to the state Assembly’s legislative website. Legislators want to prohibit, starting Jan. 1, 2026, the sale, distribution or purchase by any person within the state of corn, soybean or wheat seeds coated or treated with neonicotinoids, a class of insecticides that have been formulated to control harmful agricultural pest infestations on many crops grown in New York.

The legislation is opposed by the New York Farm Bureau, which says treated seeds are highly regulated, just as foliar and soil-applied pesticides are, or any other pesticide approved for certain uses by the EPA and DEC and that a prohibition on the use of these products would force farmers to revert to using older, less safe products on a more frequent basis. The DEC reclassified the use of neonicotinoids effective Jan. 1, 2023, so they are no longer available over the counter. But the DEC has allowed them to be used in targeted instances by qualified professional applicators and are only available for sale to certified applicators.

“Neonic safety for bees and other pollinators has been confirmed by studies and the product has been registered for use by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. This attempt by legislators to override the DEC’s regulatory authority and expertise in this area is reckless and sets a dangerous precedent. Ultimately, if this misguided bill is signed into law, it will be another blow to New York State farmers whose livelihoods have been under attack by this legislature over the past three years,” Borrello said after the bill passed the Senate in June.