Restore Soil to address Climate Change

Subject – Environment

Context – To address climate change, grow and restore soil, not trees

Concept –

COP26, the United Nations climate change conference this year, emphasised the urgency to limit global warming to well below 2 degrees Celsius, both via emission reductions and the sequestration of atmospheric CO2, while ensuring a just transition to a low carbon economy.
The earth’s soils contain about 2,500 gigatons of carbon, more than three times the amount of carbon in the atmosphere and four times the amount stored in all vegetation.
Soil organic carbon (SOC) content is important for climate change mitigation, but it is equally important for farmers and biodiversity. Increasing soil carbon has the effect of drawing down carbon from the atmosphere, while simultaneously improving soil structure and soil health, soil fertility and crop yields, water retention and aquifer recharge. A soil must have at least 5% organic matter to be considered healthy.
In recent years, “carbon farming” has gained traction. It is the process of changing agricultural practices or land use to sequester carbon in soil and litter, as well as emission avoidance through better land management.
- Countries like Australia are actively promoting it along with the sale of soil carbon credits.
Soil carbon credit markets are based on measurement, data and certification systems, which are expensive.

Predicted effects of elevated carbon dioxide (eCO2) on soil carbon reserves

Regenerative agriculture

Regenerative agriculture is a conservation and rehabilitation approach to food and farming systems. It focuses on topsoil regeneration, increasing biodiversity, improving the water cycle, enhancing ecosystem services, supporting bio sequestration, increasing resilience to climate change, and strengthening the health and vitality of farm soil.
Regenerative agriculture is not a specific practice itself. Rather, proponents of regenerative agriculture use a variety of sustainable agriculture techniques in combination
Regenerative agriculture on small farms and gardens is often based on philosophies like permaculture, agroecology, agroforestry, restoration ecology, keyline design, and holistic management.
Large farms tend to be less philosophy driven and often use “no-till” and/or “reduced till” practices.
As soil health improves, input requirements may decrease, and crop yields may increase as soils are more resilient against extreme weather and harbor fewer pests and pathogens.
Most plans to mitigate climate change focus on “reducing greenhouse gas emissions.” Regenerative agriculture, i.e. the capture of atmospheric carbon dioxide by growing plants that move the carbon dioxide into the soil, is pretty nearly the only currently-functioning technology available for drawing down greenhouse gases that are already in the atmosphere, mostly through the cultivation and nurturing of forests and permanent perennial pastures and grasslands.