Soil and its potential for storing carbon is gaining attention from farmers, researchers and even Congress
Shalamar Armstrong, associate professor of agronomy at Purdue University, holds a shovel full of soil, Thursday, July 13, 2023, in Fowler, Ind. Cover crops help with maintaining the structure of the soil and storing carbon in the soil, noted by the soil's darker color. DYSART, Iowa — — When Al Schafbuch cut back on plowing his Iowa fields decades ago and later began growing cover crops, he was out to save money on fertilizer and reduce erosion.
It's an area getting more attention from lawmakers, researchers and industry professionals. The U.S. Department of Agriculture this week announced a, including by creating a research network to monitor carbon in soil. And U.S. Sens. Tina Smith, D-Minn., and Todd Young, R-Ind., introduced a bill that Smith said would support the research needed to"properly credit soil carbon storage."
He hopes his precise calculations will help farmers make decisions that allow them to receive worthwhile incentives for sequestering carbon while maintaining their existing profits. Better quantifying soil carbon storage through research might make the offsets more verifiable, but it doesn't address other factors. For example, many farmers rent the land they work, and can't guarantee that carbon stored on their land will stay put in several decades if someone else is working the land.
U.S. Rep. Jared Huffman, D-Calif., last month introduced a bipartisan bill to support farmers in improving soil health, with incentives that don't necessarily involve the carbon market. He said farmers in his district have also described the benefits of regenerative practices, and that many would be interested in participating in carbon markets with “robust” accounting systems. But he added that those hoping for serious climate action shouldn't rely only on offsets.
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