Dear Bishal Dhungana,

Soil plays a key role in mitigating climate change, especially with its ability to store carbon, which can help reduce CO₂ in the atmosphere. Appropriate practices, such as regenerative agriculture, cover crops, the use of compost or biocarbon, can increase soil organic carbon and improve soil quality. While soil management alone will not reverse global warming, it can be an important part of a strategy that also includes reducing emissions and switching to renewable energy sources. Sustainable organic agriculture not only improves the soil's ability to store carbon, but also promotes water retention, restores soil microbial life and increases biodiversity, contributing to soil fertility and conservation. Regenerating degraded soil through ecological practices can also help stop the processes of soil aridity and degradation, which is an important part of the green transformation of the economy. This approach also supports climate protection and biodiversity, helping to counter global warming and its effects.

I pointed out various aspects of this important for the future of the planet, the future of the planet's climate and biosphere, and the future of future generations of people in my article:

IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PRINCIPLES OF SUSTAINABLE ECONOMY DEVELOPMENT AS A KEY ELEMENT OF THE PRO-ECOLOGICAL TRANSFORMATION OF THE ECONOMY TOWARDS GREEN ECONOMY AND CIRCULAR ECONOMY

Article IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PRINCIPLES OF SUSTAINABLE ECONOMY DEVE...

I invite you to join me in scientific cooperation,

Best regards,

Dariusz Prokopowicz

Yes, soil can play a significant role in mitigating climate change by acting as a carbon sink. Through processes like carbon sequestration, soils store atmospheric CO2 in organic matter, especially in healthy, well-managed soils. Practices such as regenerative agriculture, cover cropping, and reduced tillage enhance this capacity. However, while soil management can contribute to reducing greenhouse gases, reversing climate change requires a combination of strategies. These include afforestation, renewable energy adoption, and improved waste management. Soil-based solutions are cost-effective and offer co-benefits, such as improving biodiversity and water retention, but they must be part of a broader, integrated approach to achieve meaningful climate targets.

Please remember that SOM contains more elements than just C and these may need to be supplied

In my view, the correct answer to the question requires the current soil carbon content to be considered as part of the overall carbon cycle in the natural environment. The soil in this sense represents a temporary intermediate "storage". This applies not only to carbon, but also to all biogenic elements that pass successively through the soil, plants, hydrosphere and atmosphere, changing the form of their compounds.

For carbon, however, it is heretical that in the soil it is contained in a wide variety of forms.

- Carbon in plant biomass, living and dead, in the process of decomposition (oxidation);

- Non-humic substances - fresh or incompletely decomposed organic residues - Make up 10-15% of the organic matter (and carbon) in the soil. They include the following compounds:

Polysaccharides

Polypeptides

Polyphenols

Simple organic compounds

Acids

Esther

Alcohols

Others

- Humic substances

an organic substance specific in its composition and properties. It is a complex mixture of organic high molecular compounds with an acidic character. (Contains COOH groups)

Humic substances have different solubility in water, mineral and organic solvents. This feature is the basis of their separation in the course of their determination

The humic substances themselves are divided into:

Humic acids

Fulvic acids

Humines

Hematomelanin acids

A part (a very large one) of the humus substances are connected in the form of complex compounds with the mineral part of the soil, mainly with the hydro alumo silicates.

So

the question posed in this form, namely how the carbon behaves in the soil" is too general and there is no single answer

In the most general case, we need to have an idea of ​​the carbon profile of the soil itself. This is because each of the above groups of carbon-containing substances has a different humming behavior and tendency to leave the soil as a gas or as a water-soluble compound.

If we are talking about science and important research, then first of all the properties of the soil must be specified - at least the pH,

cation exchange sorption capacity and granulometric composition

After that, a laboratory profile of the contents and forms of the humus should also be made

Finally, under the already known conditions, we must determine the CO2 emissions

All this is if the answer to the question is from the field of science

If it is to give general recommendations, then all the measures that lead to the preservation of high molecular forms of organic matter in the soil also lead to the limitation of carbon emissions from the soil.

But to limit or modify the amount of total carbon emissions in the atmosphere by changing the organic composition of the soil is impossible

Yes, soil can significantly mitigate climate change by acting as a carbon sink. Through soil conservation practices like agroforestry, no-till farming, cover cropping, and adding organic amendments (such as compost or biochar), soils can store more carbon. This sequestered carbon helps reduce greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.

Soil amendments like biochar, compost, and crop residues are particularly effective in enhancing soil carbon storage due to their stable nature and ability to improve soil structure.

For further reading, check out the article-

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/384700343_Carbon_storage_in_sacred_groves_of_Uttar_Dinajpur_implications_for_climate_change_mitigation_and_conservation_strategies

Dear friends, I'm not much of an expert on the topic, however i find it realy interested. On the question, I was wondering whether we can simply afford to leave enough of the Earth's soil alone and not either build on top of it, put solar panels on top of it or use it to plant things we need to use or eat, for the soil to gift us back by playing a role in mitigating climate change. What do you think?

Dear Doctor

[Yes, soil plays a crucial role in mitigating climate change by acting as a carbon sink. Healthy, well-managed soils can store significant amounts of atmospheric CO2, effectively reducing greenhouse gas emissions. While soil management is a cost-effective and beneficial approach, it's not a standalone solution for reversing climate change. A combination of strategies, including renewable energy adoption, afforestation, and improved waste management, is necessary to achieve meaningful climate targets.

How Soil Mitigates Climate Change:

• Carbon Sequestration: Soils can store carbon from the atmosphere in organic matter, especially when managed sustainably. Practices like conservation tillage, cover cropping, and agroforestry enhance this capacity.
• Reduced Greenhouse Gas Emissions: Healthy soils can reduce the release of greenhouse gases like methane and nitrous oxide into the atmosphere.
• Improved Soil Health and Resilience: Sustainable soil management improves soil health, making it more resilient to climate change impacts.]

Dear Doctor

Go To

Interim report Role of soils in climate change mitigation

by: Dr. Ana Frelih-Larsen, Antonia Riedel, May Hobeika, Aaron Scheid

Prof. Dr. Andreas Gattinger, Dr. Wiebke Niether

Anne Siemons

Öko-Institut Berlin publisher: German Environment Agency

2024

[Soils have a double role as sources and carbon storages of GHG emissions. Globally, soils store two to three times more carbon than the atmosphere, but these carbon stocks have decreased significantly due to the conversion of land to agricultural use, peatland drainage, simplified crop rotations, removals of crop residues, separation of arable and livestock farming as well as losses from soil erosion. The climate mitigation potential associated with soil management includes three elements: 1) additional sequestration, which is primarily focused on mineral soils although peatlands can also sequester additional carbon once rewetted; 2) preservation of existing stocks (in particular peatlands because of the high losses on peatlands), and 3) reducing emissions associated with reduced application of fertilisers due to improved nutrient management and inclusion of, for example, legumes, compost/manure, and improved crop rotation]

Dear Dr Sundus F Hantoosh ,

Quite interesting stuff, thanks!

Best Wishes,

Haris