EJP-Soil First call: Understanding tradeoffs and interactions between SOC stocks and GHG emissions for climate-smart agri-soil management
Informations
- Funding country
Norway- Acronym
- -
- URL
- -
- Start date
- 1/1/2022
- End date
- 12/31/2025
- Budget
- 506,760 EUR
Fundings
| Name | Role | Start | End | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sustainable Research and Innovation in Food and Bio-based Industries | Grant | - | - | 506,759 EUR |
Abstract
Globally, soils store more carbon than vegetation. However, soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks are declining world-wide due to intensive agriculture, with detrimental effects for soil quality and fertility. Implementation of soil management methods targeted to increase SOC stocks can counteract this trend and, at the same time, absorb greenhouse gases (GHG). Management strategies commonly used to increase SOC stocks include the use of externally or internally recycled organic amendments (e.g., plant litter, residues, animal manures, digestates, biochar), alternative cropping practises (e.g., continuous green cover, cover crops) or measures that reduce SOC losses (e.g., reduced tillage, adapted grazing). However, these management strategies also have the potential to increase greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by stimulating decomposition of previously sequestered C and N thus increasing the emission of carbon dioxide (CO2) and nitrous oxide (N2O) and/or reducing methane (CH4) uptake. In the worst case, climate savings by increased SOC sequestration can be cancelled out by increased N2O and CH4 emissions. TRUESOIL will quantify the ‘true’ climate effect of management practices aimed at increasing SOC stocks by measuring CO2 exchange and CH4/N2O emissions simultaneously. Emissions will be monitored in ongoing field experiments in 11 partner countries inside (Germany, France, Spain, Portugal, Irland, Norway, Finland) and outside the EU (Chile, Argentina, Indonesia and Ethiopia). Soils will be sent to partner laboratories to study abiotic and biotic factors controlling soil carbon sequestration and interactions with GHG emissions in more detail. A highly prioritized question to be addressed is why certain soils show ‘carbon-saturation’, while others do not. Together, TRUESOIL will create a basis for developing scientifically sound and locally adapted management strategies which increase soil carbon sequestration while reducing GHG emissions.