WASHINGTON— The EPA’s latest greenhouse gas inventory shows that agriculture continues to be the leading U.S. source of methane and nitrous oxide, two highly potent climate pollutants.

The report, released last week, confirms animal agriculture as the leading U.S. source of methane pollution, with manure and enteric fermentation responsible for a combined 36% of emissions.

“Animal agriculture makes up an enormous part of our country’s most dangerous greenhouse gas emissions, but the U.S. Department of Agriculture continues to ignore the cow in the room,” said Stephanie Feldstein, population and sustainability director at the Center for Biological Diversity. “It’s impossible to address the climate emergency if we don’t change our meat-heavy diets and invest in real climate solutions.”

Agricultural soil management accounts for 75% of nitrous oxide emissions and approximately 4.5% of all U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, largely because of the widespread use of fertilizers derived from industrial animal agriculture. Manure management contributes an additional 4% of U.S. nitrous oxide pollution.

The USDA has announced historic investments in the Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities program over the past two years. This program is intended to improve the climate resilience of U.S. agriculture, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and sequester carbon. But rather than shifting that funding to true climate solutions that support small-scale and marginalized producers, the USDA has earmarked the billions of dollars for meat and dairy corporations to greenwash false solutions and continue on with business as usual.

Methane from enteric fermentation rose more than 5% since 1990 due to increasing cattle populations, the new EPA report found. Methane is more than 80 times more potent than carbon dioxide over a 20-year period, making it a critical part of reducing emissions in time to avoid the worst impacts of climate change. Nitrous oxide stays in the atmosphere longer and is 265 times stronger than carbon dioxide over 100 years.

“We need to change the way we grow and consume food, but the USDA is sinking billions of climate-smart ag dollars into projects like soil carbon sequestration and practices like cover crops that are insufficient at best and at worst could push us even closer to climate catastrophe,” said Feldstein.

In January the Center and more than 250 other organizations and experts sent a letter urging the USDA to immediately make meat and dairy reduction a key part of its climate strategy, align food and climate goals in all USDA programs, and integrate sustainability into the Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

Research shows that sustainable dietary shifts play a key role in fighting climate change in high-consuming nations like the United States. Changes to food production alone are not enough. Immediately cutting 90% of U.S. beef consumption and replacing half the consumption of other meats with plant-based foods could save as much as 2 billion tons of greenhouse gases from being released by 2030.