Soil Carbon and Greenhouse CO2

The Loss of Soil Carbon. (into the atmosphere as CO2)

Modern farming methods have caused the loss of soil carbon equivalent to the burning of all the worlds forests. This enormous amount of carbon has all ended up in the atmosphere as CO2.
All plants and crops are "carbon based". For hundreds of years, we have been extracting carbon crops from our farmland without ever putting carbon back in the soil or allowing the natural cycles to re-generate it.
We throw lots of Nitrogen at the soil and think that's all it needs.

For over 15 years, Dr Christine Jones has been advocating more focus on the role of soil carbon mechanisms in restoring soil fertility and sequestering atmospheric carbon. She demonstrates simple farming techniques that would allow the worlds carbon-depleted farmlands to quickly sequester the worlds current excess of atmospheric CO2!
[read more here - AmazingCarbon.com] (see article "SOS - Save Our Soils")

Appropriately managed farmlands could effectively 'mop up' most of the excess carbon being emitted to the atmosphere, This process greatly improves water retention and fertility of the soil. Even without the 'carbon capture' advantage, the improvement of crop quality and volume would justify the expense and effort.

The process is quite amazing! Landline had an excellent coverage [at this link.]

Some points from her articles..
* "It would require only half a percent increase in soil carbon on 2 percent of our agricultural land to sequester all Australia’s CO2 emissions."
* Sugars formed in plant chloroplasts & exuded into soil by plant roots to support microbes..
* plant roots exude a vast array of chemical substances, all based on carbon..
* the flow of liquid carbon to soil is the primary pathway by which new topsoil is formed..
* for carbon to 'flow' to soil, there has to be a partnership between plant roots and the soil microbes that will receive that carbon..

Peer review & contributions to this article are welcome.

wip.