A consortium of ten institutions—nine of them land-grant universities--has been awarded funding to study how farmers could help combat the phenomenon known as “global warming.” From K-State Research and Extension, Randall Kowalik has the story. 

 

(Randall Kowalik)

The burning of fossil fuels is the main human activity that creates carbon dioxide, one of the major greenhouse gases. K-State Research and Extension soil microbiologist Chuck Rice says that soil carbon sequestration—practices that pull carbon out of the air, and back down into the soil—can help reduce greenhouse gases:

 

(Chuck Rice)

In this field, there's crop rotations--we have a wheat-soybean-sorghum rotation; and then the other one is no-tillage, and no-till is a key practice because it doesn't disturb the soil. And so that helps store carbon in the soil, rather than releasing it into the atmosphere.

 

(Randall Kowalik)

The Consortium for Agricultural Soils Mitigation of Greenhouse Gases has received a one-million dollar grant from the Robertson Foundation to continue research into soil carbon sequestration and other ag-based practices. The results could mean a better environment, and increased agricultural yields:

 

(Chuck Rice)

So, in this no-till field, you see all the residue on the soil surface, but the benefit is below-ground, and so, if you pull a shovelful of soil out, you can see that even though it's been dry, there's moisture in here, and that residue holds that moisture in… and that's one of the benefits of increasing the carbon in the soil, besides helping the air.

 

(Randall Kowalik)

While more research is needed, soil carbon sequestration looks promising. For K-State Research and Extension, I'm Randall Kowalik.

 

 

OUTRO: Another financial incentive for farmers is the emerging credits market, where conservation efforts become a tangible commodity that can be sold to other industries.