Managing Soils and Ecosystems for Mitigating Anthropogenic Carbon Emissions and Advancing Global Food Security
Year: 2010
Type: article
Abstract: Soil carbon (C) is a dynamic and integral part of the global C cycle. It has been a source of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) since the dawn of settled agriculture, depleting more than 320 billion metric tons (Pg) from the terrestrial pool, 78±12 Pg of which comes from soil. In comparison, approximately 292 Pg C have been emitted through fossil-fuel combustion since about 1750. However, terrestrial pools can act as a sink for as much as 50 parts per million of atmospheric CO2 for 100 to 150 years. The technical sink capacity of US soils is 0.288 Pg C per year; Earths terrestrial biosphere can act as a sink for up to 3.8 Pg C per year. The economic potential of C storage depends on its costs and cobenefits, such as global food security, water quality, and soil biodive'rsity. Therefore, optimally managing the soil C pool must be the basis of any strategy to improve and sustain agronomic production, especially in developing countries.
Source: BioScience
Author: Rattan Lal
Language: English
Subfield: Soil Science
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $5,088
Funder: Ohio State University
OpenAlex ID: W2113392134