Climate love
Image of Bertie Nuttall
Bertie Nuttall

82 w

Image of Downforce

Downforce

Climate love

Harnessing the Power of Soil to Close the Gap to Net Zero

A big climate love to Downforce and Jacqueline McGlade for their recent work that has uncovered the potential net-zero solution hiding right underneath our feet: Soil.
There’s actually more carbon stored beneath our feet than has been released into the atmosphere, and it can take plenty more!
There’s actually more carbon stored beneath our feet than has been released into the atmosphere, and it can take plenty more!

Downforce’s research suggests that making marginal improvements to agricultural soils worldwide could be the key to keeping global heating within the critical 1.5°C threshold. Apparently, by making improvements that result in 1% more carbon being stored in approximately half of the world's agricultural soils could absorb a staggering 31 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide annually. This amount nearly aligns with the 32 gigatonnes gap between current emissions reduction plans and the targets set to limit global heating. By embracing innovative farming techniques and investing in the health of our soils, we can take significant steps towards closing the gap to net-zero and securing a more sustainable future for generations to come. And this isn’t the only study that corroborates this finding, as Beef Central’s recent study has outlined some similar, albeit modest carbon sequestration improvements in Australia. As the World Economic Forum's Tania Strauss rightly stated, "Soil is like a bank account" - it's time we invest in its richness for the benefit of both the planet and ourselves.” By adopting smarter farming techniques that enhance fertility, yield, and carbon storage, we can potentially close the gap between planned emissions reduction and the carbon cuts needed by 2030 to stay on track for a safer climate future. And what this discovery truly showcases is that there are more solutions out there waiting to be discovered. We’re already harnessing the power of renewables, circular economies & business models, and carbon reduction, and yet there’s still more we’re uncovering that helps inch us closer to our net zero goals. In other words, We Can Do It!
https://amp-theguardian-com.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/amp.theguardian.com/environment/2023/jul/04/improving-farming-soil-carbon-store-global-heating-target


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  • Alan Solomon

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    82 w

    đź‘Ť

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    • We Don't Have Time

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      Dear Bertie Nuttall Your climate love has received over 50 agrees! We have reached out to Downforce by email and requested a response. I will keep you updated on any progress! To reach more people and increase the chance of a response, click the Share button above to share the review on your social accounts. For every new member that joins We Don't Have Time from your network, we will plant a tree and attribute it to you! /Adam, We Don't Have Time

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      • George Kariuki

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        82 w

        The call to embrace innovative farming techniques and invest in soil health I strongly resonate with.

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        • Fergus Graham

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          The latest film from the makers of Kiss The Ground are about to release their next film, Common Ground, which will inevitably shine a light on the importance of Soil. I’m also supporting a similar documentary, Six Inches of Soil - https://www.sixinchesofsoil.org/ - which is really exciting. Focused on the UK and will be out later this year on a limited release. Full release next year. I recommend following it. Lots of momentum building around this whole topic…

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          • Ingmar Rentzhog

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            @fergus_graham_183 Thanks. that is good. Sounds like a really important project

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          • Cynthia Joan Morrison

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            But ... Soils or plants will absorb more CO2 as carbon levels rise – but not both, Stanford study finds: The results contradict a widely accepted assumption in climate models that biomass and soil carbon will increase in tandem in the coming decades and highlight the importance of grasslands in helping to draw down carbon. https://news.stanford.edu/2021/03/24/one-earths-biggest-carbon-sinks-overestimated/?fbclid=IwAR2xPh7W3M8k276UvnYu-ujywLmziRDN7KN-mTcSXcdH4Dg_tMOgBKx6vHo

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            • Ajema Lydiah

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              A great initiative

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              • Karen Williams

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                And recently I heard of a company who creates soil in a tiny fraction of the time nature takes. If this was used as well it would appear to be great combination where soil has been depleted.

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                • Ingmar Rentzhog

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                  @karen_williams interesting. Do you have a link where I can read more about how you make soil

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                  • Sigrid Carole Davis

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                    @Rentzhog The company mentioned in the film "The Need to Grow" is Regenitech LLC. The founding member is Michael Smith.

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                  • DIPANJANA MAULIK

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                    Increasing the carbon content in soil carbon is a good idea and the success of this particular project in a particular area is encouraging. But we must remember that soil conditions vary widely and calculating the global carbon reduction potential on basis of this isolated study is oversimplification of the problem in hand. This study can be an eye opener and a good example on basis of which site-specific carbon capture plan can be developed. One may go through the detail study report to understand what kind of detailing have been done for this particular study area. The soil condition, agricultural practices, nitrogen content, livestock types, Ribosome content, types of microbes, plant physiology, grazing intensity, - everything significantly vary from one field to another field. Site specific planning and implementation shall be required to achieve desired level of carbon storage. Large scale implementation of appropriate good practices can contribute to significant reduction of CO2 emissions. This successful case study of earning hefty carbon credit can act as an incentive for many agricultural practitioners to opt for earning carbon credits by introducing carbon enrichment, This study shows the scope of improvement. But again, progress shall never be uniform. Overall, it is good start, which still has miles go.

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                    • Markus Lutteman

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                      Very interesting. Would love to know more about this study.

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                      • DIPANJANA MAULIK

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                        @markus_lutteman_141 detail report is downloadable.

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                      • Jan Berggren

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                        This is astonishing and amazing; WOW I will immediately contact my farmer friend - farmer with an a ! - to discuss this

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                        • Martin Meirhofer

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                          Great idea! Who teaches, implements, sponsors, controls and reports progress?

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                          • Petter Körnemark

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                            @martin_meirhofer yes, and how easy to implement? Let's hope we'll get some answers from Downforce

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                          • Princess

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                            Utilizing the strength of soil to bridge the path towards net zero is truly a smart and impressive approach. Great job on taking such a innovative and impactful step!

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                            • hilda Wangui

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                              Amazing milestone

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                              • johnte ndeto

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                                What an amazing idea

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