Soil carbon sponge (or soil sponge)[1] is porous, well-aggregated soil[2] in good health, better able to absorb and retain water. Australian microbiologist and climatologist, Walter Jehne, articulated the concept of the soil carbon sponge in his 2017 paper, Regenerate Earth,[3] connecting soil carbon with a restored water cycle[4] able induce planetary cooling through evaporative cooling and higher reflectance of denser green vegetation.[1] Cooling from increased cloud formation is another benefit of soil regeneration anticipated by Jehne.[5]

A soil carbon sponge has densities much lighter (1 gram/cc) as compared to the parent mineral soil (2.6–3.5 grams/cc).[5]

Intensive farming practices that leave bare soils, cultivate extensively, apply water needy fertilizers and biocides and extensive irrigation have accelerated the oxidation of soil carbon as CO2. These oxidative practices reduce the depth and function of soil carbon sponges. Soil carbon sponges can be negatively affected by fire and flooding.[6]

Global scale

It has been postulated that improved performance of soil carbon sponges at a global scale, could affect the earth's climate mainly through ecohydrology. Soil carbon sponges also serve as carbon sinks.[4] Afforestation, reforestation and cover cropping are methods to build and improve soil carbon sponges.[7] Afforestation provides environmental benefits, including increasing the soil quality and organic carbon levels in the soil, avoiding erosion and desertification.[7]

Observational evidence, that the southern Amazon rainforest triggers its own rainy season using water vapor from plant leaves, which then forms clouds above it has been reported. Airborne bacteria released from the plant leaves may seed these clouds, which result in rain droplet formations.[4] These findings may explain why deforestation affects the soil carbon sponge and links it to reduced rainfall.[8]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Pershouse, Didi (30 November 2020). "Why Communities Should Invest in Regenerative Agriculture and the Soil Sponge". The soil sponge (or "soil carbon sponge") is a living matrix that soaks up, stores, and filters water; holds landscapes in place; and provides nutrients for an entire food chain, from what would otherwise be bare rock, hardened clay, and desert sands and the sand is soil carbon sponge.
  2. ↑ "Fungi fights forest fire and builds the Global Carbon Soil Sponge". 10 January 2021. The Soil Carbon Sponge is porous, well-aggregated soil rich in plant roots, diverse life forms, nutrient availability, air, and often holding lots of water.
  3. ↑ "Enrich the soil, cool the planet – The Berkshire Edge". September 2, 2019. In his 2017 paper "Regenerate Earth" for Healthy Soils Australia, now Regenerate Earth.org, Jehne draws his reader's attention to the capacity for healthy soils to cool the planet by restoring the water cycle and sequestering carbon."
  4. 1 2 3 Jehne, Walter. "Regenerate Earth" (PDF). www.regenerate-earth.org. p. 12. This mixture of mineral and organic detritus and air (with vast exposed surface areas) formed the Earth's soil carbon sponge with its greatly enhanced capacity to infiltrate and retain rain, enhance access to essential nutrients, and support a diverse range of microbial processes.
  5. 1 2 Lancaster, Brad (2020). "Rainwater Harvesting for Drylands and Beyond" (2 ed.).
  6. ↑ Melillo, Jerry; Gribkoff, Elizabeth (2021). "Soil-Based Carbon Sequestration". MIT.
  7. 1 2 Suganuma, H.; Egashira, Y.; Utsugi, H.; Kojima, T. (July 2012). "Estimation of CO2 reduction amount by arid land afforestation in Western Australia". 2012 IEEE International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium: 7216–7219. doi:10.1109/IGARSS.2012.6351997. S2CID 31123240.
  8. ↑ Wright, Jonathon S.; Fu, Rong; Worden, John R.; Chakraborty, Sudip; Clinton, Nicholas E.; Risi, Camille; Sun, Ying; Yin, Lei (August 2017). "Rainforest-initiated wet season onset". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 114 (32): 8481–8486. doi:10.1073/pnas.1621516114. PMC 5558997. PMID 28729375.
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