Starting next week, Washington growers can apply for grants to support the purchase of farm equipment that reduces greenhouse gas emissions or improves soil health.
The $4.3 million Climate Smart Farm Equipment Grant will be open on a first come, first served basis, starting on Sept. 4.
Jon Cox, president of Double Diamond Fruit, said he’s working on applications with some of his growers — for a low-emission, diesel-electric hybrid, self-driving Prospr sprayer, for example — and wants to encourage others in the industry to apply as well.
“My hope as a farmer advocate, my best-case scenario, is that if we can demonstrate a big need for this, it can be the beginning,” he said. “There’s a lot of good, new technology out there, but with how agriculture is getting pressed right now, it’s cost-prohibitive to growers. This grant can help you to try it.”
Growers can seek 75 percent reimbursement for equipment up to $200,000, according to the Washington State Department of Agriculture, for “items that directly decrease greenhouse gas emissions during production or increase soil or vegetative carbon storage.”
Eligible machinery could include electric equipment such as tractors, sprayers and pumps, as well as compost spreaders or precision ag technologies. Not eligible: electric trucks, postharvest handling equipment, soil amendments, installation costs or professional services.
Many new precision ag technologies also offer climate benefits, by targeting applications and reducing inputs, Cox said.
Another option may be electric wind machines. Steve Ott of Wenatchee Wind worked with a grower who used funding from the Rural Energy for America Program, a now-expired grant program from the Biden administration, to fund the purchase of several electric, automated wind machines from South African manufacturer AGI.
“It’s a dramatic energy reduction; there’s no fuel,” Ott said.
Cox said the grant application process looks to be relatively simple: Growers need to register for a state vendor number to receive reimbursement, submit a quote from a vendor for equipment that could be delivered by June 1, 2027, and answer some brief questions about how the equipment would be used on the farm.
The reimbursements will be funded through Washington’s Climate Commitment Act, which set up a cap-and-trade system on fossil fuels. That system has raised fuel costs and created funds that are being used to offer incentives on energy efficiency and renewable energy efforts.
“Eastern Washington is paying a lot for the Climate Commitment Act, and agriculture is a way to get dollars back to the needs we have,” Cox said. “I want everybody to apply for it so we can go (tell) the Legislature that there is a need for this.”
Details about how to apply can be found online at: agr.wa.gov/services/grant-opportunities/climate-smart-farm-equipment-grant. •
